Boston Celtics vs Indiana Pacers Prediction, 2/23/2023 Preview and Pick

Game: Boston Celtics vs Indiana Pacers

Date: Thursday, February 23, 2023

Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: Bally Sports Indiana

Odds/Point Spread: Boston (-8)

The Indiana Pacers are hosting the Boston Celtics at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday. Boston opens this contest as 8-point favorites. The over/under is 234.5.

The Celtics took the court against the Pistons and went home with a win by a final score of 127-109 in their last contest. In relation to personal fouls, the Celtics walked away with 18 while the Pistons finished the game with 16 personal fouls. They converted 11 of 29 attempts from 3-point land. Detroit finished 75.0% when shooting free throws by burying 12 of 16 attempts. In addition, Detroit pulled down 35 rebounds (6 offensive, 29 defensive) and earned 5 blocks. Detroit distributed 24 dimes and had 6 steals for this contest. Regarding defending, Boston allowed the other team to shoot 51.2% from the floor on 43 of 84 shooting. They also distributed 30 dimes in this game while forcing the opposition into 14 turnovers and having 10 steals. When it comes to pulling down boards, they collected 43 with 8 of them being of the offensive variety. From the free throw line, the Celtics buried 8 of 10 attempts for a rate of 80.0%. Boston ended the game with a 53.3% field goal percentage (49 out of 92) and knocked down 21 of their 45 shots from downtown.

Jayson Tatum is a player who was a factor for the contest. Tatum walked away from this one shooting 62.5% from the floor and recorded 7 dimes. He was on the hardwood for 34 mins and also pulled down 9 boards. He was able to score 38 points on 15 out of 24 shooting.

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Boston heads into this one with a record of 42-17 for the campaign. They turn it over 13.5 times per contest and as a team they commit 19.0 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Boston is snagging 45.1 boards per game and has racked up 1,558 dimes for the season, which ranks 6th in basketball in terms of passing the rock. The Celtics are connecting on 37.8% on shots from beyond the arc (941 of 2,492) and 82.6% from the charity stripe. They average 117.9 points per contest (4th in the league) while going 47.4% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Celtics are forcing 12.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 19.5 fouls. They are conceding 35.3% on 3-pointers and they are ranked 7th in the NBA in PPG allowed (111.7). The Celtics defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 46.6% (2,480 of 5,318) and they concede 43.6 rebounds per game as a squad. They rank 3rd in the NBA in giving up assists to their opponents with 1,349 conceded so far this season.

For their last game, the Pacers went home victorious with a score of 117-113 when they played the Bulls. The Pacers were able to collect 35 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 41 in this contest. They coughed it up 17 times, while recording 6 steals in this contest. The Bulls earned 21 personal fouls for this contest which got the Pacers to the charity stripe for a total of 22 shots. They were able to bury 21 of the free throws for a rate of 95.5%. In terms of three-point shots, Indiana buried 18 of 43 tries (41.9%). In all, the Pacers walked away from this one shooting 39 out of 82 from the floor which gave them a rate of 47.6%. The Pacers allowed the Bulls to make 41 out of 84 tries from the floor which had them shooting 48.8% for the contest. They finished shooting 42.9% from distance by connecting on 15 out of 35 and walked away from this one shooting 16 out of 21 at the charity stripe (76.2%). With respect to team rebounding, Indiana allowed Chicago to snag 38 in total (6 on the offensive glass).

Buddy Hield ended up being a major contributor for the Pacers in the matchup. He knocked down 8 out of 12 in this contest for a field goal percentage of 66.7%, and accumulated 4 rebounds. Hield earned 27 points in his 28 minutes on the hardwood and earned 1 assist for this game.

Indiana has a mark of 26-34 for the season. The Pacers are committing 21.3 personal fouls every game and they go 79.6% from the charity stripe. Their rate of earning assists is at 26.4 times per game (7th in basketball) and they are turning it over 15.2 times per game. Indiana has scored 6,870 points this season (114.5 per contest) and they pull in 41.6 boards per game. When it comes to offensive execution, the Pacers are hitting on 45.9% from the floor, which has them ranked 25th in basketball.

The Indiana defense gives up 37.4% on shots from 3-point land (753 of 2,016) and their opponents are converting on 80.8% of their free throw attempts. They concede 26.3 dimes and 45.6 boards per game, which is ranked 27th and 27th in the league. The Pacers are ranked 22nd in the league in points given up per game with 117.1. They have forced 15.7 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 47.7% from the field (18th in basketball).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Boston (-8)

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