New York Knicks at Philadelphia 76ers | 2012-03-21 | NBA Basketball | Betting Pick by FirstDown

NBA Basketball

2012-03-21 - New York Knicks at Philadelphia 76ers

A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown

New York Knicks @ Philadelphia 76ers
United States: NBA Basketball
Wednesday 21 March 2012 - Tip Off 7pm ET
11pm (British Standard Time)

Preview

Mike D'Antoni's resignation from his role as the Head Coach of the New York Knicks (22-24) has seen the team have an upturn in fortunes, although this is going to be one of the tougher tests they could be facing. The Philadelphia 76ers (26-20) have not been in the greatest form, but they still are one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.

This is not just an important game because of the old rivalry between the franchises, but the Knicks 4 game winning run, coupled with the 76ers losing 3 of their last 4 games means New York are still in with a chance of winning the Atlantic Division as they trail Philadelphia by 4 games.

New York have been playing well for Mike Woodson, winning their 4 games under their new Coach by an average of 22.5 points per game and they blew out Toronto last night at Madison Square Garden. They are getting some solid production from all of their starters as the team all seem to be pulling in the same direction.

Carmelo Anthony will be hoping to bring his own numbers up in this game as he is averaging 15 points and 5 rebounds in the current 4 game winning run the Knicks are enjoying, but he has had plenty of success against the 76ers. In fact, Anthony is averaging 26.7 points and 9.7 rebounds over the last 3 contests against Philadelphia as a New York Knick.

Philadelphia themselves got back to winning ways when they blew out the NBA's worst team, the Charlotte Bobcats, but that has not erased the fact that they lost to Indiana, Miami and Chicago in consecutive games, all teams that are amongst the best in the Eastern Conference. That has given Boston and New York the chance to overhaul Philadelphia in the Atlantic Division as the regular season draws to a close.

The 76ers have a lot of players that contribute to their successes, while the Defense is where they really make hay. This is an area where they will be tested as the Knicks have scored at least 100 points in each of their last 4 games, while reaching at least 94 points in their last 8 games.

Head to Head

The two teams have split the season series 1-1 so far, with both games taking place at Madison Square Garden.

The Knicks had won 3 in a row in the series before the defeat a couple of weeks ago, although they are 7-2 against the spread in the last 9 games in the series.

The road team has enjoyed plenty of success in recent games, going 10-3 against the spread in the last 13 in the series.

Philadelphia are 15-10 against the spread at home this season, New York are 9-13 on the road.

Philadelphia are 21-12 against the spread as the favourite, New York are 9-10 as the underdog.

Other Interesting Trends

Philadelphia are 14-6 against the spread in their last 20 games as the home favourite. However, that drops to 1-5 when they are favoured by between 0.5 and 4.5 points.

They are 6-1 against the spread in their last 7 games against a team with a losing record on the road.

New York are 15-6 against the spread as the road underdog given between 0.5 and 4.5 points.

Prediction

I am going to back the underdog New York Knicks to keep this close for the following reasons:

First, the Knicks have gone 6-3 against the spread when playing the second of back to back nights play.

Second, the pressure is going to be on Philadelphia, who have been out of form, to maintain their lead in the Atlantic Division, while the road team has enjoyed a lot of success in the recent games in the series.

Third, the Knicks have enjoyed playing against the better defensive teams in the NBA, finding a way to keep things close against them with the power scorers they have. New York have gone 6-3 against the spread against teams that are allowing an average of less than 91 points per game.