The Brooklyn Nets (21-53) will have their chance to bring down the Eastern Conference’s best team when they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers (52-22) at the Quicken Loans Arena. Action starts at 7:00 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 31 and can be seen on YES and FxO.
The Cavaliers lost to the Rockets 106-100 on Tuesday. Kyrie Irving finished with 31 points to lead the game. The Nets, meanwhile, are coming off a deflating 139-105 loss against the Magic on Tuesday. Thomas Robinson scored 18 points and recorded 12 rebounds earning his third double-double of the season.
LeBron James has taken his game to another level recently for the Cavaliers, averaging 28.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.6 blocks, and 1.0 three-pointer over the last five games.
The productive Cavaliers offense (fourth in the NBA with an offensive efficiency of 108.8) will square off against the poor Nets defense (29th in the league with a defensive efficiency of 108.6), a matchup that should favor the Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers lead the season series against the Nets two games to one, but dropped their most recent game, 104-95. James was the top overall scorer in the game with 30 points.
The Cavaliers enter the game with records of 52-22 Straight Up (SU) and 32-40-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 52-22 SU and 32-40-2 ATS versus the Eastern Conference. The Cavaliers have no trouble scoring as they rank fifth in the league in home offense with 106.5 points per game. The Cavaliers are one of the best in the NBA in terms of three-point field goals, making 10.0 shots per game from beyond the arc. Transitioning to the Cleveland defense, teams routinely struggle to score points against the Cavaliers, who allow only 97.9 points per game.
As for their opponent, the Nets head into the game with records of 37-36-1 ATS and 21-53 SU. Most recently, Brooklyn is a meager 3-7 ATS over the last 10 games.
Brooklyn won the last meeting this season between these two teams, but the win was not enough to overtake Cleveland in the most recent head-to-head series. Its record is now 4-6 SU over the last 10 meetings. The Nets lead the matchup ATS with a record of 6-3-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cle
Notes
“Cleveland is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games “.
“Cleveland is 11-5 SU in its last 16 games “.
“Cleveland is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home”.
“Cleveland is 11-3 SU in its last 14 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland’s last 6 games at home”.
“Cleveland is 1-4-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Brooklyn”.
“Cleveland is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Brooklyn”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Cleveland’s last 6 games when playing Brooklyn”.
“Cleveland is 7-18 ATS in its last 25 games when playing at home against Brooklyn”.
Cleveland scores an average of 103.9 points per game (ranked ninth). Brooklyn ranks 22nd in points allowed per game with 104.8.
On average, Cleveland puts up 106.5 points per home game (ranked fifth). Brooklyn ranks 21st in points allowed per road game with 106.1.
In its last game, Brooklyn lost by a 34-point margin. Cleveland is 12-3 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Brooklyn has a 0-8 record in blowouts.
The Brooklyn Nets have a 9-7 record when their opponents score fewer than 100 points. The Cleveland Cavaliers have a 12-16 record when putting up fewer than 100 points.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Nets are just 12-46 this season. Cleveland is a fantastic 40-6 when registering triple digits.
The Nets have an offensive rating of 102.0 (ranked 26th), while the Cavaliers rank 10th for their defensive rating of 102.9.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking 10th in the league with a FG% of 45.9%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Brooklyn Nets have an underachieving 8-39 record.
The Cleveland Cavaliers rank lower for their field goal percentage (10th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (fourth), but the Brooklyn Nets have a better FG% ranking (11th) than their EFF% ranking (17th).
On average, the Cleveland Cavaliers make 22.5 assists per game and the Brooklyn Nets make 22.1. Cleveland is ranked 14th, while Brooklyn is ranked 16th.
Cleveland makes an average of 3.7 blocks per game (ranked 29th). Brooklyn ranks higher in blocks with 4.0 (ranked 25th).
Cleveland is ranked 10th in offensive rebounding. Brooklyn ranks 25th in defensive rebounds.
The Brooklyn Nets make an average of 7.5 steals per game. When the Cleveland Cavaliers allow 7 or more steals, they are a winning 30-12.
