Cavaliers to end road woes visiting Boston as favourites in NBA
Published:
Daniel Coyle, American Sports Correspondent | December 15, 2015
Cleveland Cavaliers will try to improve their mediocre record on the road this season to an even 6-6 when they visit the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night with the Cavs 2.5-point favourites in NBA betting with Coral.
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics (-2.5)
Cavs travel to Boston perched atop the Eastern Conference standings, one game ahead of the Chicago Bulls and Toronto Raptors. However, that lead is largely the result of solid play on their home floor, where they have won 10 of 11 straight up this season.
Conversely, the Cavs have struggled to find consistency on the road, failing to string together consecutive wins since the first week of the season, while going a disappointing 4-7 against the spread, but are coming off a decisive win in Orlando on Friday night, pounding the Magic by a 111-76 margin, easily covering as 3.5-point chalk.
Tuesday night’s matchup at TD Garden marks the first meeting between these two clubs since the opening round of last season’s NBA playoffs.
Cleveland swept the Celtics in four games, but it was Boston who rewarded sports bettors with ATS wins in the final three games of that series, improving to 8-3 ATS in their last 11 against the Cavaliers.
First of many for Boston this week
Boston opens their busy week looking to build on a 7-3 SU run that has lifted them to within two games of the first-place Cavs.
The Celtics have also been a reliable bet at home of late, winning four of five SU, and are an outstanding 7-1-1 ATS in their last nine overall, including a pair of outright victories as betting underdogs and a push in a thrilling 124-119 double-overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors last week.
Tuesday night’s contest is the first of four NBA games for Boston over the next week. The club travels to Detroit to take on the much improved Pistons on Wednesday night, before returning home to face the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, and Minnesota on Monday.
The Cavaliers return home on Thursday to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder, prior to a Sunday matinee against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Denver Nuggets @ Minnesota Timberwolves (-5.0)
The Timberwolves, meanwhile, play host to the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday as 5-point favourites.
With reigning rookie of the year Andrew Wiggins continuing to develop into a bona fide NBA star, the Timberwolves have played some exciting basketball this season, but have also struggled to find wins, claiming victory in just one of their last seven contests, while going winless ATS in their last six. But there is plenty to like about the T-Wolves’ future.
Wiggins remains in the Top 20 in league scoring with 20.6 points per game, while Karl-Anthony Towns, whom the team took first overall in this year’s NBA Draft, ranks fifth with 2.17 blocks per game, and Spaniard Ricky Rubio ranks fifth with 8.5 assists per game.
The Nuggets head to the North Star State with four SU wins in their past five, including a pair of road wins in Philadelphia and Toronto.
Denver’s hot streak follows a dismal 1-9 SU stretch, which included eight losses by nine or more points. However, the Nuggets are a solid 10-3 SU when they score 100 or more points.
Following their date with Minnesota, the Nuggets head home to battle the Utah Jazz on Friday night, while the T-Wolves travel to New York to take on the Knicks on Wednesday. before a home matchup with Sacramento on Friday.
In other NBA betting action at Coral on Tuesday, the Kings host the Houston Rockets as 2.5-point favourites, while the Warrior-slaying Milwaukee Bucks visit the Los Angeles Lakers as 3.5-point chalk.
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