Milwaukee Bucks at Miami Heat 12/29/20: NBA Basketball free preview, analysis, prediction, odds and pick against the spread.
2020-12-29 19:30:00 EDT
The Milwaukee Bucks and the Miami Heat do battle at the AmericanAirlines Arena on Tuesday night.
The Milwaukee Bucks have yet to find their footing this season as they’ve lost two of their first three games and they will be feeling low on confidence after Sunday’s 130-110 shock loss to the Knicks. Giannis Antetokounmpo led the team with 27 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, Khris Middleton added 22 points with five assists while Bobby Portis chipped in with 17 points off the bench, but no other player scored more than 10 points. As a team, the Bucks shot 43 percent from the field and seven of 38 from the 3-point line as they were always playing from behind after a disastrous second quarter where they were outscored by 31-18.
Meanwhile, the Miami Heat will be aiming for a second straight win after blowing past the Pelicans in a 111-98 home win on Friday. Duncan Robinson drained seven 3-pointers to lead the team with 23 points, Goran Dragic added 18 points with nine assists and four steals off the bench, while Bam Adebayo scored 17 points. As a team, the Heat shot 50 percent from the field and 16 of 37 from the 3-point line as they poured in 37 points to lead by 13 points at halftime, before holding the Pelicans to just 19 points in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler scored just four points in 16 minutes of action before sitting out the second half of Friday’s game with right ankle stiffness.
Looking at the betting trends, the Bucks are 4-11 ATS in their last 15 road games, 13-5 ATS in their last 18 games following a loss of more than 10 points and 2-6-1 ATS in their last nine games overall. The Heat are 5-1 ATS in their last six home games, 1-7 ATS in their last eight games against a team with a losing record and 17-6 ATS in their last 23 games overall.
Head to head, the under is 9-4 in the last 13 meetings overall, the Bucks are 1-4 ATS in the last five meetings overall and the Bucks are 2-7 ATS in the last nine meetings in Miami.
The Bucks will be eager to get back on the court to atone for their poor performance in Sunday’s loss to the Knicks, but they’re up against a Heat team who are coming off a blowout win over the Pelicans. It’s easy to imagine the Bucks snapping out of their funk with a big win here, but they are just 4-11 ATS in their last 15 road games and they are 2-7 ATS in the last nine meetings in Miami. The Heat look like decent value as the home underdog here.
