The two top seeds Toronto and Milwaukee have advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals which is set to begin on Wednesday night. According to the current NBA series betting odds at BetOnline, #1 seed Milwaukee is a money line favorite of -290 and the #2 seed Toronto Raptors are a +240 underdog.

Regular Season Meetings

The Milwaukee Bucks won 3 of their 4 games played against Toronto during regular season action. The teams split their games in Milwaukee while the Bucks won both contests at Toronto.

Both games played in Milwaukee went over the total and there was a combined 236.0 points scored per contest. The Bucks made 31 three-point shots during those contests while converting on a superb 39.0% of those long-distance attempts.

Both Teams Stingy Postseason Defense

Toronto advanced to the conference finals by eliminating Orlando in 5 games during quarterfinal action, and then outlasted Philadelphia in 7 games.

Heading into this series, Toronto has gone under the total in 10 of their 12 postseason games, and that includes all 5 on the road. As a matter of fact, dating back to regular season play, Toronto has now gone under in 8 straight away games.

The Raptors have been terrific defensively throughout these 2019 NBA Playoffs while allowing just 96.0 points per game. Furthermore, they’ve held their opponents (Orlando, Philadelphia) to a mere 41.3% shooting and permitted them to make only 31.5% of their 3-point attempts.

Milwaukee swept Detroit in their quarterfinal series and covered each of those contests as a double-digit favorite. They then preceded to easily dispose of the Boston Celtics in 5 games. Additionally, the Bucks are a perfect 4-0 SU&ATS on the road thus far.

Much of Milwaukee’s playoff dominance can be attributed to their play on the defensive end. The Bucks have held their opponents (Detroit, Boston) to 39.9% shooting and permitted them to make just 31.7% of their 3-point shot attempts.

Conference Finals Series History Unfavorable for Raptors

As I alluded to earlier, Toronto defeated Philadelphia is 7-games during their previous series. The last 5 teams to make a conference final following a series that went 7 games have failed to advance.

NBA Conference Final Game 1 Betting Angle Supports Toronto

It’s also worth noting, since 2003, away underdogs in an opening game of a conference final have been very profitable if they won their previous series in 6 or more games. Specifically, those road dogs were 14-5 ATS during that time frame and won 10 of those 19 games straight up.

Ross Benjamin is a top sports analyst and one of the sports industry's most respected handicappers. Follow him on Twitter: @RossBenjamin1 or visit his website at RBWins.com