Boston at Atlanta

Boston has looked like the team with the best record in the NBA thus far, destroying Atlanta in back-to-back games. Defensive Player of the Year Kevin Garnett is on a mission and isn't letting up, even if this is only the first round vs. the Hawks. He's playing extremely hard and it's infectious. The Celtics defense is stifling Atlanta. Mike Bibby admitted as much when he said "We can't put the ball in the basket.They are making it tough for us on the strong side. We have to go back and watch film and see how they are playing us." Well Mike, if you didn't watch film prior to this series, or after game one, shame on you. Regardless, we don't think it's going to make much of a difference. Boston gave up just 90 ppg in the regular season and they have held Atlanta to just 79 per game thus far on 38.2% shooting. Because of their committment to defense, the Celtics are 46-36 UNDER overall this season including 24-15 UNDER vs. losing temas. They are also 17-8 UNDER after holding an opponent to 85 points or less. Atlanta is 7-0 UNDER vs. great defensive teams (those holding opponents 43% or less from the field). They are also 17-8 UNDER vs. teams that outscore their competition by 3+ ppg. We'll back the UNDER here as we see Boston again bringing a top-notch defensive effort and Atlanta again struggling to find the bottom of the net.