T.M. Selection: Toronto Raptors.

I like the Toronto Raptors to cover the spread against the Philadelphia 76ers in this game on Monday. The Raptors looked terrible in the 1st game of this series, they lost that game by 20 points and they were pretty much outplayed the entire game by the 76ers and their physicality. Now that the Raptors know what to expect from the 76ers here and how they are going to play, I expect them to play a lot more physical to match the 76ers here and I think they can keep this game a lot closer. I also expect the Raptors to be upset in this game since Joel Embiid took out 2 of their players in that game, including their rookie Scottie Barnes on 2 separate occasions in that game, once in the eye and another his ankle, and he was having a really good night too. I expect Siakam and VanVleet to step up and play a lot better here, carrying the team in this game. VanVleet also racked up a lot of early fouls in game 1 and I expect him to be a lot smarter here with his defensive effort. The Raptors won't want to get embarrassed again like they did in that 1st game and I see them turning up their defensive effort and intensity in this game to give themselves a better chance. They were beaten physically in that game and now that they know what they are dealing with they will come to play here and match their physicality in this game. The Raptors have given the 76ers fits all year and they aren't just going to die in this series after 1 game. I like the Raptors to bounce back here and cover the spread.

T.M. Prediction: 124-119 76ers.