NBA Playoffs 2012: Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics, Game 3 Odds

The Miami Heat (2-0) and Boston Celtics (0-2) will continue their best-of-seven Eastern Conference final series on Friday night at the TD Garden in Boston, with the opening tip scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The Celtics are currently two-point home favorites in the NBA betting odds for Game 3 (provided by SBR Forum), while the total has moved up two points from its original number to settle in at 181.

Miami did its job of winning the first two games at home in this high-profile series, which included an emotionally draining 115-111 overtime win in Game 2 as 7.5-point favorites. The Heat's dynamic duo of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade combined to score 57 points in the contest.

Sports bettors should be cautious in taking the points due to the Heat going 0-5-1 against the spread in their last six games as a road underdog, while the "under" has cashed in four straight games in that situation.

Boston will need to draw energy from the home crowd in hopes of getting back into this series, especially point guard Rajon Rondo, who never left the floor in playing all 53 minutes on Wednesday night. He finished with a career-high 44 points, and also dished out 10 assists in a losing effort.

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers is going to need a total team effort tonight, as Rondo's numbers will likely fall off due to getting just a day of rest between games. Boston still deserves some respect due to its 30-10 home record in 2011-12, which includes the postseason.

I'm going to play the total in this affair, with the Heat going "under" in both Game 3's thus far in the 2012 NBA playoffs, while the Celtics have fallen short of the number in six of nine games at home when the total is between 180 and 184.5.

Pick: Under 181

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