Suns vs. Sixers – Both Teams Need it Bad

The Phoenix will host the Philadelphia 76ers tonight in a game that means a great deal to both teams as they fight for playoff positioning, or in the Suns’ case, a chance to continue playing ball into late spring.

The Suns are listed as 7-point favorite in this one with an astronomical expected point total for over/under bets listed at 226 ½. Phoenix has pretty much given up playing defense altogether coming down the stretch, but they have exploded recently on the offensive end, scoring 154 points in their last game against Golden State.

Philadelphia is the kind of offensive team that can be shut down by a good defensive squad but if you give them the free reign to run and use their athletes, they can go off and put up points in a hurry behind athletic swingmen like Andre Iguodala and Thaddeus Young.

Donyell Marshall recently came aboard and began getting minutes with the Sixers, using his threat as a three-point shooter to open up the court for a team that desperately needed someone who could hit consistently from the outside. If Marshall can hit a few from the outside and loosen up what little defense the Suns figure to have on the night, Philadelphia could be well on their way to a huge offensive night.

The Sixers come into the game winners of four straight games and they now sit firmly above the .500 mark at 34-31. Considering how well Philadelphia has played of late and how poor the Suns have played defense, the 7-point spread seems a little bit too high making Philadelphia a good pick here.

Also, the over seems is a good bet considering that Philadelphia is likely to score much more than usual against the Suns in this game.
Philadelphia averages about 96 points per game but they have scored 100+ in 6 of their past 10 games. Against a porous Suns defense they should be able to score well into the 100’s. If the game comes down to getting key defensive stops, Philadelphia is the team most likely to get them as well.

While the Suns are happy to be playing their favored run-and-gun style, this seems like a bad matchup for them as they get a Philadelphia team that is sky-high after beating the Lakers on the road on St. Patrick’s Day. Philadelphia will make it closer that the 7-point spread in this one as long as they can get a few stops against the scorching hot Suns and control the tempo somewhat.

The Pick: Philadelphia (+7 1/2 )