The Philadelphia 76ers take on the Detroit Pistons in Detroit on Friday in the third game between these teams this season.
These teams split their first two meetings with each team winning on their respective home floors. The third game will be interesting because this marks Jimmy Butler’s first game against the Pistons while wearing the Sixers’ colors.
Philadelphia saw its four game winning streak end in Toronto as the Raptors beat the Sixers 113-102 in their most recent game. Joel Embiid scored just 10 points on 5-17 shooting while the Raptors scored 27 points off 21 Philadelphia turnovers to pull away and beat the Sixers. The loss dropped the Sixers to 17-9 and second in the Atlantic Division team standings.
A healthy Embiid continues to impress for the Sixers. The former Kansas Jayhawk is averaging 26.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game to lead the Sixers in all three statistical departments. Ben Simmons is averaging 15.2 points while leading the team with 8 assists per game. New addition Jimmy Butler is averaging 19.9 points per game for the Sixers and is making a big difference. Butler will play for the first time as a Sixer against Detroit.
Philly enters this game as the 8th best scoring team in the league at 113.7 points per game. They are also 5th in assists at 26.5 per game and 4th in rebounding at 48.0 per contest. However, the Sixers are allowing their opponents to score 111.8 points per game, good for 21st in the entire league.
The Pistons look to rebound after getting blown out in their last two games. Detroit lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder 110-83 on Monday and they were dropped by the Milwaukee Bucks 115-92 on Wednesday. Prior to their two game skid, the Pistons had won five games in a row in what has been one of their best start in recent years.
The Pistons are led by their powerhouse frontline of Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond. Griffin has regained his All-Star form this season, averaging 24.9 points, 9.1 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. Drummond is the NBA’s best rebounder at 15.5 rebounds per game and he is also scoring 18.0 points per game and blocking 1.7 shots per night. The Pistons may be without Reggie Bullock in this game because of an ankle injury.
Detroit ranks 19th in the league in team scoring at 109.4 points per game. The Pistons average only 21.3 assists per game which puts them at #27 in the team rankings. On the defensive end, Detroit is the 7th best rebounding team in the NBA at 47.5 rebounds per game. They also allow 109.5 points per game, which is the 10th best scoring defense in the league.
The Sixers and Pistons have played each other a total of 372 times during the regular season and the 76ers lead the all-time series 216 to 156. The Sixers have also won five out of their last six meetings including three out of the last five games played in Detroit. They have played twice already this season and have split their first two meetings with Detroit winning last October 23 133-132 in OT and Philly coming up victorious last November 3rd 109-99.
Philadelphia is 4-1 SU in their last five games played and and 4-11 SU in their last 15 games on the road. Detroit is 5-2 SU in their last 7 games and 9-4 SU in 13 home games this season. Head to head, the Sixers are 5-1 SU in their last six meetings but the Pistons are 9-4 SU in their last 13 home games against the Sixers.
The Pistons have been playing well lately, winning seven out of their last 10 games played. Detroit is also solid at home at 9-4 SU. The Sixers meanwhile have won 8 out of their last ten games played. There are no significant injuries on both clubs except for Markelle Fultz who is out with a thoracic outlet syndrome.
The Sixers have been good as expected but the Pistons are surprising people with their 13-9 start. Griffin and Drummond have become a fearsome frontcourt pairing who could give the Sixers trouble in this game. I like this matchup a lot and I think that it’s going to be a close call. In which case, I am picking the home team to win this game. We’re picking the Detroit Pistons to beat the Philadelphia 76ers on 12/7/18.
The Sixers are 3-12 ATS in their last 15 games played on the road and are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 road games against the Pistons. Detroit is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games against teams with a losing road record. Head to head, the Sixers are 5-1 ATS in their last six games played but are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 games in Detroit.
Detroit is 5-0 ATS in their last five Friday games and 5-2 ATS in their last seven home games. The Sixers are 4-8 SU and 3-9 ATS in 12 road games this season while the Pistons are 9-4 SU at home. I’ll take my plus points here. Prediction: Pistons +2.5
The total has gone under in four out of the last five games for the Sixers. The over is 13-6 in their last 19 games played on the road. The under is 4-1 in Detroit’s last five games and the under is also 4-2 in the last six head to head meetings between these two teams.
The under is 4-0 in the last four games overall of each team while the Pistons have averaged just 87.5 points per game in their last two games played and the Sixers have scored 102.5 points per game in their own last two games played. 15 of the Sixers’ games have hit the over but with Detroit owning a Top 10 defense and playing at home, I think this is going to be a low scoring affair. Prediction: Under 220
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