Brace yourselves for an epic encounter between two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, as the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers collide at the Quicken Loans Arena tonight. The Raptors’ Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan have been one of the deadliest one-two punches in the league this season, but the Cavs will definitely not be intimidated by this since they have their Big Three in LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love on their side. Which team will reign supreme in this one?
Read on further for a closer look at this mouth-watering clash. If you’re yearning for more basketball action, check out our other previews: Pacers at Heat and Hornets at Warriors.
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Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Betting Preview
Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
When: Monday, January 4, 2016, 7:00 PM ET
Line: Toronto Raptors (+8) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (+8); total: 192.0 – view all NBA lines
Betting on the Toronto Raptors (21-14)
Despite a heart-breaking loss to Chicago yesterday, the Toronto Raptors should still feel pretty confident about their much-anticipated showdown with the Cavaliers tonight. The Raptors, who have won four their last six games, were on the winning side in their first meeting with Cleveland on November 25. In that encounter, the backcourt duo of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan came up really huge for them.
[sc:NBA250 ]Lowry exploded for a game-high of 27 points with three boards and seven assists while DeRozan trailed him with 20 points on 7-of-16 shooting, three rebounds and four dimes under his name. But these two also had some help in that match through their teammates in Luis Scola and DeMarre Caroll, who contributed 15 and 12 points respectively.
Now, the Raptors will look to replicate this performance and hopefully make it two-straight wins over Cleveland. Their offense, which is tallying almost 100 points per game, will surely keep relying on Lowry (20.6 PPG) and DeRozan (22.9 PPG) to rack up the points. The two will have to work really hard for their points, though, especially against a very good defensive club like the Cavaliers, who are yielding 88 points per game and holding teams to 40.4 percent shooting over their last 10 games.
Speaking of defense, the Raptors will also need to tighten theirs especially against the fourth-leading scorer in the NBA today, LeBron James. The onus will be on their top defender in Caroll to limit him all-game long and prevent him from finding any proper offensive rhythm.
Meanwhile, the Raptors would be smart to keep a really close attention on Kyrie Irving, who’s slowly finding his form back, as well. Irving has only played five games this season, but he’s finished in double-figures four times during that stretch.
Toronto is 6-4 SU and 5-4-1 ATS in its past 10 road games.
Cleveland’s beginning to pick up some steam once again. The Cavaliers have won their past three games since their lopsided loss to Portland on December 26. In that three-game run, they’ve won by an average margin of 11.6 points and have managed to hold each of their opponents below the 100-point mark.
Playing a big part to this success is none other than the King himself, LeBron James. He’s been carrying a lot of the load on a nightly basis, posting 23.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG and 4.0 APG in the past seven games. That stretch includes their 93-87 win versus Denver last Tuesday, during which James tallied a game-high of 34 points with six boards and a pair of dimes across his name. But needless to say, he’ll need all the help he can get when the Atlantic Division-leading Toronto Raptors come to town.
That said, the Cavaliers, who are putting up 99.8 points per contest this season, will be expecting the pair of Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving to do some damage in this one. Both should be able to relatively do so as they’ve had a share of big games opposite Toronto throughout their respective careers, averaging 18.2 PPG and 18.0 PPG respectively. Love, in particular, could be in for a strong night as his long-range shooting could definitely come in handy against a Raptors defense that struggles to guard the three-point area (8.9 three-pointers allowed per game).
Defense, meanwhile, will also be crucial in this game. The Cavaliers will be mindful of guarding the likes of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who are each averaging around 20 points per game. It’s a good thing that their defense has been very solid with only 94.5 points given up per contest, which is the second-lowest in the NBA this year.
Cleveland is 9-1 SU and 6-4 ATS in its previous 10 home games.
