Philadelphia 76ers (49-23) vs Washington Wizards (35-39)
Game Info: Sunday, May 23, 2021 at 1:00 pm (Wells Fargo Center)
Betting Odds: Philadelphia 76ers -7.5 -- Over/Under: 229.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
The Washington Wizards and the Philadelphia 76ers duke it out in Game 1 at the Wells Fargo Center on Sunday afternoon.
The Washington Wizards are coming into this series with plenty of momentum after dismantling the Pacers in a 142-115 win in the play-in game. Bradley Beal led the team with 25 points, five rebounds and four assists, Rui Hachimura added 18 points, Russell Westbrook racked up 18 points with eight rebounds and 15 assists while Daniel Gafford chipped in with 15 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks off the bench. As a team, the Wizards shot a sizzling 58 percent from the field and 14 of 28 from the 3-point line as they took control of the game with 36 points in the second quarter to take a 14-point lead into halftime, before exploding for 48 points in the third quarter to lead by as many as 38 points as they overwhelmed the Pacers.
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers have been in great form themselves as they won 10 of their last 12 games of the regular season to finish with the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Joel Embiid led the team with averages of 28.5 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, Tobias Harris averaged 19.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists while Ben Simmons averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game. As a team, the 76ers scored an average of 113.6 points per game while shooting 47.6 percent from the field and 37.4 percent from the 3-point line.
Looking at the betting trends, the Wizards are 7-0 ATS in their last seven games against a team with a winning record, 8-1-1 ATS in their last 10 road games and 18-7-1 ATS in their last 26 games overall. The 76ers are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games against a team with a losing record and 6-1-1 ATS in their last eight home games.
Head to head, the over is 7-2 in the last nine meetings in Philadelphia, the Wizards are 3-7 ATS in the last 10 meetings in Philadelphia and the Wizards are 5-2 ATS in the last seven meetings overall.
The Wizards enter this series as heavy underdogs and rightfully so as you just worry if they have the frontcourt or size in general to hang with Embiid and the size of the 76ers. Beal is going to have to play out of his mind for the Wizards to get past the 76ers and I just don’t see that happening with his hamstring still not at 100 percent. The Wizards looked amazing in their big win over the Pacers in their last outing, but the 76ers will go to Embiid early and often which is trouble for the Wizards. Give me the 76ers to draw first blood in this series.