Atlanta Hawks (+7.5)

The Hawks once again defied expectations on Wednesday as they went into Milwaukee and took Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals from the Bucks.

Trae Young’s incredible postseason continued with a 48-point explosion as Atlanta won 116-113 despite Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday combining for 67 points. The Hawks are now 6-2 on the road in the postseason and have won Game 1 in all three series so far.

The Bucks, meanwhile, face another tough task after forfeiting home advantage in this series. They went 2-0 down to the Brooklyn Nets in the last round and Wednesday’s defeat was their first at home in the postseason.

Milwaukee should bounce back quickly, but these teams look very evenly matched given how Atlanta has performed throughout the playoffs.

With a line that looks just too high, it’s worth taking the points and backing the Hawks again.

Under 226 points

There were 229 points scored in Game 1, but that was the first game in the Hawks’ last five contests that went over 215 points.

This series should be full of defensive battles, and the under looks a good bet here given that six of Milwaukee’s last eight games have gone under 225.

Giannis Antetokounmpo over 33.5 points

With Khris Middleton struggling with inconsistency, Antetokounmpo has dominated the scoring for the Bucks recently, averaging 34.2 points per game over his last six contests.

He put up 34 points in Game 1 of this series and poured in 40 in Game 7 against the Nets before that.

Trae Young over 9.5 assists

Young’s playmaking has been almost as impressive as his scoring in the playoffs. He put up 11 assists to go with his 48 points on Wednesday night.

The point guard has now had double-digit assists in six of his last eight games and is averaging 10.5 per game in the postseason.