The Boston Celtics head to Quicken Loans Arena to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. The game starts at 7:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Apr. 21 and will air on TNT, CSN-NE and FSN-OH.
The Cavaliers beat the Celtics 113-100 on Sunday. Kyrie Irving was the game’s high scorer with 30 points on 11-for-21 shooting. Isaiah Thomas scored 22 points and recorded 10 assists earning his zeroth double-double of the season.
It will be a tale of two tempos, as the fast-breaking Celtics (ranked fifth in the league in possessions per game) take on the slow-paced Cavaliers (26th).
The odds are even for this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Cavaliers are attempting to build on their records of 53-29 Straight Up (SU) and 40-42 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 3-7 ATS over their last 10 games, but have found ways to get wins, going 7-3 SU.
Across the court, the Celtics head into the game with records of 49-33 ATS and 40-42 SU. Boston has done particularly well ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 8-2. The Celtics are a top-five team in the league at finding the open man with an average of 24.5 assists per game.
Cleveland won the last meeting this season between these two teams, but the Celtics still lead the head-to-head record over the last 10, 6-4 SU. At 5-5, they are even bets ATS. Cleveland has held the edge in three key areas (field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers) twice over the last 10, while Boston accomplished this once.
Predictions: SU Winner – CLE, ATS Winner – CLE
Notes
Boston’s offense and Cleveland’s defense are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per game and points allowed per game respectively. Boston scores an average of 0.0 points per game, while Cleveland allows 0.0 points per game.
Boston and Cleveland are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per away game and points allowed at home respectively. Boston scores an average of 0.0 points on the road, while Cleveland gives up 0.0 points at home on average.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Boston Celtics are a superb 30-6. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Cleveland Cavaliers have a poor record of 11-24.
The Boston Celtics have an abysmal 10-36 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Cleveland Cavaliers are 42-5 when they hit the century mark.
The Celtics have an offensive rating of 101.8 (ranked 18th), while the Cavaliers rank 17th for their defensive rating of 103.4.
Cleveland has an average field goal percentage of 45.8% (ranked eighth). Boston is a subpar 8-29 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
Cleveland averages 27.5 three point attempts per game, and Boston attempts 24.6 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Cavaliers have a solid 34-21 record while the Celtics have a 20-18 record.
Cleveland has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.62 this season (ranked 16th). Boston ranks higher with an A/TO of 1.85 (ranked fourth).
The Cavaliers rank 18th in rebounds per game with 43.0, while the Celtics rank 13th with 43.8 per game.
The Boston Celtics rank 12th in offensive rebounding, while the Cleveland Cavaliers rank 21st in defensive rebounding.
Cleveland averages a forced turnover rate of 13.3% this season. Boston has an 18-24 record when they suffer a turnover rate equal to or exceeding this.
