The Milwaukee Bucks will look to get the big road upset without reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo when they hit the road to take on the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. With both of these legitimate NBA Finals hopefuls looking to get back in the win column, let’s find out which team is offering the best value against their NBA Odds for the Bucks vs Nuggets.
Bucks vs Nuggets 2020 NBA Game Preview & Betting Odds
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- When: Monday, March 9, 2020 at 9:00 PM ET
- Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
- TV: NBAtv, ALT, FSWI
- NBA Odds: Denver -3.5 / Total: 223.5
Back at home and looking to bounce back!#MileHighBasketball pic.twitter.com/4UG7766pwY
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) March 9, 2020
Why Bet On Milwaukee at +3.5
After failing to lose two straight games all season, the Bucks will now look to avoid three straight losses after losing a high-scoring 140-131 shootout against Phoenix on Sunday night. Khris Middleton scored a team-high 39 points and former Suns guard Eric Bledsoe added 28, but the Bucks were never able to overcome a 19-point deficit after allowing the Suns to put up a whopping 47 first quarter points.
“It is hard to win three quarters and lose a game by nine,” Milwaukee coach Mike Budenholzer said. “Still, it was a huge hole. They did a lot of things well.”
Milwaukee will be without their team leader when this game goes down due to a mild knee sprain. Giannis Antetokounmpo is not expected to play until Thursday against Boston at the earliest.
“The way they described it to me is we’ll see how the next few days go and kind of evaluate him and see where he is then,” Budenholzer said.
Antetokounmpo is averaging 29.6 points and 13.7 rebounds while Khris Middleton is averaging 20.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. The Bucks have gone 25-8 on the road this season.
Offense:
- Points/G: 119.0
- Field Goal %: 47.9
- 3-Point %: 35.7
- Free Throw %: 74.3
- Rebounds/G: 51.8
Defense:
- Points/G: 107.3
- Field Goal %: 41.3
- 3-Point %: 35.5
- Free Throw %: 78.3
- Rebounds/G: 45.7
Milwaukee Bucks Betting Trends
- Bucks are 28-10 ATS in their last 38 games following a straight up loss.
- Bucks are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games following a ATS loss.
- Bucks are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games as a road underdog.
- Bucks are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
Why Bet On Denver at -3.5?
Denver might be just one game out of second place in the Western Conference, but the Nuggets have struggled in dropping three of their last five and five of 10 overall including a humbling 104-102 road loss at Cleveland on Saturday. Will Barton scored 22 points to lead Denver, but all-Star center Nikola Jokic was held to single digits in scoring for the first time in 44 games in the loss.
“Who are we?” head coach Mike Malone told reporters afterward. “That’s a decision we have to think long and hard about. On defense, we don’t point, we don’t talk, we don’t match. You have to participate in your own recovery, right? Our transition defensive lapses are so egregious in nature – lob, dunk, a coast-to-coast drive.”
The Nuggets have seen their once stout defense go belly up recently by allowing an average of 116.4 points over the last five games which is almost nine points per game than their regular season average. Nikola Jokic is averaging 20.5 points and 10.2 rebounds while Jamal Murray is averaging 18.6 points and 4.8 assists. Denver has gone 24-8 at home this season.
Offense:
- Points/G: 110.6
- Field Goal %: 47.1
- 3-Point %: 35.7
- Free Throw %: 77.5
- Rebounds/G: 44.3
Defense:
- Points/G: 107.6
- Field Goal %: 46.0
- 3-Point %: 34.7
- Free Throw %: 75.8
- Rebounds/G: 42.6
Denver Nuggets Betting Trends
- Nuggets are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.
- Nuggets are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games as a home favorite.
- Nuggets are 9-3-2 ATS in their last 14 games following a straight up loss.
- Nuggets are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
Bucks vs Nuggets Expert Analysis and Prediction
The Denver Nuggets might no be playing very well right now, but they are at home in this affair and Milwaukee is without its best player. With that said, I’ve got to believe the Nuggets can take care of business to prove to themselves if no one else, that they can contend with the best teams in the league.
Milwaukee has gone 6-13-1 ATS in the last 20 road dates against the Nuggets and 1-4 ATS in their last five games overall. While Denver is also 1-4 ATS in their last five, Denver has also gone 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games as a home favorite and 9-3-2 ATS in their last 14 games following a straight up loss. Denver wins and narrowly covers the chalk!
Pick: Denver 116 Milwaukee 111
