Orlando Magic vs. New York Knicks – Offence Anyone

NBA BASKETBALL BETTING – Game Match-up 2/25

Orlando Magic vs. New York Knicks 7:30 ET

BetOnline Sportsbook presents another fantastic sports betting affair for NBA bettors on Wednesday night as the basketball season heads towards the postseason. As a part of a huge Wednesday card, the Orlando Magic (41-15, 35-20-1 ATS) will invade Madison Square Garden to do battle with the New York Knicks (24-32, 32-24 ATS). This will be the fifth game in the L/8 days for a weary Orlando squad, while the Knicks will be playing their second game of a three-game home stand.

The current NBA betting lines features the Magic as slender 2.5-point favorites, while the oddsmakers have set the ‘total’ at a lofty 217.5.

The Magic still just don’t look like the same team without PG Jameer Nelson in the lineup. Whether the point guard has been Anthony Johnson, Tyronn Lue, or the newly acquired Rafer Alston, things just don’t seem to be gelling offensively. The offense wasn’t the problem in last night’s showdown with the Chicago Bulls, though. The unit scored 102 points, but surrendered a whopping 120. Seven Magic players reached double digits, headed up by C Dwight Howard, who had another ho-hum double-double with 26 points and 12 boards.

For a team that prides itself on defense, Orlando was simply awful on the defensive end of the floor, allowing Chicago to shoot a blistering 56.5% from the field while forcing just 11 turnovers. The 222 combined points was good enough for their fourth ‘over’ contest in their L/5. Even though the Magic have been the most consistent team for sports bettors to wager on over these past two seasons, they’re in a slide now, having failed to cover the spread in four of their L/6 games.

When you’re talking about offense, the buck stops at the Knicks! New York has scored at least 100 points in 17 straight games, and has averaged a whopping 118.3 points per game in its L/6. Since January 28th, only one team (Toronto) has failed to score at least 100 points against the Knicks, though. Needless to say, ‘over’ bettors have had plenty of reason to celebrate. They are 11-1 in the L/12 New York games.

Six Knicks average double-digits in scoring for HC Mike D’Antoni, led by F Al Harrington’s 21.3 points per game. The biggest question for D’Antoni tonight is who he’s going to throw at Howard. No on in the Knicks’ regular rotation is taller than 6’10”, and though F David Lee averages 11.9 boards per game, he’ll be giving up five inches and at least 30 pounds to Orlando’s superstar in the blocks.

This will be the first meeting of the season between these two teams. Both loves to get up the floor and run, as New York ranks 4th in the NBA in scoring (105.8 points per game) while the Magic rank 8th (102.2). Seventeen of the 29 games at the Garden this year have gone ‘over’ the ‘total’. The Knicks are 17-8 for ‘over’ bettors in their L/25 against the Southeast. These betting trends make the choice easy tonight. Expect plenty of fireworks from both squads once again.

Rose’s Recommendation: 2* Over 217.5

(Grading Scale = 1*-5*)