Milwaukee Bucks vs Indiana Pacers Prediction, 12/31/2024 Preview and Pick

Game: Milwaukee Bucks vs Indiana Pacers

Date: Tuesday, December 31, 2024

Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: FanDuel Sports Network

The Indiana Pacers (16-17) will try to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks (16-14) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Tuesday.

The Bucks played the Bulls and went home with a loss by a final score of 116-111 in their last contest. Milwaukee ended the contest with a 40.2% field goal percentage (41 out of 102) and buried 15 of their 45 3-point shots. At the charity stripe, the Bucks converted 14 of their 14 tries for a percentage of 100.0%. When talking about hauling in boards, they compiled 43 with 6 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 27 assists for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and having 6 steals. Pertaining to defending, Milwaukee allowed the other team to shoot 47.4% from the field on 45 of 95 shooting. Chicago distributed 33 assists and had 4 steals for this game. Furthermore, Chicago pulled down 52 boards (11 offensive, 41 defensive) and had 7 blocks. Chicago went 70.6% from the free throw line by knocking down 12 of their 17 attempts. They also knocked down 14 out of their 36 shots from long range. When discussing personal fouls, the Bucks ended up finishing with 16 and the Bulls totaled 16 personal fouls.

Damian Lillard is a player who was a major factor for this contest. He ended up walking away with 29 points on 8 out of 19 shooting. He was on the court for 35 minutes and grabbed 6 rebounds. Lillard finished 42.1% from the floor and distributed 12 dimes.

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Milwaukee heads into this contest with a mark of 16-14 for the year. They are averaging 112.4 pts per contest (13th in the league) while connecting on 47.8% from the field. The Bucks are connecting on 38.9% on shots beyond the perimeter (436 of 1,122) and 73.4% from the charity stripe. As a team, Milwaukee is snagging 43.1 boards per game and has 733 dimes this season, which ranks 25th in the NBA in terms of passing. They are losing possession via turnover 14.3 times per contest and as a group are committing 18.4 personal fouls on a nightly basis.

On the defensive end of the court, the Bucks are forcing their opponents into 13.6 turnovers every game while drawing 18.5 personal fouls. They give up 36.3% on 3-point attempts and they are 12th in the league in opponents PPG (111.3). The Bucks are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 45.3% (1,215 of 2,683) and they relinquish 44.9 boards per contest as a squad. They are ranked 7th in the NBA in giving up assists to the opposition with 765 conceded for the campaign.

In their last game, the Pacers walked away with a victory by a final of 123-114 against the Celtics. The Pacers earned 39 defensive boards and 11 offensive rebounds totaling 50 for the contest. They also gave up possession of the ball 9 times, while getting 6 steals in this game. The Celtics were called for 22 personal fouls for the matchup which got the Pacers to the free throw line for 27 attempts. They were able to knock down 22 of them for a percentage of 81.5%. Pertaining to shots from beyond the perimeter, Indiana buried 9 of 23 attempts (39.1%). When the game finished, the Pacers ended up going 46 for 87 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 52.9%. The Pacers permitted the Celtics to bury 43 of 93 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 46.2% for this contest. They went 29.6% from distance by hitting 16 out of 54 and ended up shooting 12 of 19 from the charity stripe (63.2%). When talking about rebounding, Indiana allowed Boston to snag 41 in all (8 on the offensive glass).

Tyrese Haliburton pitched in for the Pacers for the matchup. He made 11 of 19 for the game for a rate of 57.9%, and totaled 6 rebounds. Haliburton scored 31 points in his 36 minutes on the hardwood and tallied 7 dimes for the contest.

Indiana has a record of 16-17 so far this season. The Pacers commit 19.8 fouls every game while shooting 78.9% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 27.8 times per game (9th in the league) and they lose possession via turnover 14.2 times per contest. Indiana has tallied 3,785 pts so far this year (114.7 per contest) and they average 41.1 boards per game. When it comes to offense, the Pacers are connecting on 48.8% from the field, which ranks them 4th in the NBA.

The Indiana defense surrenders 36.1% on shots from behind the 3-point line (447 of 1,237) and their opponents are connecting on 77.1% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 25.9 assists and 44.1 total rebounds per game, which has them ranked 12th and 17th in the league. The Pacers on the defensive side of the court are 22nd in the NBA in points allowed per game with 116.8. They are able to force 14.2 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 47.5% from the field (23rd in the league).

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Indiana

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