Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Milwaukee Bucks Prediction, NBA Odds
The Bucks improved to a perfect 8-0 with Friday night’s 115-102 victory in Minnesota, and have also covered on seven occasions over that stretch. The Thunder travel to Milwaukee after seeing a four-game win streak snapped with a 122-110 loss to the visiting Denver Nuggets on Thursday night.
The Bucks have held steady since opening as 8.5-point favourites on the NBA odds, but have attracted the support of just 44 per cent of sports bettors. The total is also unchanged since opening at 224. The OVER has garnered 88 per cent of the betting action despite a trend towards low scoring when these teams meet.
Thunder vs. Bucks NBA Betting Odds
Saturday night’s matchup at Fiserv Forum marks the first of two meetings between these clubs over the next five days. The Bucks took two from the Thunder last season, capped by a lopsided 142-115 victory in OKC on March 8, and have earned the win five of their past six clashes.
With Oklahoma City failing to reach 90 points in three of five dates with the Bucks, the total has finished UNDER on four occasions over that stretch. The Bucks have also struggled to run up the score in recent home dates with the Thunder, averaging just 97 over their past two, and reaching the century mark just twice in their past 12.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder will be aiming to rebound from a dismal fourth-quarter performance in Thursday’s loss to Denver. Leading by two points heading into the final frame, the Thunder mustered a season-low 15 points in the fourth quarter as they saw their four-game win streak ended by a 122-110 loss to the Nuggets. While the club looked to have turned the corner during their recent 4-0 run, they still face a challenge to reverse their fortunes on the road, where they have lost 22 of 30 since last Christmas, including 10 of their past 12.
On a positive note, the Thunder have covered in each of their three road games to date. In addition, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has continued to steadily produce. The 24-year-old point guard racked up a game-high 37 points in Thursday’s loss, and enters the weekend ranking fourth in the league with 32.3 points per game.
Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks leveraged yet another fast start on their way to Friday’s victory over the Timberwolves. Milwaukee shooters piled up 34 points in the first quarter, extending a trend that has seen the Bucks average 31.6 points in the opening frame over their first eight contests, and take the lead into halftime on seven occasions. Now set to play games on back-to-back nights for the second time in a week, the Bucks have demonstrated their ability to handle a heavy workload, going 7-2 over their past nine when hitting the court for the second time in as many nights.
Up front, there have been no surprises. As expected, Giannis Antetokounmpo has led the Bucks’ attack. The Greek Freak is coming off 26-point, 14-rebound, 11-assist performance on Friday that marks his first double-double of the season, and has also averaged an impressive 35.7 points per game on home court so far this season.
OKC
MIL