The Cleveland Cavaliers head to the United Center to take on the Chicago Bulls in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The game starts at 8:00 pm ET on Thursday, May 14 and will air on ESPN.
The Bulls lost a tough one against the Cavaliers 86-84 on Sunday. Derrick Rose finished with 31 points to lead the game. Timofey Mozgov played well, posting 15 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks.
Keep an eye on Chicago’s ability to get to the charity stripe. They rank fifth in the league in free throw attempt rate (30.4), but Cleveland is among the best in the NBA at keeping opponents off the line (ranking first by allowing a free throw attempt rate of 23.8). Also, the elite offense of the Cavaliers ranks fourth in effective field goal percentage at 52.0%, while the Bulls are second-best in the league at forcing opponents’ misses (47.3%).
Oddsmakers have deemed this game an even matchup and the Over/Under (O/U) is unavailable at the moment. The Bulls enter the game with records of 50-32 Straight Up (SU) and 39-43 Against The Spread (ATS). They have gone 8-8 SU and 7-9 ATS against teams from their own division. Chicago has been steady from the free throw line, shooting a superb .783. Chicago has an edge in the rebounding department for this game, where they rack up an average of 45.7 rebounds per game.
On the other side, the Cavaliers head into the game with records of 40-42 ATS and 53-29 SU. While Cleveland has gone 3-7 ATS over its past 10 matchups, they’ve excelled SU with a record of 7-3.
Cleveland beat Chicago in their most recent meeting this season, taking the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU over the past 10 meetings. The Bulls hold the advantage ATS with a record of 7-3. Chicago had the advantage in three key areas (field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers) four times over the last 10. Cleveland has never had the edge in all categories.
Predictions: SU Winner – CHI, ATS Winner – CHI
Notes
Chicago 10-4-1 SU in its last 15 games.
Chicago is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Chicago’s last 6 games at home.
Chicago is 2-3-1 SU in its last 6 games, when playing Cleveland.
Chicago 16-7-1 SU in its last 24 games when playing Cleveland.
Chicago is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games when playing at home against Cleveland.
Cleveland has a solid 11-5 record against teams in its division, while Chicago is even against its rivals at 8-8.
Cleveland’s offense and Chicago’s defense are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per game and points allowed per game respectively. Cleveland puts up an average of 0.0 points per game, while Chicago allows 0.0 points per game.
Cleveland and Chicago are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per away game and points allowed at home respectively. Cleveland puts up an average of 0.0 points on the road, while Chicago gives up 0.0 points at home on average.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Bulls are 35-11 on the season. When the Cavaliers score fewer than 100, they are a subpar 11-24.
Chicago is 15-21 when allowing 100 or more points this season. The Cavaliers have a tremendous 42-5 record when they hit the century mark.
The Cavaliers have a defensive rating of 103.4 (ranked 17th). The Bulls rank 11th for their offensive rating of 104.5.
The Chicago Bulls average 96.5 possessions per game and 1.045 points per possession, while the Cleveland Cavaliers earn fewer possessions (95.4) but more points per possession (1.081).
Cleveland has an average effective field goal percentage of 52.0% (ranked fourth in the league}. Chicago is a losing 6-13 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
Chicago makes an average of 21.7 assists per game (ranked 14th). Cleveland ranks higher in assists with 22.1 (ranked 10th).
The Chicago Bulls average 5.8 blocks per game for a rank of fifth. The Cleveland Cavaliers rank lower (25th), earning 4.1 blocks each game.
The Chicago Bulls rank sixth in offensive rebounding, while the Cleveland Cavaliers rank 21st in defensive rebounding.
Cleveland makes an average of 7.4 steals per game. Chicago has a winning 31-20 record when it gives up at least 7 steals.
