Sharp Bettors Flocking to Bucks-Pacers Wednesday Night

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times. Sharps don't care about whether or not a game is considered to be high-profile. They bet numbers that they deem valuable, regardless of the game or team.

Some days, though, the stars align and the game attracting the most sharp action also happens to be the biggest matchup on the slate. That's been the case with tonight's meeting between the Bucks and Pacers.

At 42-14, the Bucks boast the NBA's best record. They've won 13 of their past 15 games, and as a result they opened the day as 5.5-point favorites.

As you might expect, most bettors have been jumping on Milwaukee. Recreational bettors generally prefer to take better teams, even if it means laying a few points, and so far, 78% of bets on this matchup have landed on the Bucks.

Despite that heavy backing, though, the Bucks were down as far as -3.5 during the early part of the day Wednesday.

The 22% of bettors backing the Pacers have generated 35% of actual dollars being wagered. That means most of the bigger bets — the ones more likely to be made by sharps — are taking the points.

Sports Insights' Bet Signals — which are triggered by professionally driven market moves — revealed four cases of sharp action hitting the Pacers (twice at +4.5, twice at +4). That was enough to convince oddsmakers that their line was too high, a resulted in the move to +3.5.

Since then, though, the line has made its way back to 4.5, as some wiseguys felt the initial drop was a bit too dramatic — or were perhaps looking for a middle. Two SI Bet Signals showed sharp moves on the Bucks at -3.5 and -4.

With the line now sitting at 4.5 again, it's certainly possible that we'd see more smart money hit the Pacers, just as it did the last time the line was listed this high. And if it rises any more, I'd be pretty surprised if pros aren't waiting around to hop on the inflated number.

You can follow along with all the line moves up until tipoff in The Action Network App.