The San Antonio Spurs (38-7) and their third-ranked offense visit Cleveland (32-12) to take on the Cavaliers and their top-ranked defense. Action begins at 8:30 pm ET on Saturday, Jan. 30 and can be seen on ABC.
The Cavaliers enter this game hoping for similar success after blowing out the Suns 115-93 on Wednesday. LeBron James was the game’s leading scorer with 21 points on 7-for-8 shooting. The Spurs, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their deflating 120-90 loss against the Warriors in their last game. Kawhi Leonard led the team in scoring with 16 points.
This showdown pits one of the league’s top offenses against one of its elite defenses, as Cleveland currently ranks fourth in the NBA in offensive efficiency and San Antonio is first in defensive efficiency. Also, the Spurs’s third-ranked offense (offensive efficiency of 108.9) will face off against the fifth-ranked defense of the Cavaliers (defensive efficiency of 100.8).
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Spurs winning the first matchup 99-95. Tony Parker was the game’s top overall scorer with 24 points.
The odds for the Cavaliers and Spurs are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at 206 points. The Cavaliers have gone 33-12 Straight Up (SU) and 20-23-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 12-5 SU and 8-8-1 ATS against the Western Conference. The Cavaliers prevent teams from making three-pointers, ranking fourth in the league with 328 total three-pointers allowed (7.0 per game).
As for their opponent, the Spurs have 39-7 SU and 31-15 ATS records. Against the Eastern Conference, San Antonio is 17-3 SU and 13-7 ATS. The Spurs convert their shots at a high percentage, leading the league at .489. The Spurs are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking second in the NBA at 1.91. Moving on to San Antonio’s defense, the Spurs allow just 90.6 points per game, ranking them first in the league.
In their previous meeting this season, San Antonio beat Cleveland, bumping its SU record over the last 10 meetings to 9-1. Furthermore, the Spurs hold the advantage ATS with a record of 6-4.
Predictions: SU Winner – SA, ATS Winner – SA, O/U – Over
Notes
Cleveland is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland’s last 6 games at home.
Cleveland is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games at home.
Cleveland is 1-11 SU in its last 12 games when playing San Antonio.
Cleveland is 4-9 ATS in its last 13 games when playing San Antonio.
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Cleveland’s last 12 games when playing San Antonio.
Cleveland is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against San Antonio.
San Antonio puts up 104.5 points per game (ranked sixth), but Cleveland typically gives up only 96.2 points per game (ranked third).
San Antonio ranks eighth in points per away game with 102.2 points, while Cleveland ranks seventh in points allowed at home with 97.9.
The Cavaliers have a 20-6 record when they allow fewer than 100 points. The Spurs, however, have performed well when they don’t hit triple digits, with a record of 10-6 in such contests.
When the Cavaliers give up 100 or more points, they are 12-6. When the Spurs hit triple digits, they also have a winning record (28-1).
The Spurs have the best defense in the NBA, with a defensive rating of 94.4. The Cavaliers’s offense ranks a solid fourth, with an offensive rating of 106.6.
With 95.2 possessions and 1.066 points per possession, the Cleveland Cavaliers perform worse on both metrics than the San Antonio Spurs. San Antonio averages 95.5 possessions and 1.089 points per possession.
San Antonio has an average effective field goal percentage of 53.2%, ranked second in the league. Cleveland is a winning 8-4 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
The San Antonio Spurs, ranked third in the NBA, average 25.1 assists per game. The Cleveland Cavaliers make 22.4 assists (ranked 10th).
Cleveland makes an average of 3.7 blocks per game (ranked 28th). San Antonio ranks higher in blocks with 5.9 (ranked sixth).
Cleveland ranks in the top half of the NBA in offensive rebounding at eighth, while San Antonio ranks near the top of the league (third) in defensive rebounding.
The San Antonio Spurs rank eighth in steals, with an average of 8.4 per game. When the Cleveland Cavaliers allow at least 8 steals, they have a superb 14-4 record.
