by Hollywood Sports
Friday, Mar 31, 2023The Philadelphia 76ers may be flying under the radar in the Eastern Conference playoff race when compared to the Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics. But the Sixers may prove difficult for either team to beat when they potentially play in the second round of the playoffs and/or the Eastern Conference Finals.
With their 117-110 victory at home against Toronto to end the month on March 31st, Philly begins April with a 51-26 record, good for third place in the conference. As a 4-point favorite against the Raptors, the 76ers raced out to a 77-57 halftime lead after outscoring Toronto by a 46-27 margin in the second quarter.
Joel Embiid continued his case as the Most Valuable Player in the league by scoring 25 points and pulling down 12 rebounds. In 14 games this month, Embiid is scoring 33.8 points-per-game on 58.9% shooting from the field. He is pulling down 9.3 rebounds-per-game.
Philadelphia began the week by extending a mini-losing streak to three games in a 116-111 loss at Denver as a 7-point underdog at Denver on Monday. After finishing that four-game road trip out west, the Sixers returned home determined to tighten things up on the defensive end of the court after allowing the Nuggets to make 50.6% of their shots, the highest opponent’s field goal percentage in their previous five games.
The 76ers have played 5 of their last 8 games Under the Total after losing two games in a row — and they have played 7 of their last 9 games Under the Total after losing four of their last five games. They responded to that three-game losing streak with a 116-108 victory at home against Dallas as a 5.5-point favorite on ESPN's Wednesday broadcast. They held the Mavericks to 46.8% shooting from the field in the win.
Philly had seen a dip in their 3-point shooting going into that game. They were making only 36.6% of their 3-pointers in their previous ten games -- as opposed to their 38.6% shooting mark from behind the arc overall. Hosting the porous Mavericks defense did the trick as the Sixers made 17 of their 36 shots from behind the arc for a red-hot 47.2% clip from 3-point range. They followed that up on Friday night by nailing 12 of their 31 shots from 3-point range for a 38.7% clip.
The Sixers have been defending the perimeter better as of late. They returned home on Wednesday ranking second in the NBA by holding their opponents to hit just 32.1% of their 3-pointers in their last ten games. In their last ten games, Philly ranked fifth in the NBA in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency before playing Dallas. The Mavericks shoot a higher percentage of 3s than any team in the league and made 18 of their 46 shots from behind the arc on Wednesday. But Philly neutralized that 39.1% shooting by trading one less made 3-pointer by seizing +11 net points against Dallas at the charity stripe. They then held the Raptors to 8 of 26 shooting from behind the arc for a 30.8% shooting clip to end the month on Friday.
After a 1-4 start to the season, the 76ers have posted a 50-22 record which ties the Celtics winning percentage for the season. Philadelphia is lurking as the playoffs get set to start in a couple of weeks. Bettors should take notice.
Best of luck -- Frank.
With their 117-110 victory at home against Toronto to end the month on March 31st, Philly begins April with a 51-26 record, good for third place in the conference. As a 4-point favorite against the Raptors, the 76ers raced out to a 77-57 halftime lead after outscoring Toronto by a 46-27 margin in the second quarter.
Joel Embiid continued his case as the Most Valuable Player in the league by scoring 25 points and pulling down 12 rebounds. In 14 games this month, Embiid is scoring 33.8 points-per-game on 58.9% shooting from the field. He is pulling down 9.3 rebounds-per-game.
Philadelphia began the week by extending a mini-losing streak to three games in a 116-111 loss at Denver as a 7-point underdog at Denver on Monday. After finishing that four-game road trip out west, the Sixers returned home determined to tighten things up on the defensive end of the court after allowing the Nuggets to make 50.6% of their shots, the highest opponent’s field goal percentage in their previous five games.
The 76ers have played 5 of their last 8 games Under the Total after losing two games in a row — and they have played 7 of their last 9 games Under the Total after losing four of their last five games. They responded to that three-game losing streak with a 116-108 victory at home against Dallas as a 5.5-point favorite on ESPN's Wednesday broadcast. They held the Mavericks to 46.8% shooting from the field in the win.
Philly had seen a dip in their 3-point shooting going into that game. They were making only 36.6% of their 3-pointers in their previous ten games -- as opposed to their 38.6% shooting mark from behind the arc overall. Hosting the porous Mavericks defense did the trick as the Sixers made 17 of their 36 shots from behind the arc for a red-hot 47.2% clip from 3-point range. They followed that up on Friday night by nailing 12 of their 31 shots from 3-point range for a 38.7% clip.
The Sixers have been defending the perimeter better as of late. They returned home on Wednesday ranking second in the NBA by holding their opponents to hit just 32.1% of their 3-pointers in their last ten games. In their last ten games, Philly ranked fifth in the NBA in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency before playing Dallas. The Mavericks shoot a higher percentage of 3s than any team in the league and made 18 of their 46 shots from behind the arc on Wednesday. But Philly neutralized that 39.1% shooting by trading one less made 3-pointer by seizing +11 net points against Dallas at the charity stripe. They then held the Raptors to 8 of 26 shooting from behind the arc for a 30.8% shooting clip to end the month on Friday.
After a 1-4 start to the season, the 76ers have posted a 50-22 record which ties the Celtics winning percentage for the season. Philadelphia is lurking as the playoffs get set to start in a couple of weeks. Bettors should take notice.
Best of luck -- Frank.
