Utah opened its four-game road trip in disappointing fashion as it suffered a stinging four-point defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Jazz will look to return to winning ways later tonight when they lock horns with the surging Miami Heat who are fresh off an emphatic victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Read on below as we break down this mouth-watering matchup. If you’re looking for other sports action, though, you can check out our complete NFL Week 10 picks.
The Utah Jazz had their two-game unbeaten run snapped on Tuesday with a gut-wrenching 118-114 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. It was a disappointing loss for the Jazz who let slip a nine-point fourth-quarter lead. Utah had no answer for LeBron James who tied his season-high of 31 points, 17 of which came in the payoff period.
[sc:NBA240banner ]The Jazz will look to get their season back on track when they face the Miami Heat tonight. Even though they carry a solid 4-3 slate, the Jazz still haven’t beaten a team with a winning record this season. For the Jazz to reverse that trend this evening, they will need to rediscover their form on the defensive end. The 118 points that Cleveland scored on Tuesday was the highest Utah has surrendered this season.
Their improvement on that front will hinge, however, on the availability of big man Rudy Gobert. The Frenchman injured his left ankle in the loss to Cleveland and is deemed questionable for Thursday’s game against the Heat. Gobert has been solid for the Jazz this season, leading the team in rebounds (11.9) and blocks (3.4). He averaged 7.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots against the Heat last season.
One guy who’s expected to step up big time for the Jazz is Gordon Hayward. He’s averaging a team-best 15.7 points per game this season. He averaged 23.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the two games against the Heat last campaign.
Betting on the Miami Heat (5-3)
The Miami Heat extended their winning streak to two games with a convincing 101-88 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night. Chris Bosh led the way for the Heat, scoring a season-high 30 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. He has been solid on both ends of the court for Miami this season, averaging 18.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.0 steal and 0.75 blocks.
Key to the Heat’s sudden resurgence has been their incredible defense. Miami is allowing just 90.1 points per game this season, second-best in the NBA. The Heat have held opponents to 90 points or fewer over their last four outings. That defensive intensity was in full display against Los Angeles on Tuesday where they held the Lakers to 44.2 percent shooting from the field and forced 18 turnovers that led to 25 points.
They will look to replicate that performance when they take on the Utah Jazz later tonight. The Heat will be licking their chops at the prospect of facing a Utah side that’s averaging just 96.3 points per game this season, sixth-worst in the entire NBA. They will also take comfort in the fact that they have fared extremely well against the Jazz at home of late. Miami has won nine of its last 11 home games against Utah.
For the Heat to extend that dominance tonight, they will need an improved performance from their backcourt, particularly Dwyane Wade and Goran Dragic. They combined for just 16 points on 7-of-24 shooting in the win against the Lakers. They will need to step up their game, especially now that veteran Mario Chalmers has been dealt to the Memphis Grizzlies.
