There's a marquee NBA matchup on Sunday as the Milwaukee Bucks host the LA Clippers. These are two teams we could certainly see again play in the NBA Finals as they are among the best in their respective conferences. The Clippers are 24-11 and second in the Western Conference while the Bucks are third in the Eastern Conference at 20-13. The Bucks beat the Clippers twice last week but this is their first meeting of this season. Milwaukee is a slight favorite but this should go down to the wire.
Clippers split with Memphis
The Clippers are coming off a back-to-back with the Grizzlies in Memphis where they got blown out in the first game 122-94 and then bounced back with a 119-99 win on Friday night. The Clippers shot 55% from the floor and 40% from three point range, making 14 of 35 from long range. The win improved the Clippers record to 24-11, good for second in the conference.Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 30 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists while Lou Williams added 17 points off the bench. Paul George added 13 points and 8 assists while Nicholas Batum and Terrance Mann also chipped in with 13 points each. The Clippers come into this game with the Bucks pretty healthy, with only bench player Patrick Patterson out for personal reasons.
Bucks win 4th astraight
The Bucks are not the juggernaut they were in the 2019-20 regular season when they were on pace to win 70 games for ,most of the season until they took their foot off the gas before COVID hit. But they are still a very dangerous team at 20-13, third in the Eastern Conference. Its been a weird month for the Bucks as they won 5 straight to start the month, then lost 5 straight, and now they are currently on a four game winning streak.Jrue Holiday back with his teammates. A good sign he is closer to a return after missing 8 games.
— Stephen Watson (@WISN_Watson) February 22, 2021
(Via the @Bucks) pic.twitter.com/XiVzTJBFBT
They are coming off a 129-125 win over the Pelicans on Thursday night. There was an expectation that Jrue Holiday would play against his former team after missing several games on the COVID-19 protocol, but he did not play. He remains questionable for this game Sunday, still in the protocol. It was okay that he missed it as Giannis Antetokounmpo had a monster hgame with 38 points and 10 rebounds while Khris Middleton tossed in 31 points. Dante DiVincenzo also had a good night with 24 points.
Stats & Trends
- Clippers are 11-6 on the road ATS.
- Bucks are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.
- Bucks are 3-13 ATS in their last 16 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600.
- Bucks are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following a ATS loss.
The Pick
The Bucks have been terrible this year against the spread versus good teams. They are 3-13 ATS against teams with a winning percentage over .600. The Clippers, on the other hand, have been good on the road against the spread at 11-6. The Clippers have a tendency to take nights off against lesser competition, like they did against the Grizzlies a few nights ago, but they get up for the big games -- especially the big road games. With the Bucks a slight favorite at home, I love the Clippers to cover here, especially with Jrue Holiday on the shelf. Even if Holiday plays, I like the Clippers, who are at full strength. Take the Clippers to cover.