The Detroit Pistons (44-40) will be at home when they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers (59-25) in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarlerfinals. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Friday, Apr. 22 and can be seen on ESP, FxO and FxD.
The Pistons were beaten by the Cavaliers 107-90 on Wednesday. Reggie Jackson had the best performance for the Pistons, contributing 14 points, six assists, and four rebounds.
Expect this one to be a clinic on boxing out, as two of the NBA’s top rebounding teams face off. Detroit is among the league’s best on the offensive glass, ranking second in offensive rebound percentage at 26.9%. Meanwhile, Cleveland ranks fourth in the NBA at corralling defensive boards with a defensive rebound percentage of 78.5%.
The Pistons have gone 44-39 Straight Up (SU) and 43-37-3 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a 7-3 record against their division, but have a subpar 2-8 record ATS in those games.
In the other locker room, the Cavaliers head into the game with records of 38-44-2 ATS and 59-25 SU. In divisional games, Cleveland has gone 10-8 SU and ATS. The Cavaliers allow just 98.3 points per game, ranking them fourth in the league.
With the Cavaliers’ last win against Detroit, their SU record rises to 6-4 over the Pistons in the last 10 games. However, the Pistons lead the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cle
Notes
“Detroit is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of Detroit’s last 6 games “.
“Detroit is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games at home”.
“Detroit is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Cleveland”.
“Detroit is 4-9 SU in its last 13 games when playing Cleveland”.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Detroit’s last 7 games when playing Cleveland”.
“Detroit is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Cleveland”.
“Detroit is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Cleveland”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Detroit’s last 6 games when playing at home against Cleveland”.
Detroit and Cleveland both have a 10-8 record against the division.
Cleveland ranks eighth in points per game with 104.4, while Detroit ranks 12th in points allowed with an average of 101.5 given up.
Cleveland scores an average of 102.0 points per away game (ranked 10th). Detroit ranks 11th in points allowed per home game with 100.0.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Cleveland Cavaliers are a stellar 33-9. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Detroit Pistons have a losing record of 10-28.
The Cavaliers have a 26-16 record when they allow at least 100 points. The Pistons have also performed well when they register triple digits with a record of 34-12 in such contests.
The Cavaliers have the third-best offensive rating in the NBA (109.1). The Pistons are also in the top half of the league based on their defensive rating of 104.2 (ranked 12th).
Cleveland has an average field goal percentage of 46.1% (ranked ninth). Detroit is a poor 17-29 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
On average, Detroit attempts 26.0 three pointers and Cleveland attempts 29.0 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Pistons are even at 26-26 while the Cavaliers have a solid 44-20 record.
The Detroit Pistons rank 23rd with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.51. The Cleveland Cavaliers have a higher A/TO (1.78), ranking sixth.
Detroit ranks near the top of the NBA for rebounds at fourth (46.1 per game), while Cleveland ranks ninth with 44.4 per game.
Detroit is ranked 11th in defensive rebounds, while Cleveland ranks 12th in offensive rebounds.
On average, the Pistons force a turnover rate of 13.1%. When the Cavaliers turn over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 30-16 record.
