The Indiana Pacers look for their second win in as many nights as they take on the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday at the Talking Stick Arena in Phoenix, Arizona.
The Pacers broke out of a two games losing skid with a 33 point win over the Utah Jazz. The Jazz played without superstar guard Donovan Mitchell but the Pacers also played without their leading scorer and all-star guard Victor Oladipo who recently aggravated a knee issue. On the other hand, the Suns are looking to bounce back from Sunday’s 107-118 loss to the Detroit Pistons which was their fourth loss in their last five games played.
The Indiana Pacers blasted the Donovan Mitchell-less Utah Jazz 121-88 on Monday to snap out of their two game losing streak. The Pacers were paced by reserve guard Doug McDermott who scored a game high 21 points. McDermott has averaged 12 points per game in the last 4 games. Indiana also got big contributions from Myles Turner who missed the previous game and Domantas Sabonis who was a game time decision due to an ankle injury. Turner had 16 points while Sabonis added 13 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists for Indiana.
The Pacers rank 26th in the league in offense, scoring only 105.6 points per game while shooting the ball at a 47% from the field and 36% from behind the three point arc. Prior to scoring 133 against the Jazz on Monday, the Pacers averaged 104.5 points in their previous two games, both of which they lost. Scoring will be the last of their worries on Tuesday night since their opponents on Tuesday, the Suns, are worse than them at #28 in the league.
The Phoenix Suns have not won more than 24 games in the last three seasons and things don’t look better this season. The suns are looking at another long season after starting their 2018-19 campaign with just 4 wins in their first 19 games. Entering this contest, the Suns have won just two out of their last 10 games. They’ve had losing streaks of three or more games already thrice this early in the season. Devin Booker leads the team with 24.9 points amd 7.1 assists while T.J. Warren is scoring 17.4 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for the Suns but outside Booker, Warren and rookie DeAndre Ayton, they have not found consistency all season long.
As we said earlier, the Suns are the 28th ranked team in terms of scoring points in the league at just 104.4 points per game this season. Phoenix shoots just 46% from the floor and 34% from the three point area. Phoenix suffers also on defense as they give up an average of 113.4 points per game this season which is good for fourth worst in the entire league.
The Phoenix Suns lead the Indiana Pacers in their all-time series 48-39 but the Pacers have won five out of the last six meetings including the last three games and the last three games played in Phoenix.
The Pacers are 3-2 SU in their last 5 games played and are 6-4 SU in 10 home games played this season. The Suns are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games played and are 3-6 SU in 9 home games played so far this season. Head to head, the Pacers are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games played including 3-0 SU in their last three meetings.
Injuries have hobbled the Pacers as of late with Oladipo (knee), Turner (ankle) and Sabonis(ankle) in sick bay. But while Oladipo is out of this game, which is a big blow to the Pacers, Turner and Sabonis (game time decision) played in the Pacers’ Monday game against the Jazz.
But even without Oladipo, the Pacers have more weapons than the Suns who mainly depend on Booker on the offensive side of things. With Turner back, the Suns should struggle with the Pacers’ frontline the way they did against Drummond and the Pistons last Sunday. We’re picking the Indiana Pacers to beat the Phoenix Suns on 11/27/18.
The Pacers are 8-10-1 in 19 games played this season and are 3-5-1 ATS in 9 road games played so far. The Suns are 8-11 ATS in 19 games played this season and are 5-4 ATS in 9 home games played. Head to head, the Suns are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 meetings but the Pacers are 3-0 ATS in their last 3 games played. Phoenix is 3-2 ATS in their last 5 home games against Indiana.
Phoenix has struggled against the spread this season, losing six out of their last seven games against Central Division opponents and losing 10 out of their last 13 points against teams with winning records. The Suns are also 7-21 ATS in their last 28 games after a road trip of more than 7 days. Give me the road team to cover the spread against the second to the lowest scoring team in the NBA. Prediction: Pacers -2.5
The under is 10-9 in the Pacers’ 19 games this season but the over is 6-3 in their 9 road games The under is likewise 10-9 in the Suns’ 19 games this season and the under is 6-3 in their 9 home games played so far. Head to head, the under is 6-4 in their last 10 meetings and the total has gone under in three out of their last four meetings in Phoenix.
These two teams rank in the bottom five in the league in terms of scoring. The Pacers are 26th and the Suns are 28th. This is the Pacers’ second game in two nights and after picking up the win in Utah, I don’t expect Indiana to be as productive. Historically, the total has gone under in five out of the last six games of Indiana when playing the second of a back to back schedule. Prediction: Under 214.5
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