Don’t expect a high-scoring game when the Memphis Grizzlies (37-25) travel to Cleveland to play the Cavaliers (44-17). The game gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Monday, Mar. 7 and will air on NBA, FxO and FxS.
The Cavaliers were victorious over the Celtics 120-103 on Saturday. LeBron James fueled the Cavaliers, recording 28 points and 11 rebounds to notch his 21st double-double this season. The Grizzlies, meanwhile, are coming off a 109-100 loss to the Suns on Sunday. Mike Conley had a team-high 22 points.
Half-court execution will be at a premium as the Cavaliers rank 26th in the league in possessions per game (95.5), while the Grizzlies are 27th (95.4).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Cavaliers won the first game 106-76. Kevin Love put up 17 points and 13 rebounds.
The Cavaliers look to build on their records of 44-17 Straight Up (SU) and 27-32-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 7-3 ATS over their last 10 games. Cleveland is excellent from the perimeter with 617 three-pointers made (10.0 per game), the fifth-most in the league. Turning to the defensive side, the Cleveland defense has been very good, only giving up 97.1 points per game. Teams really have to fight for three-pointers against the Cavaliers, who have allowed only 7.0 three-pointers to opponents per game.
On the other side, Memphis has a SU record of 37-25 and an ATS record of 30-29-3. Memphis has records of 37-25 SU and 30-29-3 ATS against the East. During the last 10 games, they averaged 106.7 PPG, above their 99.1 PPG season average. The Grizzlies are shooting lights out from the foul line so far, with a .793 free throw percentage that ranks fourth in the NBA. Don’t expect Memphis to give away the ball much on offense, where its 12.4 turnovers per game ranks fourth in the league.
Cleveland won the last meeting this season between these two teams, evening up the two teams’ head-to-head record over the last 10 games. However, the Cavaliers lead the matchup ATS with a record of 8-2.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cle
Notes
Memphis ranks 24th in points per game with 99.1, while Cleveland ranks third in points allowed with an average of 97.1 given up.
Memphis averages 96.7 points per away game, placing the team just 27th in the league. Cleveland ranks fifth in points allowed at home, giving up 97.9 points per home game.
The Memphis Grizzlies have a superb 26-8 record when their opponents score fewer than 100 points this season. The Cleveland Cavaliers are 11-14 when they score less than 100.
The Memphis Grizzlies have a losing 11-17 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Cleveland Cavaliers are 33-3 when they hit the century mark.
The Grizzlies have an offensive rating of 103.9 (ranked 14th), while the Cavaliers rank eighth for their defensive rating of 101.7.
Ranked 10th in the NBA, Cleveland has an average field goal percentage of 45.8%. Memphis is 12-14 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Cleveland Cavaliers rank lower for their field goal percentage (10th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (fifth), but the Memphis Grizzlies have a better FG% ranking (19th) than their EFF% ranking (27th).
On average, the Cleveland Cavaliers make 22.4 assists per game and the Memphis Grizzlies make 21.0. Cleveland is ranked 12th, while Memphis is ranked 21st.
Cleveland makes an average of 3.6 blocks per game (ranked 28th). Memphis ranks higher in blocks with 4.4 (ranked 21st).
The Cleveland Cavaliers rank 11th in offensive rebounding, while the Memphis Grizzlies rank 30th in defensive rebounding.
The Memphis Grizzlies rank sixth in steals, with an average of 8.7 per game. When the Cleveland Cavaliers allow at least 8 steals, they have an outstanding 19-5 record.
