Lakers host the revenge-minded celtics

[Betfair]

Hi guys, some info for your basketball picks

The Los Angeles Lakers captured a second consecutive title by defeating the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals last year and now host them for the first time during the 2010-11 season at the Staples Center

At the time of this writing, the following Match Odds/Moneyline were available: Boston Celtics (2.42, +142) and Los Angeles Lakers (1.69, -145)

Boston enters Sunday's contest leading the Eastern Conference with a solid 35-11 record, but will need to be much better than its 88-71 losing performance on the road against Phoenix last time out to pull off an underdog win. "We just didn't have it tonight," said point guard Rajon Rondo. "Nobody played well at all and it starts with me." The Celtics are 13-8 overall on the road this season, including just a 3-2 mark against Western Conference competition. The two teams split two meetings in the regular season during the 2009-10 campaign and of course met up for a thrilling seven-game series in the finals, which the Celtics ultimately dropped. Boston is 32-22 ATS as an underdog over the last three years.

The Celtics are currently shooting a league-high 49.9 percent as a team and are the only squad in the league close to 50 percent on the season. The second ranked team to Boston in the category happens to be Phoenix, who is shooting 47.2 percent from the field. Leading the offensive charge during the month of January is guard Ray Allen, who is knocking down 52.6 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. Coach Doc Rivers is surprised that not one of his players was chosen to represent the Eastern Conference as a starter in the All-Star Game, considering the shooting numbers his team possesses and its overall record. "To look at our record and to have no starters is surprising," he commented. "But not really, because we're such a team."

Los Angeles is coming off an embarrassing 100-95 home loss to Sacramento on Friday night, a performance that will cause many fans to have an uneasy feeling entering the Staples Center. "We've had some tough losses that kind of jump out at you, but it's just about being more consistent," said Kobe Bryant. "We're right where we need to be." The Lakers are comfortably in second place in the Western Conference with a 33-14 record and will look to improve their record to 16-4 against foes from the East. Los Angeles has garnered a 10-4 record during the month and is 6-4 on Sundays this season. The team is 5-7 ATS off an upset loss as a favorite during the 2010-11 campaign.

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