It will be a showdown between two great offenses when the Milwaukee Bucks (20-9), 8-point favorites, challenge the New Orleans Pelicans (15-16) at Fiserv Forum. The game’s Over/Under (O/U) opened at 233 points and it will air on Fox Sports Net Wisconsin at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, December 19, 2018.
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Milwaukee Bucks Betting Odds
Both teams pushed in their last game. The Bucks (3-point favorites) beat the Detroit Pistons, 107-104, while the Pelicans (6-point favorites) were defeated by the Miami Heat, 102-96. The Milwaukee game went 13.5 points under the projected point total of 224.5, while the New Orleans game finished 23 points under the projected point total of 221.
The Bucks forced 16 turnovers and had a better effective field goal percentage (0.551 vs. 0.523). New Orleans, meanwhile, forced Miami into a turnover percentage of 15.1 (above the 11.4 mark opponents have averaged against New Orleans this season). Milwaukee was led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. Anthony Davis had a solid performance for New Orleans, putting up 27 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists.
The Pelicans dominated this series last year, emerging victorious in both contests. In the last contest, New Orleans won 123-121. New Orleans had a much better offensive rebounding percentage (23.9 vs. 18.8). Milwaukee, on the other hand, did a fantastic job of making free throws (26-29; 89.7 percent). This will be the first matchup of the year between these two teams.
Pelicans games have a slight tendency to finish over the projected point total (48.4 percent). New Orleans comes into the contest with records of 15-16 straight up (SU) and 14-17 against the spread (ATS).
Vegas has typically been fairly accurate when predicting totals of Bucks games, with 15 overs compared to 14 unders. Additionally, Milwaukee owns records of 20-9 SU and 15-13-1 ATS.
Julius Randle has taken his game to another level recently for New Orleans, averaging 25 points,12.0 rebounds,3.2 assists over the last five games.
The prolific offense of Milwaukee (third in the league with an offensive efficiency of 111.6) will square off against the bottom-tier defense of New Orleans (25th in the league with a defensive efficiency of 109.8). The Bucks figure to have the advantage on that side of the ball. Moreover, the Pelicans, who rank fifth in offensive rebounding percentage (26.0 percent), will clash against the Bucks, who rank first in defensive rebounding percentage (80.8 percent).
New Orleans Pelicans at Milwaukee Bucks ATS Pick
NBA Tip: SU Winner – Bucks, ATS Winner – Bucks, O/U – Under
Betting Notes:
- The Bucks rank 5 in blocks per game (5.896551724137931) while the Pelicans rank 17 in blocks allowed per game (5.129032258064516).
- Milwaukee ranks first in points allowed in the paint per game (40.5) while New Orleans ranks 24th (51.0).
- The Bucks rank second in three pointers attempted per game (39.9) while the Pelicans rank 23rd (28.7).
- Milwaukee ranks first in fast break points allowed per game (9.2) while New Orleans ranks 21st (14.3).
- Milwaukee ranks 1 in points off turnovers allowed per game (14.03448275862069) while New Orleans ranks 17 (17.258064516129032).
- The Pelicans rank first in second chance points per game (16.1) while the Bucks rank 24th (12.1).
- The Bucks average 26.551724137931036 assists per game, which ranks 5 in the NBA. The Pelicans rank 24 in assists allowed per game (25.193548387096776).
- Milwaukee ranks 1 in rebounds per game (49.89655172413793) while New Orleans ranks 11 in rebounds allowed per game (44.064516129032256).
- Milwaukee ranks third in steals allowed per game (6.9) while New Orleans ranks 25th (8.8).
- When allowing below 100 points, Milwaukee is 6-0 and New Orleans is 2-0.
- The Bucks are 20-7 when they score above 100 points, while the Pelicans are 15-14.
- New Orleans is 6-9 ATS on the road, while Milwaukee is 10-6 ATS at home.
- The Pelicans have 8 unders and 7 overs in 15 road games.
- Of the Bucks’ 16 home games, they have 9 overs and 7 unders.
Bettings Trends:
- In their last five games, New Orleans and Milwaukee have both had 5 unders.
- The Bucks are 3-1-1 ATS over their last five games, while the Pelicans are 2-3.
- During their last five games, the Bucks have scored an average of 106.0 points per game (11.6 below their season average) and allowed an average of 102.0 points per game (6.8 below their season average).
- The Pelicans have been outscored by an average of 2.2 points in their last five games. For the season, New Orleans has defeated opponents by an average of 1.6 points.
