Charlotte Hornets vs Boston Celtics

All the numbers point to Boston’s continued dominance of the Charlotte Hornets tonight at TD Garden except for one – No. 11. As in Kyrie Irving and his status for the game. The Celtics point guard is a game-time decision and could miss his third game this week as he recovers from a hip injury. Despite that, the Celtics opened as 8-point favorites against Charlotte. The total opened at 218.5.

Hornets vs Celtics Game Center

Third Meeting This Season

Boston and Charlotte have split the first two games they’ve played this season, with the home team winning each time. In the most recent game on December 23, the Celtics came away with a 119-103 win at the Garden, covering the 7.5 points they were laying in the process.

On November 19 in North Carolina, the Hornets covered the spread for just the second time in 13 games against the Celtics as they won 117-112 as 3.5-point underdogs. In that game, the Hornets shot 48.3 percent from the floor and when hitting that mark or better, they are 13-2 SU this season.

Maybe more significant, however, is that Boston has shot better than 50 percent from the floor in both games and the Hornets are just 2-13 SU when teams shoot that well against them.

Celtics Are Playing Some Excellent Basketball

Boston is 10-4 SU and 7-7 ATS in January while scoring 113.5 points per game on 47.4 percent shooting. On Saturday night at home to the Warriors, the only game they’ve lost in their past seven, the Celtics played an excellent game and truly deserved a better fate.

This month, the Celtics are shooting 38.9 percent from three-point territory to rank fifth in the NBA, are second in free-throw percentage (83.9 percent) and have a field-goal percentage of 47.4 to rate eighth.

In comparison, the Hornets are No. 23 in three-point percentage, No. 21 in free-throw percentage and No. 25 from the floor.

My Best Bet For Tonight  

I’m going to lay the points with the Celtics tonight. In seven games without Kyrie this season, the Celtics are 5-2 SU with an average margin of 20.6 points in the wins. Those wins came against New Orleans, Dallas, Minnesota, Cleveland and New York – with the wins over New Orleans, Dallas and Minnesota all in the double digits.

It’s still possible that Kyrie dresses tonight and that would likely drive the spread higher, so if you can get in at 8-8.5 points, I think it’s a good play.

If you’re interested in prop betting, take a look at the OVER/UNDER points on Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier when Irving’s status is finalized – you may catch a good number if you’re quick!