Cavaliers vs Spurs Picks – Cavs Will Wrangle Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are coming off a tough loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, whom the online betting community believes is the best team in the West, and now they have to host what most bettors consider is the best team in the East. This tough spell will be humbling for the Spurs.
- What: NBA Betting
- When: Friday March 26, 2010 @ 8:30pm EST
- Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
- Key Stat: Cleveland beat the Spurs 97-95, without LeBron James, on March 8
The Storyline - Cavaliers vs Spurs picks
The Cavaliers are on an eight game winning streak and have won 14 of 15 while the Spurs have not lost at home since January and boast 25-10 record in their own arena. The century mark is key for the Cavaliers as they have only lost three games all season when they score over 100 points while the Spurs have dropped 15 games when allowing triple figures. Cleveland has also only dropped one game against a Western Conference opponent in the last two months. At 57-15 the Cavs have the best record in the league and are well on their way to the Eastern Conference title while the Spurs are battling among the back end of the playoff picture in the West.
Offensive Matchups - Cavaliers vs Spurs picks
Cleveland has an impressive offence that is based around LeBron James however is capable of scoring without him as they managed 97 points against the Spurs without their star forward earlier this month. Averaging over 102 points a game this season, they are in the top 10 in the major statistical categories and will be tough to defend as they are on a roll as of late breaking the 99 point barrier in five of their last six.
San Antonio has been up and down offensively as of late scoring as many as 147 points and as few as 84 points in the past four games. They will need more of the former and less of the latter if they want to compete with the Cavaliers who have been unstoppable offensively over the past month. George Hill has been a major part of the ability of the Spurs to be competitive after Anthony Parker went down with injury. Averaging 15.5 in the past two months he should have a strong game against the Cavaliers who do not possess a lockdown defender.
Betting Edge: CavaliersDefensive Matchups - Cavaliers vs Spurs picks
Both of these teams hold opponents to under 97 points a game and can be dominant when they clamp down. They are both very good on the glass ranking in the top five in opposing team rebounds and hold them to under 10 offensive boards limiting second chance opportunities.
The Cavaliers boast the third best defensive squad in the league and the second lowest field-goal percentage at a meagre 43.8 percent. Holding teams to just 94.8 points a game, they have given up just 86 a game over their past three games.
San Antonio is not the defensive power that it once was however it is still a tall order to score points against their team. Tim Duncan centers the front court defence that will challenge anyone coming into the lane. Their offense runs deep into the shot clock which limits the number of offensive possessions that opponents have dragging down the point totals in games.
Betting Edge: SpursNotable Injuries - Cavaliers vs Spurs picks
Tony Parker is expected to be out until the end of the regular season with a broken hand which hampers the Spurs offence because they were most effective when using his ability to break down his defender and use the pick and roll with Duncan. He has only played 10 games over the past two months with a variety of injuries and will be needed if the Spurs are to make a strong push into the playoffs.
Shaquille O’Neal is out until the playoffs but with the signing of Ilgauskas he will not be missed as much and will just add to an already great team when he returns. Sebastian Telfair is also expected out until the playoffs with a ruptured groin muscle however he has not been a major part of the offence so his absence does not hurt the team in any way.
Betting Edge: CavaliersBetting Prediction - Cavaliers vs Spurs picks
After winning without James earlier this month, the Cavs should not have a problem coming away with another victory against the Spurs as LeBron has averaged 33.5 points in four games against San Antonio over the last two seasons. San Antonio has also lost three straight games against teams over 500 and have not beaten the Cavaliers in almost two seasons.
Pick: Cavaliers
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