A blistering start to the season for the Milwaukee Bucks has been tempered by losses in three of four games following a 9-0 opening. You have to take the good with the bad over the course of a long season and the Bucks have been dealt some bad with Jrue Holiday joining Khris Middleton and Pat Connaughton on the shelf. The shorthanded Bucks clash with the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday in a rematch of a game played during the opening week of the season won by the Bucks 90-88, their second straight in the series and eighth in the last nine meetings.
The contest between the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers takes place at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday, November 18, 2022, from Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, PA and will air live on ESPN. BookMaker.eu will have odds for every game on the Friday NBA schedule.
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Odds Analysis
Wins in November count the same as wins in April so hand it to the Bucks for securing nine Ws in their first nine games while going 8-1 ATS. They were able to do that without key performers Connaughton and Middleton, both on the shelf since the start of the season. So it makes us wonder just how good this club is winning a lot of games minus the contributions of their second-leading scorer and top option off the bench. Adding Holiday to the list was apparently too much. Their second loss to Atlanta in seven days left the Bucks reeling at 1-3 SU and ATS in four games following their torrid start.
The Sixers head into a mini break in their schedule having won two straight and three of their last four to get back to .500. And they knocked off some good teams in that run taking out Phoenix, Atlanta and Utah while going 3-1 ATS. Following their win over the Jazz on Saturday, the Sixers take an extended break before hosting the Bucks. Part of Philly’s early season struggles was their play at home. Dominant at Wells Fargo Center in previous seasons, the Sixers lost four of their first five home games going 1-4 ATS. They have since won three straight at home earning payouts in each contest.
Milwaukee Bucks
Managing the team in the early part of the season will go a long way at the end of the year. The Bucks are expected to get Connaughton and Middleton back this month while Holiday is listed as day-to-day. The club even sat Giannis Antetokounmpo a few games with knee soreness. When the club is all together the Bucks are easily a championship contender, but in the meantime other pieces need to cover the holes. Jevon Carter had a big game against OKC with Giannis and Holiday out scoring 36 points on 15 of 27 shooting. He scored a total of 53 points in 10 games before that outburst.
The play of guys like Carter will only make the Bucks stronger later on. But they really miss the defensive intensity Holiday brings to the floor. Arguably the team’s best defender, the Bucks allowed an average of nearly 123 points in three games he missed cashing the OVER in two of them. Overall the Bucks are one of the best defensive teams holding opponents to an average of 107 points with the best field goal percentage defense in the NBA.
Philadelphia 76ers
Many felt Joel Embiid should have been the MVP last season after averaging 32.3 points and 10.1 rebounds in a career-best 35.1 minutes per game. He made an early statement on Sunday dropping 59 on the Jazz in a 105-98 win. The game before that Embiid had 42 points to take out the Hawks giving the Sixers the offensive jolt it needs with James Harden out of the lineup. Even with Embiid averaging 32.3 points the Sixers need complementary scoring with Harden out. They are among the worst scoring the basketball averaging 108.5 points to rank 28th.
Surprisingly the Sixers have been strong defensively leading the Association in three-point percentage allowed and limiting clubs to 106.5 points. They held the high-scoring Bucks to 90 points when the clubs met earlier this season but couldn’t generate enough points to get the win. The Sixers have played below the closing total in four of their last five games with the UNDER 8-6 for the season.
NBA Odds Pick
Brook Lopez and the Bucks have done a good job holding Embiid in check limiting him to just 15 points in the first meeting. And the Sixers have likewise done a number on Giannis so we could see another low-scoring affair. And it looks like the injuries are starting to catch up with Milwaukee giving Philly an edge on their home floor.
NBA Odds Prediction: Philadelphia 76ers / UNDER
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