In today’s SportSense Entertainment Newsletter…

Additional Model Predictions ⬇️

NHL Model Predictions- Click Here

There were plenty of model predictions to go around yesterday across the NBA with our model focusing in on one of those predictions in our Featured Matchups. That prediction went 1-0 overall, and you can see how the rest of the model performed below.

Money Line Predictions: 3-3

Over/Under Predictions: 1-5

Spread Predictions: 3-3

Featured Matchup: 1-0

12 NBA games are scheduled to take place today. Our model’s predictions for all 12 matchups can be found below.

Milwaukee Bucks @ Indiana Pacers

Model Predicts- Bucks ML, UNDER 257, Pacers +3

The Milwaukee Bucks will begin a three-game road trip on Wednesday, with the first stop coming in Indianapolis, Indiana to take on the Pacers.

The Bucks enter tonight’s matchup fresh off a loss to this Pacers team on New Year’s day, but still own a 24-9 record and sit in second place in the Eastern Conference. Meanwhile, the Pacers sits in sixth place in the East with an 18-14 record.

Our model gives Milwaukee a slight edge in tonight’s matchup, but it also believes Indiana has all the tools to keep this game close. Let’s take a look at why that is.

Milwaukee Bucks

• Most recent game was loss to Pacers

  • Lost 122-113 at home

  • Shot 44% overall and a poor 25% from three

• Still 8-2 in last ten games

  • Own +10.0 Net Rating in that time (5th in NBA)

  • Defense has been elite- holding opponents to shooting 47% from floor and 25% from three

• Injuries- Jae Crowder and AJ Green are OUT, Khris Middleton questionable

Indiana Pacers

• Enter tonight on four-game win streak

  • Rank 1st in Offensive Rating (124.1) and 5th in Net Rating (+11.1)

  • Wins over Rockets, Bulls, Knicks, and Bucks

• Have had slight edge on Bucks all season

  • 3-1 record in season series. +2.0 Net Rating

  • Averaging 125.5 points per game

• Injuries- Bruce Brown and Andrew Nembhard questionable

What’s the Play?

The Pacers have surprisingly had the upper hand in their season series with the Bucks, and we agree with our model that Indiana can at least keep things close tonight.

Milwaukee has improved its defense over the last ten games, but finding consistent production on that end of the floor has been a struggle all season. Per NBA.com, the Bucks rank 21st in Defensive Rating this season, and have surrendered 114 points or more in eight of the last ten games despite going 8-2 in that time.

Milwaukee is far to vulnerable on that end of the floor to consistently blow teams out of the water, and that will likely be the case again against a Pacers team that ranks inside the top-three in FG% and 3PT FG%. We’ll back the Pacers in what will likely be a shootout.

The Play: Pacers +3 (-110)

Money Line Trends 💰

• Oklahoma City Thunder- 23-9 overall this season, 9-4 as the away team and 5-0 in last five games

• Los Angeles Clippers- 20-12 overall this season, 8-2 in last ten games

Over/Under Trends ⬆️⬇️

• Memphis Grizzlies- Under is 20-13 this season, 11-4 as the home team

• Chicago Bulls- Over is 18-17 this season, 9-6 as the away team

Spread Trends ➕➖

• Indiana Pacers- 18-15 against the spread (ATS) this season, 3-1 ATS as a home underdog

• Orlando Magic- 22-11 ATS this season, 13-8 ATS as an underdog

💪 Curry scores 36 in win over Magic. Stephen Curry's 36-point performance propelled the Golden State Warriors to a crucial 121-115 win against the Orlando Magic on Tuesday. The win broke Golden State’s three-game losing streak, with Curry dominating a decisive four-minute stretch in the fourth quarter. Despite challenges and injuries impacting the team, including the absence of Draymond Green and Gary Payton II's late hamstring injury, the Warriors found solace in Curry's exceptional performance, securing a crucial win against the Magic on their seven-game homestand.

👀 Embiid drops triple-double in return to lineup. Joel Embiid returned to the Philadelphia 76ers’ lineup on Tuesday, recording a triple-double with 31 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 110-97 victory against the Chicago Bulls. Embiid's comeback revitalized the 76ers, propelling them to an early 25-point lead after the first quarter and a comfortable win. The Bulls struggled to contain Embiid's impact as the 76ers surged to a massive lead, showcasing the challenge of defending against the MVP-level player, ultimately acknowledging the undeniable force of the 76ers with Embiid on the court.

Today’s trivia requires you to dig into multiple pockets of your brain, testing your knowledge of recent events as well as those that happened decades ago.

See how many of the below questions you can get correct. Answers are provided at the end of the newsletter.

Question #1- What conference was Butler University a member of before moving to the Big East?

Question #2- What team did Nolan Arenado play for prior to his current stint with the St. Louis Cardinals?

Question #3- Who leads the NBA in assists per game this season?

Anyone know what has happened on January 3rd throughout history? We didn’t have a clue either, but it appears that it has been a busy day.

On January 3rd…

1991- Wayne Gretzky becomes the fastest and youngest player in NHL history to score 700 goals. Gretzky accomplished the feat at just 29 years and 342 days old, which was also his 886th career game. He would score three goals in a 6-3 win over the Islanders, with all three scored coming in the first 27 minutes of the game.

1993- Frank Reich leads the Buffalo Bills to a comeback win over the Houston Oilers. Buffalo faced a 32-point deficit in the game, but eventually came back to win 41-38. The Bills would go on to win the next two playoff games as well, but fell short to the Dallas Cowboys in the Super Bowl.

2016- Jimmy Butler sets a new Chicago Bulls franchise record for points in a half. Butler scored 40 of his 42 points in the final 24 minutes of a 115-113 win over the Toronto Raptors. Unsurprisingly, the performance brok Michael Jordan’s previous franchise record.

1. Horizon League

2. Colorado Rockies

3. Tyrese Haliburton