The Cleveland Cavaliers travel to Atlanta to take on the Hawks in Game of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, pitting the third-ranked offense against the second-ranked defense. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Friday, May 6 and can be seen on ESP, #0 and C+D.
The Hawks lost big to the Cavaliers 123-98 on Wednesday. Despite the loss, Paul Millsap earned his 35th double-double this season with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Points could be at a premium in this matchup between two of the league’s elite defenses. The Hawks rank second in the NBA in defensive efficiency (99.5), while the Cavaliers are fifth (103.0). Also, the Cavaliers’s third-ranked offense (offensive efficiency of 109.6) will face off against the second-ranked defense of the Hawks (defensive efficiency of 99.5).
The Hawks have gone 52-38 Straight Up (SU) and 44-44-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 52-38 SU and 44-44-2 ATS against the Eastern Conference. Atlanta is one of the league’s top scoring teams off turnovers with an average of 18.0 points per game.
On the other side, the Cavaliers head into the game with records of 41-45-2 ATS and 63-25 SU. Cleveland has been particularly bad ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 3-7. The Cavaliers rarely make costly errors handling the ball. They have the fifth-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the league at 1.82. The Cavaliers are one of the top defensive teams on the road, essentially shutting down opponents to the tune of 98.1 points allowed per away game.
The Cavaliers’ win over Atlanta in their last clash bumped their SU record over the last 10 meetings to 9-1. With an 8-2 record, the Cavaliers also have the advantage ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cle
Notes
“Atlanta is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games “.
“Atlanta is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games “.
“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Atlanta’s last 5 games “.
“Atlanta is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home”.
“Atlanta is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta’s last 6 games at home”.
“Atlanta is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Cleveland”.
“Atlanta is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Cleveland”.
“Atlanta is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Cleveland”.
Atlanta puts up 102.5 points per game (ranked 12th), but Cleveland typically gives up only 98.1 points per game (ranked fifth).
Atlanta ranks 19th in points per home game with 103.4 points, while Cleveland ranks third in points allowed on the road with 98.1.
The Cleveland Cavaliers won their last game by 25 points. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, the Atlanta Hawks are 12-6. Cleveland is 15-3 in blowouts this season.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Cavaliers are 37-9 on the season. When the Hawks score fewer than 100, they are a poor 10-28.
When the Cavaliers give up at least 100 points to their opponent, they are 26-16. When the Hawks hit the century mark, they also have a winning record (42-10).
The Hawks have a defensive rating of 99.5, second-best in the NBA. The Cavaliers also rank in the top half of the league for their offensive rating of 109.6 (ranked third).
The Cleveland Cavaliers have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking 10th in the league with a FG% of 46.0%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Atlanta Hawks have a losing 8-18 record.
The Atlanta Hawks and the Cleveland Cavaliers both rank higher in average effective field goal percentage when compared to their field goal percentages. Atlanta is 12th and sixth in the league for FG% and EFF% respectively, while Cleveland is 10th and third in these categories.
The Atlanta Hawks, ranked second in the NBA, average 25.3 assists per game. The Cleveland Cavaliers make 22.8 assists (ranked 12th)
The Atlanta Hawks average 6.1 blocks per game, the fourth-ranked team in the league. The Cleveland Cavaliers rank a lowly 28th in blocking with just 3.8 per game.
Atlanta is ranked 30th when it comes to offensive rebounding. Cleveland ranks 11th in defensive rebounds.
The Atlanta Hawks rank fourth in steals, with an average of 8.9 per game. When the Cleveland Cavaliers allow at least 8 steals, they have an outstanding 27-9 record.
