Winners of seven of their last eight, the Philadelphia 76ers will try to keep the momentum going in front of their hometown fans with the Memphis Grizzlies in town on Sunday. The Sixers took the first two of a three-game home stand by a total of 51 points in wins over the Washington Wizards and New York Knicks. Sportbooks opened the Grizzlies as 7.5-point road underdogs with a total of 213.5.
- The OVER is 4-0 in the last four meetings between the 76ers and Grizzlies in Philadelphia.
- The Grizzlies are 4-1 ATS in their last five road games.
- The home team is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings between the 76ers and Grizzlies.
76ers are getting contributions from everyone right now
Philly had eight players score in double figures in Friday’s 123-98 rout of the Wizards, with Joel Embiid’s 16 points and 15 boards topping the stats sheet. The 76ers didn’t have a starter log more than 25 minutes on Friday but Ben Simmons still managed 13 points on 5 of 5 shooting, 10 assists and eight rebounds. Simmons averaged 16.1 points on 59.5 percent shooting in November while posting nine double-doubles in 16 games.
The Grizzlies needed two overtimes to earn a 131-125 triumph over the Brooklyn Nets to hard a four-game losing streak. Memphis is paced by Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, but rookie power forward Jaren Jackson Jr. is becoming a major focal point of the offense. Jackson went off for a season-high 36 points on 13 of 22 shooting against the Nets while adding eight rebounds and three 3-pointers.
OVERs tend to cash when Sixers, Grizzlies get together
Memphis knocked off Philadelphia 112-106 in overtime in the first meeting between the teams this season on November 10. The OVER is the hot bet when these teams collide, as five of the past six meetings between the Grizzlies and 76ers have eclipsed the closing total. The OVER is also 4-0 in their last four matchups in the City of Brotherly Love.
While the Grizzlies have had a tough time winning straight-up lately, they have been excellent at covering the spread away from home. Memphis is 4-1 ATS in its previous five road contests entering tonight’s game. They’ll be looking to buck a trend that’s seen home teams cover in this series, as home sides are 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings between Memphis and Philadelphia.
My pick: take the OVER
The OVER trends in this matchup are hard to ignore, and I’m not expecting that to change any time soon. Neither side has had any issues lighting up the scoreboard this season, so it’s a bit surprising to see the total open at its 213.5 number. Fireworks could be on tap in this one, which means the OVER looks like the smart totals play to me.