Cleveland is beginning to look like the defending champs again after putting together two-straight double-digit victories versus Brooklyn and OKC respectively.
LeBron James continued to light up the stat sheet against the Thunder, collecting 25 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists, while Kyrie Irving had equal share of the spotlight with a game-high of 29 points along with 10 dimes of his own.
Kevin Love, however, finished with a mere point after exiting early due to back spasms. He didn’t travel with the team for tonight’s trip to Dallas. And speaking of which, James’ status is also unclear with the possibility of him resting in this second game of a back-to-back.
If he doesn’t suit up, that leaves most of the scoring responsibility on Irving, who went 10-of-13 from the field for 25 points in the first meeting with the Mavs this season on Nov. 26. The Duke product is averaging 25.9 points through 11 games this month.
The Cavs are 5-5 SU and 3-7 ATS in their last 10 road games.
Dallas won’t just be carrying a two-game winning streak into this matchup, but surely also some ill feelings from the 38-point loss that the Cavs handed to them last November.
Don’t expect the Mavs to be embarrassed again, especially not in their own house. They’ve won three of their last four at home, including Sunday night’s upset over the Spurs. Seth Curry and Harrison Barnes led the way there with 24 and 19 points, respectively.
It was a career scoring night for the former, who added 10 rebounds and five assists under his belt. Wesley Matthews and Dirk Nowitzki, meanwhile, had 32 points combined.
The Mavs defense came up huge as well, forcing San Antonio into uncomfortable spots and to commit an uncharacteristic 11 turnovers. They’ll need to do that again against a Cleveland offense that averages 110.0 points per contest this season.
Dallas is 5-5 SU and 6-4 ATS in its last 10 home games.
