The Orlando Magic visit the Memphis Grizzlies at the FedExForum on Tuesday night.
This is a battle between the #8 seeds in both conferences and both are looking to hold on to their respective positions. Orlando is 5.5 games ahead of the 9th seeded Washington Wizards in the Eastern Conference team standings. On the other hand, the Grizzlies are four games ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans in the Western Conference. Orlando is 6-4 SU in their last 10 games played while Memphis is 4-6 in their last 10 assignments.
The Orlando Magic picked up a big win on Sunday night as they handed the slumping Houston Rockets their fourth consecutive defeat. The win was Orlando’s second in a row after the Magic suffered three straight losses. They are now 5.5 games ahead of the Washington Wizards for the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Orlando also moved within one-half game behind the Nets for the 7th seed in the East.
D.J. Augustin came off the bench to score 24 points for Orlando. Aaron Gordon added 19 points while Nikola Vucevic put up a double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds. Markelle Fultz also contributed 18 points and five assists as Orlando put six players in double-digit scoring and made 13 three-pointers.
Orlando ranks 28th in the league in scoring at 106.2 points per game. They are 17th in rebounding at 44.6 boards grabbed per contest and are 17th in passing at 23.9 assists per game. The Magic have the 4th best scoring defense in the NBA at 107.2 points per game allowed.
The Memphis Grizzlies maintained a firm grip of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference with a 118-101 win over the Atlanta Hawks last Sunday night. With the victory, the Grizzlies increased their lead over the 9th seeded New Orleans Pelicans to four games with only 18 games left to play.
Jonas Valanciunas posted his 32nd double-double of the season with 27 points and 17 rebounds. Rookie Ja Morant scored 24 points on 8-12 shooting as the Grizzlies picked up their fourth win in their last five games. Morant is averaging 17.6 points and 7.0 rebounds this season as he has helped the Grizzlies move within one game of tying their 33 wins of last season.
The Grizzlies rank 14th in the league in scoring at 112.6 points per game this season. They are 6th in rebounding at 46.8 boards grabbed per contest and are the second-best passing team overall at 27.1 assists per outing. Memphis is 20th in scoring defense at 113.6 points per game allowed.
Orlando is 6-4 SU in their last 10 games played. The Magic are 4-2 SU in their last six games played on the road. Memphis is 4-1 SU in their last five games played. The Grizzlies are 2-1 SU in their last three games played at home, and 4-2 SU in their last six games played in March. Head to head, the Magic are 5-1 SU in their last six games against the Grizzlies. However, Memphis is 10-1 SU in their last 11 home games against Orlando.
The Magic have turned the corner after a 1-8 stretch. They have won seven out of their last 11 games and have been scoring an average of 120 points per game during that stretch. DJ Augustin has scored a total of 42 points per game in his last two games and Markelle Fultz has made 50% of his shots in eight out of his last 11 games played.
Jonas Valanciunas is coming off a big game for the Grizzlies. Valanciunas recorded his 32nd double-double of the season in their last outing. Ja Morant is having a spectacular rookie season and the Grizzlies are one win away from matching last season’s win total. The Grizzlies are 18-14 at home and the Magic are just 13-20 at home this season.
Orlando is playing well right now but they have struggled historically against Memphis. The Magic are 3-15 all-time when playing in Memphis and the Grizzlies are red hot right now. I like the Magic to put up a good fight but the home team should be able to pull off the win behind Morant and Valanciunas.
PREDICTION: MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
The Magic are 7-1 ATS in their last eight games played. Orlando is 6-0 ATS in their last six games played on the road, 4-1 ATS in their last five games against the Western Conference, and 4-1 ATS in their last five games played in March. The Grizzlies are 4-1 ATS in their last five games played. Memphis is 2-1 ATS in their last three games played at home, 7-1 ATS in their last eight games played against the Eastern Conference, 7-0 ATS in their last seven games played against the Southeast Division. Head to head, the Magic are 4-2 ATS in their last six games played against Memphis.
Memphis is 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games as favorites and 9-3 ATS in their last 12 games as favorites of 0.5-4.5 points. The Magic have been playing well as of late but the Grizzlies have won four out of their last five games played. Memphis has also been shooting the three-ball better this month which should help their offense pick up. I like the Grizzlies to pick up the home win here.
PREDICTION: GRIZZLIES -2
The total has gone over in each of the last 10 games played by the Magic. The over is 6-0 in their last six games played on the road. The total has gone over in the last six games played by the Grizzlies. Memphis has seen the total go under in their last seven home games. Head to head, the total has gone under in four out of the last five games between these two teams.
The Magic have gone hot in their last 11 games, winning seven of them. During that stretch, Orlando has averaged 120.8 points per game and they have topped 120 points in five of those games. Memphis has scored 118 or more points in three out of their last four assignments so this should be a good scoring ball game. I like these teams to hit the over here with Orlando’s new-found offensive prowess pushing the total over 223 points.
PREDICTION: OVER 223
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