The away teams prevailed on Thursday night, with all three road teams taking home the victory. Friday’s action could see similar results since all three road teams are currently favored to win their matchups. The Bucks and Suns will be up for a test after each team failed to defend their home court in Game 2 due to key injuries involving their All-Stars Khris Middleton and Devin Booker. Injuries can ruin momentum after a successful regular season, so it will be interesting to monitor how these two teams make adjustments for the remainder of Round 1. Let’s dive into the best NBA bets today, picks and NBA betting tips for Friday, April 22.
Best NBA Bets Today: Game Tips & Betting Predictions
Bucks vs. Bulls Best Bet
The Bucks travel to Chicago on Friday night to take on the Bulls in Game 3 with the series tied 1-1. Chicago outlasted the Bucks 114-110 in Milwaukee on Wednesday behind a playoff career-high 41 points from DeMar DeRozan. The Bucks swept the Bulls 4-0 in their regular-season matchup, but all that matters at the moment is this playoff series which is tied up heading into Game 3 tonight. Can the Bulls take advantage of Middleton’s absence to take an early 2-1 lead in Round 1?
Milwaukee was dealt with some tough news on Wednesday with Middleton exiting Game 2 with a sprained MCL injury. The Bucks will have to play the rest of the series without him as he will be forced to sit out the next two weeks before being re-evaluated. The Bucks are 7-9 this season without Middleton on the floor, averaging 110.8 points per game on offense. The Bulls now have one less shooter to game plan for, giving Chicago’s defense the ability to apply more pressure on Giannis, forcing players like Jrue Holiday and Brook Lopez to step up their offensive production. The Bucks have not had as easy of a road in Round 1 as many expected. They blew a 16-point lead in Game 1, but their defense came through in the end to pull off the victory. Milwaukee held Chicago to 32.3% from the field, including a seven for 37 mark from downtown. The Bucks played from behind for most of Game 2, as they fell behind in the first quarter and never led again. The Milwaukee Bucks averaged 115.2 points on 46.7% shooting and allowed 111.8 points to opponents in the regular season.
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The Bulls completed their task of stealing home-court advantage with a win over the Bucks in Game 2. The series is split 1-1 heading into Game 3 in Chicago. As a team, the Bulls shot 49% from the field and had success from beyond the arc finishing 12 for 25, from deep which was just enough to escape with a narrow win on Wednesday. The Bulls enter Friday with a healthy team besides the absence of Lonzo Ball, who is still recovering from a knee injury. Chicago went an awful 2-21 against top-four teams from each conference in the regular season, which led many to believe they stood no chance against the Bucks in this series. The Bulls proved doubters wrong in Game 2 and now have a great chance to take advantage of their home court and take a 2-1 lead over the Bucks in tonight’s matchup.
These two teams rank 14th and 16th in offensive rating and first and second in defensive rating through the first three games of the NBA playoffs. Despite the Bucks fast pace of play, Milwaukee has had issues finding easy offense through two games. Head to head, the under is 5-1 in the last six meetings. In six matchups this season, the game total is averaging 212.3 points. The Bucks will feel the impact of Middleton’s absence as their offense averages 5 fewer points per game without him this season. Expect the Bulls to ride the momentum from Wednesday’s win and take advantage of Game 3 on their home court on Friday. Anticipate the Bucks to tighten up their defense as they look to get back on track and take the lead 2-1. Take the under in tonight’s Eastern Conference showdown.
Best NBA Bet for Today’s Game: Total Under 222.5 Points
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