Round two of last year’s NBA Finals rematch will tip-off in Quicken Loans Arena this Monday, when the Golden State Warriors visit the Cleveland Cavaliers.
[sc:NBA250 ]Golden State won the first encounter against Cleveland earlier this season, but the champs are uncharacteristically struggling as of the moment. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers have played some terrific basketball during their recently concluded six-game road trip.
Will the Warriors continue their domination of the Cavs, or will LeBron James and co. further improve their already impressive home record? Let’s take a closer look below at this gigantic matchup between the top two teams from the Eastern and Western conference.
Afterwards, check out our complete previews for the NFL’s conference championship games and the PGA Tour’s CareerBuilder Challenge to be on top of the marquee sporting events up ahead.
[sc:NBAArticles ]Golden State Warriors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Preview
Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland
When: Monday, January 18, 8:00 PM ET
Line: Golden State Warriors (+3) at Cleveland Cavaliers (-3); total: 206.5 – view all NBA lines
Betting on the Golden State Warriors (37-4)
There’s still no denying that the Golden State Warriors are the NBA’s best team this season. However, over the past week, the Warriors are looking like mere mortals rather than the tour-de-force that they’ve been for much of the campaign.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Golden State has lost two of its last three games, with the latest being a humbling 113-95 defeat against the Pistons in Detroit on Saturday. As usual, reigning MVP Stephen Curry was in full-attack mode (38 points, seven three-pointers, seven boards, five assists), but found no help on offense from the rest of his teammates.
In fact, the team as a whole shot a season-low 38-percent from the floor on Saturday, with Draymond Green scoring just five points on 1-of-7 shooting. Harrison Barnes, who started his first game of the season, went 2-of-11 for just five points as well.
The Warriors need to get their phenomenal ball movement going again on Monday if they want to prevent another low-scoring game like their 89-85 win over the Cavs on December 26. They only had 18 assists against Detroit, the first time that the team had less than 20 in a contest this season, and a far cry from their league-best average of 28.6 dimes per contest.
Still, the Dubs have won the last four meetings against Cleveland (3-1 ATS), and their NBA-leading 114 points per game average is too daunting a statistic to overlook. They were shocked by a much-improved Pistons team this weekend, but they’re coming in prepared for their rematch with the Cavs, that’s for sure.
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Betting on the Cleveland Cavaliers (28-10)
After losing a hotly-contested battle to the Spurs, the Cleveland Cavaliers rebounded in emphatic fashion by routing the Houston Rockets, 91-77, on Thursday to snap Houston’s five-game winning streak. The Cavs also got the fifth win from their now-concluded six-game road swing.
The Cavs had an all-around outing from their top three stars that day. Kyrie Irving had a team-high 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting, Kevin Love posted a double-double (11 points, 13 boards), and LeBron James stuffed his stat sheet once more with 19 points, seven boards and seven assists.
Speaking of James, there’s no bigger thorn on the Warriors’ side than The King himself. (Remember those one-man NBA Finals performances?) Ohio’s very own is averaging a career-best 30.4 points per contest against Golden State, and is even converting over half of his shots from the field this season.
Not only does Golden State have to worry about James taking over yet again on Sunday, but the team also has to execute extremely well on offense versus the Cavaliers’ stifling defense. Cleveland just limited the Rockets to their worst offensive output this season of 77 points, forced 18 turnovers, and held James Harden to just 11 points on 2-of-10 shooting. Currently, the Cavaliers are allowing a mere 95.1 points per game this season, second-best in the NBA.
And then there’s home court advantage. Yes, the Cavs have a stellar 15-1 record in Quicken Loans Arena this campaign, but they have only gone 8-7 against the spread. The Warriors are no pushovers for sure, so expect Monday’s showdown to come down to the wire for another highly-entertaining clash between the NBA’s leading titans.
Writer’s Prediction
Golden State completes its season sweep of the Cavs in a nail-biter, 108-105.
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