Timberwolves vs. Celtics Betting Line – December 21

Carrie Stroup here with your Timberwolves vs. Celtics betting line. Boston -8, Total: 206

MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES (11-16) at BOSTON CELTICS (14-13)

The Celtics will be looking to prevent a four-game losing streak when they host a suddenly surging Timberwolves team on Monday.

Minnesota hosted Sacramento on Friday and came away with a 99-95 victory as a 2.5-point home favorite. The team then beat the Nets 100-85 in Brooklyn on Sunday. Even with the victories, the Timberwolves have now lost eight of their past 11 games SU and have only won ATS in two of their past 10. They will need to start showing more effort on a consistent basis so that this winning stretch could be a sign of things to come rather than an outlier.

The Celtics haven’t been great themselves, losing three straight games after a 109-101 loss as 3.5-point home favorites against the Hawks on Friday night. These two teams met twice a year ago and both teams won-and-covered when playing as the host. The Celtics are 2-0 both SU and ATS when facing the Timberwolves in Boston over the past three seasons and have covered in nine straight at home dating back to Jan. 18, 2006.

One thing favoring Minnesota in this game is the fact that the Celtics are just 7-21 ATS in home games after having lost three of their past four games over the past three seasons. Boston is, however, an impressive 22-9 ATS when playing as a home favorite over the past two seasons. C Nikola Pekovic (Achilles) is out indefinitely for the Timberwolves and PG Marcus Smart (Knee) is out indefinitely for the Celtics.

The Timberwolves have won two straight games and SG Andrew Wiggins (21.1 PPG, 3.8 RPG) has been incredibly efficient in the victories. Over the past two games, Wiggins is averaging 24.0 PPG, 6.5 RPG and 3.0 APG on 17-for-31 shooting from the field. He will need to keep attacking the rim, as he will fall in love with his jumper far too often at times.

C Karl-Anthony Towns (15.7 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 2.0 BPG) had 24 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in the victory over the Nets. He has now scored 24 or more in two of the past three games and should be able to play well against a Celtics team that is weak inside.

Another player that is really coming on for Minnesota is C Gorgui Dieng (8.6 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.0 BPG). Dieng had 20 points and 10 boards on 9-for-12 shooting against the Nets on Sunday. He has had two double-doubles in the past three games and is really responding to his recent increase in minutes. His toughness around the basket on both ends makes him a good fit next to Towns.

The Celtics have struggled recently, but SF Jae Crowder (12.9 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.9 SPG) has done everything in his power to keep Boston in games. Crowder is an excellent defender on the perimeter and will likely see a lot of time guarding Andrew Wiggins on Monday. If he can shut down Wiggins to some extent then the Celtics could come away with a victory in this one. It’d also help if he can bring just a small portion of the offense he provided against the Hawks last game. Crowder had 24 points in that one and was 8-for-13 from the field.

PG Isaiah Thomas (21.4 PPG, 6.6 APG, 1.4 SPG) is also playing his heart out for the Celtics and has been delivering offensively. Over the past two games, Thomas is averaging 33.5 PPG and 6.5 APG. He should be able to score once again in this one, but he and Crowder will need help on offense.

The x-factor for Boston in this game could just be PF Amir Johnson (7.5 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.3 BPG). Johnson is the best interior defender that the Celtics have and he will need to be effective guarding both Towns and Dieng on Monday.

- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter