MILWAUKEE @ PHOENIX (PHX -3.5, 243)
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BUCKS VS. SUNS 2/6/24
After overcoming a slow start, the Phoenix Suns are now eight games over .500 at the 50-game mark. They will try to build on this success tonight when they host the Milwaukee Bucks.
After losing to the Dallas Mavericks on Christmas night, Phoenix was only 14–15, but they have since gone 15–6, with Bradley Beal's return to health playing a major role. Beal's availability was initially restricted by back and ankle injuries earlier this season, but he is now getting along with fellow stars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant. In 26 games, he has averaged 18.1 points.
In his first game back at Washington after being traded to the Suns by the Wizards during the offseason, Beal was unstoppable. Beal made 16-of-21 shots for a season-high 43 points, including 4-of-5 from three-point range in a win over the Wizards on Sunday.
Phoenix head coach Frank Vogel is most impressed with how quickly the talented trio has gelled since Beal returned to health. Durant leads the team, averaging 28.3 points per game. Booker is right behind him with 27.8 points a game.
The second-best team in the Eastern Conference, Milwaukee, has struggled recently and is just 1-3 SU on their current five-game road trip that ends tonight in Phoenix. On Sunday, the Bucks led the Utah Jazz by as many as 19 points before losing 123-108 with an awful fourth quarter letdown. Milwaukee was outscored 40–13 by the Jazz in the final 12 minutes. In the fourth quarter, the Bucks were only 4-of-17 from the field.
Against Utah, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points, dished out 13 assists, and pulled down seven rebounds. Bobby Portis added 27 points for the Bucks. One night after going off in a 129-117 road victory over the Mavericks, Damian Lillard finished with just 12 points on 5-of-18 shooting. Lillard scored 30 points against Dallas, making all five of his three-pointers and shooting 10-of-11 overall.
The Bucks and Suns are playing their first game this year. The Bucks beat the Suns twice last year and have won the past three regular season meetings. In the NBA Finals in 2021, Milwaukee defeated Phoenix in six games as well.
Milwaukee is just 4-14 ATS in its last 18 games. They’ve had better luck against Phoenix. The Bucks are 7-1 SU and 6-1-1 ATS in the last eight games against the Suns. Phoenix has won 10 of its last 13 games and covered in three of the last four.
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J.A. CAVALIER FREE PICK: BUCKS-SUNS OVER
Phoenix hosting Milwaukee points right to the Over. In the last six Bucks-Suns games in Phoenix, the Over has cashed. The Bucks have the fourth-best Adjusted Offensive Rating (119.4) in the league and they are playing at the third-fastest pace. The Suns Big Three of Durant, Booker, and Beal is averaging 131.5 points per 100 possessions. In their last three, the Suns have averaged a combined total of 252 points per game. As good as the Bucks offense is, the defense is equally as bad. They rank 24th in scoring defense giving up 119.9 points a game. Fast pace plus elite offense plus history equals Over tonight.
