The eighth-seeded Orlando Magic (32-37) are coming off a dismal meeting with the defending NBA champion Toronto Raptors, and enter their game tonight with the Philadelphia 76ers (41-27) having lost two games in a row. Orlando scored a season-low 35 points in the first half of their potential first-round playoff preview with Toronto. They never recovered from that stifling start, eventually losing to the Raptors 109-99. To add injury to insult, PF Aaron Gordon hurt his hamstring in the game. Gordon is listed as day-to-day. Below we’ll be taking a sportsbook look at this Magic vs 76ers NBA matchup.
Magic vs 76ers Sportsbook Preview
The sixth-seeded 76ers, on the other hand, are riding a two-game win streak after beating the San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards. However, the victory against the Wizards proved to be costly for the Sixers. Star player Ben Simmons exited the game in the third quarter with a leg injury and has since been diagnosed with a subluxation of the left kneecap. Simmons and his near-triple-double season average of 16.4 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 8 APG will be missing from Philadelphia’s lineup.
Tip-off is at 6:30 pm EST and the Sixers are favored by 4.5 points. You can watch the game on TNT from the comfort of your own living room all while tracking your sports betting in real-time. Speaking of real-time, we have live betting available for this game, too.
Magic vs 76ers: A Look Inside the Stats
Only five NBA teams score fewer points per game than Orlando, and Philadelphia is not a whole lot better. They both rank below the current league average of 111.59 PPG. It’s reasonable to expect even lower total numbers due to the absence of Aaron Gordon for the Magic and Ben Simmons for the Sixers. This is especially true since the Magic and 76ers both have stout defenses, to begin with. They’re ranked 6th and 7th in points allowed, respectively, so this game is shaping up to be a low-scoring affair.
A betting man would take a look at the Over/Under, with a focus on the latter. A closer look at the total scores in their previous matchups makes the case for betting on the under that much stronger.
BetUS has all the usual NBA odds available for this and every game in our sportsbook, plus a ton of cool props you can bet on. See those props by clicking the SHOW PROPS button you see above the Total.
Head-to-Head
The Magic lead the season series 2-0, having beaten the Sixers in Orlando twice this season. Back on November 13th, All-Star C Joel Embiid sat out for the 76ers, paving the way for a 25-point, 12-rebound night from Magic All-Star C Nikola Vucevic. Philadelphia only managed to score 15 points in the 4th quarter as Orlando rolled them 112-97.
December 27th’s contest was tight throughout, coming down to a desperation 3-point heave from big man Joel Embiid that missed the mark at the buzzer. Embiid and F Tobias Harris each had 24 points and 11 rebounds in the game for the Sixers, but the Magic employed a balanced attack and outlasted them, breathing a sigh of relief in front of their Amway Center fans.
In the first game, an NBA All-Defensive Team player was missing from the court. Joel Embiid is a daunting 7-footer, and his absence at least partly explains why the Magic scored 112 points that game, rather than the 98 points they scored when he suited up for their next matchup. Philadelphia has been offensively consistent, if nothing else, scoring 97 points in each contest vs. Orlando this season. The November matchup sans-Embiid resulted in 209 total points, while the Christmas hangover game resulted in a total of 195 points.
For tonight’s game, betting under 222 total points is looking more appealing by the minute.
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