76ers vs. Heat: Game Notes, Odds, & Prediction for Game 5

Last Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat met for the first of a possible seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals. After taking out the

Last Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Miami Heat met for the first of a possible seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals. After taking out the Atlanta Hawks in five games, the Heat patiently waited for the Sixers to eliminate the Toronto Raptors in six matchups.

When the Heat and the Sixers met last week, both teams had significant injury concerns they were dealing with. For Miami, they were without their star guard, Kyle Lowry. As for Philadelphia, they missed the MVP finalist, Joel Embiid.

Clearly, Philly’s missing superstar affected them a ton as they struggled against the Heat on the road in the first two games. Although they possessed a small lead at halftime during Game 1, the Sixers allowed the Heat to get out in front and never look back.

After losing Game 1, the Sixers were confident they could clean up their issues and put up a better fight in the second outing. However, poor shooting and a lack of defensive execution left the Sixers going back to Philly with two-straight losses.

Fortunately for the Sixers, they got Embiid back in the mix ahead of Game 3 as he was cleared out of the NBA’s concussion protocol. With Embiid on the floor for the first time in the series, the Sixers saw a boost on both sides of the ball and managed to make it out of Game 3 with their first victory.

When Game 4 rolled around on Sunday, the 76ers found success once again as they secured a tight win over Miami to tie the series up. Now, the Sixers and the Heat are set to meet for a fifth time on Tuesday night. Once again, the series will be back in Miami.

Key Game Notes

Sixers were 27-14 on the road this season

Heat were 29-12 playing at home this season

The total has gone under in six of Philly’s last nine games

Sixers are 2-8 against the spread in their last ten games on the road

Heat are 11-5 against the spread in their last 16 games

The total has gone under in seven of the Heat’s last nine games

Injury Report

Heat

Dewayne Dedmon - Questionable

Tyler Herro - Questionable

Caleb Martin - Questionable

Max Strus - Questionable

P.J Tucker - Questionable

Gabe Vincent - Questionable

Kyle Lowry - Out

76ers

Joel Embiid - Questionable

Isaiah Joe - Questionable

Game Odds

Spread: Heat -2.5

Moneyline: PHI +120, MIA -143

Total O/U: 209.5

*All Odds are Provided by SI Sportsbook

Prediction

Spread: Heat -2.5

Moneyline: MIA -143

Total O/U: Over 209.5

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.