NBA Playoffs
Eastern Conference – Round 2
Tip-off: Monday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: Miami -5.5, Total: 190.0

The Raptors will be looking to take a 3-1 series lead when they face the Heat in Miami on Monday.

The Heat hosted the Raptors in Game 3 and Toronto ended up winning that one 95-91 as a 5.5-point road underdog. The Raptors now have control of this series and could really improve their chances of advancing by defeating Miami on Monday night. A 3-1 lead with two games left to play in Toronto would likely be insurmountable for the Heat, so they’ll be playing with a lot of desperation in this game. One thing worth noting is that the Raptors are an impressive 72-49 ATS in a road game where the total is between 190 and 194.5 points since 1996. The Heat, meanwhile, are 16-7 ATS after having lost two of their past three games this season. C Jonas Valanciunas (Ankle) is likely out for the remainder of the series for Toronto and Miami will likely be without C Hassan Whiteside (Knee) in this game. C Chris Bosh (Blood Clot) also remains out for the year for the Heat.

The Raptors are coming off of a huge victory and PG Kyle Lowry (15.5 PPG, 6.7 APG, 1.6 SPG in playoffs) finally came through for Toronto in that one. Lowry finished the game with 33 points on 11-for-19 shooting from the field and 5-for-8 shooting from the outside in the win. He had been just 2-for-14 from three in the previous two games, so it’s important that he continues to knock down shots the rest of this series. Lowry was a 38.8% shooter from the outside during the regular season, so perhaps he’ll start to creep towards the norm moving forward. It’s important that he and SG DeMar DeRozan (18.6 PPG, 1.5 SPG in playoffs) are able to score moving forward. With Valanciunas out, this team is going to need more from its backcourt. C Bismack Biyombo (4.1 PPG, 7.7 RPG in playoffs) is a player to watch as well. He’ll draw the start for the Raptors in Game 4 and the team will need him to bring a ton of energy on both ends of the floor. He’s a very good rebounder and should also be able to protect the rim moving forward.

The Heat are also going to need a lot out of their backcourt in the remainder of this series, as the team is not very sure when Whiteside will be making a return to the court. SG Dwyane Wade (21.2 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 4.6 APG in playoffs) was unstoppable last game, finishing with 38 points, eight boards and four assists in 36 minutes of action. He’ll need to put forth a similar performance on Monday and it should be possible. Wade has had a lot of success going to the bucket and he’s also shooting very well from the outside, which is an added bonus for somebody that didn’t really shoot any threes during the regular season. PG Goran Dragic (15.7 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.7 APG in playoffs) will need to be better in Game 4 for Miami. Lowry torched him in Game 3 and the Heat desperately need him to hold his own in that matchup. PF Luol Deng (15.9 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.0 SPG in playoffs) must also step it up for Miami. He had just four points in 39 minutes of action in Game 3 and that is not going to cut it moving forward. Deng was a big part of Miami’s first round victory and will need to start knocking down some outside shots in this series.