On Sunday, the New York Knicks will host the Miami Heat at the Madison Square Garden for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. In the first round, the fifth-seeded New York Knicks were victorious over the Cleveland Cavaliers. They took the final match 95-106. On the other side of the draw, the eighth-seeded Miami Heat emerged triumphant against the Milwaukee Bucks, winning the decider 126-128. With high expectations as the 4-point favorites, the New York Knicks are geared up to put their best foot forward. The Miami Heat will attempt to defy the odds and snatch a 1-0 lead in the series.

Form New York Knicks

The New York Knicks secured a victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round to qualify for the Eastern Conference Semifinals. They took the win in their last game with a final score of 95-106, making their record for the season 51-36.

The New York Knicks are more of an average side for the offensive side of the game. Entering Sunday’s matchup, the hosts are averaging 115.1 points per game. Defensively, the New York Knicks have restricted opponents to 112.0 points per game on average and 111.7 points in their own arena.

With a 51-36 season record, the fifth-seeded New York Knicks have proven to be a force to be reckoned with. Now, they are hoping to surprise everyone and go on a deep run by advancing past the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

The New York Knicks will be without both Jericho Sims and Quentin Grimes for their latest game.

Form Miami Heat

The Miami Heat clinched a victory over the Milwaukee Bucks to earn a spot in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Their final game ended with a score of 126-128. Their road record for the season is 19-25.

The average points scored by Miami Heat in the NBA this season is 110.2. When playing away from home, the visitors have put up 108.8 points. The Miami Heat have held opponents to an average of 110.2 points per game at home and 110.5 points when playing on the road.

The Miami Heat have vastly improved their performance in order to make it to the Eastern Conference Semifinals, giving fans something to be excited about. Now the big question is whether this highly-ranked eighth-seed team has what it takes to go further. With a 49-40 record this season, the potential is infinite.

Victor Oladipo and Tyler Herro are both set to miss the game.

H2H

The two teams played each other four times in the regular season. The New York Knicks won three matches, while the Miami Heat managed to win one game, making it a total of three-one. The Madison Square Garden has been home to some pretty epic battles between the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat. Out of their last 10 face-offs, the victory has been evenly split down the middle.

In their last ten contests, the New York Knicks scored an average of 104.3 points per game, while the Miami Heat conceded an average of 107.6 points.

Betting

Bet365 offers odds for the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat standoff.To view the complete list of odds

• Moneyline (ML): Miami Heat (+160) | New York Knicks (-180)
• Against the spread (ATS): Miami Heat +4.0 (-110) | New York Knicks -4.0 (-110)
• Over/Under (O/U): 207.0 (-110) | (-110)

Claim your risk-free bet here

Moneyline

Go for the New York Knicks to win (1.55) on the moneyline.

The New York Knicks come into Sunday’s matchup with an impressive three-game winning streak. When they play at Madison Square Garden, they usually shine, with seven of their last ten home games resulting in a victory. The odds of -180 imply a 64% chance of them continuing their success at home. As for the Miami Heat, the visitors have gone 3-2 SU on the road lately. They are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games and 19-25 SU away from home this season.

Backing the New York Knicks (-180) to win outright looks too good to pass up. The hosts have gone strong at the Madison Square Garden this season with a 25-18 record, and have won four of the last five home games.

Against the Spread

Bet on the New York Knicks -4.0 (1.91) to cover the spread.

The oddsmakers are siding with the New York Knicks on the spread, but not by much. The hosts open up as the 4-point favorites over the Miami Heat for Sunday. The Miami Heat emerged victorious in three of their last five trips to the Madison Square Garden. The average margin of victory was 10.3 points.

Placing a wager on the New York Knicks in their last four games proved to be an astute decision. Their season record is 49-35-3 ATS. In their last ten games, the New York Knicks have covered six times. When it comes to Eastern Conference matchups, their spread record is 56-51.

The Miami Heat have covered in five of their last six games, and their record for the season is 35-51-3 ATS. The Miami Heat had success covering the spread in seven of their last ten games. In Eastern Conference matchups, they ended up 62-64 ATS recently.

Over/Under

Take Total over 207.0 (1.91).

In the previous ten matchups between the New York Knicks and the Miami Heat, the combined total points scored have been relatively low, with an average of 211.9.

The New York Knicks and the Miami Heat have scored more than 207.0 points in six out of their last ten encounters, resulting in -110 odds for betting Over on the Total market. This makes it very attractive to bet Over on the Total market.

For betting on the total, consider that six of the last seven New York Knicks games went under. Their record this season is 43-42 O/U. Exactly half the previous 10 home games went over for the New York Knicks. The average score was 229.9 points per game. In all, the hosts are 4-6 O/U in their last 10 contests.

The total went over in five of the last six games for the Miami Heat. Their record for the season is 45-43 O/U. The Miami Heat had eight of their previous 10 games going above the predicted total line, averaging 231.3 points.