“Brad Stevens is a genius” has been a popular refrain these days with the way he’s steering the Boston Celtics to over-achievement. After beating the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2, 107-94, the Celtics will now look to go up 3-0 in the Eastern Conference finals this Thursday at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland.
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Betting Preview for Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics NBA Eastern Conference Finals Game 3 on May 19, 2018
Where: Quicken Loans Arena
When: Saturday, May 19, 8:30PM EST
Line: Boston Celtics (point spread) vs Cleveland Cavaliers (point spread) – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Boston Celtics (+6.5)
And just like that, the Celtics are up 2-0. Even with LeBron James seemingly unstoppable in Game 3, the Celtics survived the four-time MVP’s scoring barrage thanks in large part to Boston’s backcourt canceling The King’s production. Jaylen Brown had 23 points, while Terry Rozier finished with 18 points, most of which coming in the second half, where the Celtics took the lead and pulled away. Marcus Smart was also terrific in 31 minutes of action off the bench, supplying the Celtics with 11 points, nine assists, and five rebounds before finishing with a plus/minus of plus-21. Boston’s defense has also been doing a fine job of keeping Cleveland’ scoring in check, as the Cavs have yet to score more than 94 points in a game in this series.
The Celtics will head to Game 3 in Cleveland with a 2-2 ATS record in their last four road games.
Betting on the Cleveland Cavaliers (-6.5)
The Cavs averaged over 118 points in the second round sweep of the Toronto Raptors, but they are struggling to shoot the ball right now against Boston. They shot 36 percent in Game 1 and improved in Game with a 46.3 field goal shooting percentage, but that’s mostly because of LeBron James and Kevin Love. James scored 42 points on Tuesday on 16-for-29 from the field with five 3-pointers. Love had 22 points and 15 rebounds. Outside of James and Love, the Cavs only had 30 points with Korver coming off the bench and contributing 11. It can’t be any more stressed out: LeBron and Love need help sooner than later. Otherwise, the Cavs might just find themselves in a 3-0 series ditch. The Cavs are averaging 2.8 points per game more at home (102.7) than on the road in these playoffs and shooting at a better clip of 47.1 percent.
The Cavs are 5-0 SU (1-4 ATS) in their last five home games.
Writer’s Prediction
Boston wins, 104-100.
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