[sc:NBA250 ]Something’s gotta give. San Antonio and Cleveland will put their impressive winning streaks on the line when they lock horns this coming Thursday in a mouth-watering NBA clash. Both teams are playing some terrific basketball of late, so expect a top-notch encounter between the two sides.
Read on below for an in-depth breakdown of this gripping matchup and while you’re at it, you can check out our previews of LA Lakers vs. Golden State and Toronto vs. Orlando.
[sc:NBAArticles ]Cleveland Cavaliers vs. San Antonio Spurs Preview
Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio
When: Thursday, January 14, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Cleveland Cavaliers at San Antonio Spurs – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Cleveland Cavaliers (27-9)
The Cleveland Cavaliers stretched their unbeaten run to eight games with a thrilling 110-107 overtime victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night. LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love combined for 64 points for the Cavaliers, who now own a 4.5 game lead atop the Eastern Conference standings.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Key to the Cavs’ resurgence has been the excellent play of the returning Kyrie Irving. He scored 22 points in the win against the Mavs, including a dagger three-pointer in the dying seconds of overtime. The Cavs are 9-1 this season when Irving is in the lineup. To illustrate his importance to the Cavs’ cause, Cleveland is putting up a whopping 118.5 points per 100 possessions when he’s on the court this season. That’s way above the 103.7 points the Cavs are making when Irving is sitting on the bench.
Things are bound to get tougher for the Cavaliers, though, as standing in their way in their next game are the red-hot San Antonio Spurs. The five-time NBA champions are averaging 110.7 points during their current nine-game unbeaten run. In fact, the Spurs have scored at least 100 points in each of those nine victories. That’s a major concern for the Cavs, who just surrendered 107 points to the Mavs on Tuesday. The Cavs need to buckle down on their defense, particularly inside the shaded area. The Spurs are fifth in the NBA in that department, scoring an average of 44.9 points inside the paint this season.
Apart from improving their defense, the Cavs will also need to get another strong performance from LeBron James. He was superb in the game against the Mavs, scoring 27 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field. He’s posting monster numbers for the Cavs once again this season, averaging 25.8 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game.
The Cavs are 8-2 SU and 4-5-1 ATS in their last 10 road games.
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Betting on the San Antonio Spurs (34-6)
The San Antonio Spurs extended their winning streak to nine games with a convincing 109-99 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night. Tony Parker led the way for the Spurs, scoring a season-high 31 points. Parker has been solid on both ends of the floor for San Antonio, averaging 12.8 points, 5.2 assists, and 2.5 rebounds per game this season.
Key to the Spurs’ hot start this season has been their suffocating defense. San Antonio is tops in the NBA in scoring defense, surrendering a measly 89.7 points per game this season. That rock-solid defense was in full display Tuesday against Detroit, where they held the Pistons to a horrid 41.8 percent shooting from the field.
Next up for the surging Spurs is a clash with Eastern Conference powerhouse Cleveland. Gregg Popovich’s men will fancy their chances against the Cavaliers as they have fared extremely well at home this season. The Spurs are unbeaten at AT&T Center this campaign, winning all of their 22 games there. That being said, they will face a tough test against the Cavs, who own the league’s third-best defense. The Cavs are allowing just 95.5 points per game this season.
The Spurs are 7-3 SU and 6-4 ATS in their last 10 home games against the Cavs.
Writer’s Prediction
The Spurs edge past the Cavs, 97-92.
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