Can Hobbled 76ers Even Series With Miami In Game 2?

• The Miami Heat are 8-point favorites over the Philadelphia 76ers.
• Joel Embiid will miss the second straight game of the series for the Sixers.
• Kyle Lowry will miss his second game for the Heat in this series.

MIAMI – Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals looms on Wednesday night between the Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers. Following Game 1, it was the Miami Heat who took a 1-0 lead after a commanding 106-92 win behind the newly appointed Sixth Man of the Year, Tyler Herro, and his 25-point outing.

Going into Game 2, legal online sportsbooks have Miami as a heavy favorite once more with 8-points leaning their way on the spread. The Heat were 7.5-point favorites in Game 1 and had no issues covering for the third time this season against Philly.

Miami has been a monster against the spread in the playoffs going 4-2 ATS in their six games played while covering by an average of 7.4 points and winning their games by 12.3 points. As for the Sixers, they are just behind at 4-3 ATS but have gone ice cold in their last four games going just 1-3.

Miami has also thriven when favored between 7.5 and 8 points on their home court. Since 2021, they have gone 6-1 ATS in that scenario. In a similar scenario for Philly but as an underdog on the road, they are 2-1 ATS but 1-2 on the moneyline.

As for the officiating, Zach Zarba will be the crew chief for this matchup in which home teams are averaging a 12.5-point winning margin in the playoffs under him.

Looking at where the public is leaning, there is heavy action on Miami’s NBA playoff odds. They are taking in 58% of the bets placed on the spread with 84% of the betting handle.

Heat/Sixers Controlling The Under

The under on the total points for the game could not be a better bet to make considering how defensively talented both teams are. In the playoffs, Miami has hit the under in all six of their games while Philly has gone 2-5 with the under. The under has also gone 3-1 in the four regular-season games between the two.

Going into different matchup trends, the under has gone 5-1 in their last six meetings and is also 4-0 in their last four meetings in Miami.

Injury Report

There are injuries on both sides that could affect the outcome in this one. Most notably, Joel Embiid will be out for the second straight game after suffering a concussion and a left orbital fracture. For the Heat, their starting point guard, Kyle Lowry will also miss the second straight game in the series as he has been dealing with hamstring issues.

Lowry’s absence did not affect the Heat much being that Gabe Vincent, his replacement, put up a solid 10/3/3 stat line. Embiid’s absence though was surely felt as he is the Sixers leading scorer in the playoffs with 26.2 ppg and is a force in the paint. Miami also took advantage of him being out as Bam Adebayo exploded for 24 points and 12 rebounds.

Expect Miami to take a similar approach in Game 2 as they played a near-perfect game the first time out with no issues on the spread.

News tags: basketball | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference Semi-Finals | Joel Embiid | Kyle Lowry | Miami Heat | NBA | NBA Playoffs | Philadelphia 76es | Tyler Herro