Bucks vs Pacers

Pascal Siakam and the Pacers limp into this one on a five-game losing streak but finally get a favorable home spot against a Bucks team that has dropped three straight and 12 of its last 15 while still navigating Giannis Antetokounmpo’s calf absence and leaning more on Ryan Rollins, Kyle Kuzma, Myles Turner, and Bobby Portis than they’d like. Indiana is hardly healthy — Tyrese Haliburton is out for the season and pieces like Obi Toppin, Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, and T.J. McConnell have all been on the injury report — but Siakam’s strong history against Milwaukee, the Pacers’ slightly better recent form, and the Gainbridge Fieldhouse edge against a short-handed, road-weary Bucks squad make the modest -105 price on the home side more attractive than the Bucks’ -115. I’ll back the Indiana Pacers on the moneyline with a B-grade: a moderate-confidence play where the edge is real but not overwhelming, best suited for standard stake sizing rather than a max exposure. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 23/12/2025 09:47am

Milwaukee’s offense without Giannis has cratered recently, with the Bucks stuck near the bottom of the East at 11-18 and coming off low-scoring outings while posting just a 3-7 mark in their last 10, and they now face a Pacers team that averages roughly 110 points on the year with league-worst shooting splits and is returning home off a 95-point effort in Boston. Indiana’s injury list strips away ball-handling and spacing around Siakam — with Haliburton done for the year and rotation wings like Nesmith and Sheppard sidelined — which has correlated with five straight losses and prolonged scoring droughts, especially when Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin are forced into heavier on-ball usage. With both defenses still leaky but the current versions of these offenses struggling, the Pacers on the second night of a back-to-back, and a 220 total that sits a few points above what their recent pace-and-efficiency profile suggests, I like the Under 220 at -110 with a B+ grade for a relatively strong combination of likelihood and price, especially in builds that can tolerate a slower, grindier Central Division game state. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 23/12/2025 09:47am

Indiana’s home crowd and Siakam-centric offense make Pacers +1 appealing against a Bucks group that has repeatedly faltered late in games during its current three-game slide, particularly with Giannis still listed out and Taurean Prince sidelined, forcing Rollins, Kuzma, Turner, and Portis into expanded roles and leaving Milwaukee vulnerable to defensive lapses and uneven half-court execution. Even with a five-game losing streak and a ravaged backcourt rotation, the Pacers have been more competitive than their record suggests, and Siakam, Nembhard, and Mathurin have already shown they can pressure this Bucks defense in prior meetings; adding in the travel edge (Bucks coming off a road-heavy stretch, Pacers returning home after Boston) and the fact that +1 essentially mirrors our Pacers moneyline lean while offering a tiny cushion against a one-point loss, the Indiana side of the spread is still the more attractive ticket. I’ll take Indiana Pacers +1 at -110 with a B- grade: a modest value that pairs logically with the moneyline stance but warrants slightly smaller stakes given the razor-thin margin built into such a short number. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 23/12/2025 09:47am