Boston at Cleveland

The Boston Celtics made a galliant effort in game one, shooting well over 50% in the first half, finishing the game at 47%. Despite all that they had no answers for Love, Irving, and James. The trio combined for 69 points, 13 assists, and 21 rebounds. The Boston effort came up 13 points short, and they played a very good game, but their "A" game was simply no match for Cleveland. I don't expect them to match the same level here, and they have shown no ability to stop a focused Cleveland team, losing by 31 earlier in the season, and by 13 in game one. Despite a great effort from Boston, who actually led by 8 points at one time, the Cavs opened a 20 point lead, making a 28 point turnaround. Boston has enough pieces here and depth to score a lot of points, but on the other end they are facing too many mismatches, and no adjustment can make up the ground of the superior talent Cleveland has on the floor. Teams playing prior to the third round in the NBA playoffs as a home favorite of -9 or more with a winning percentage greater than .650, but less than .810, are 57-24 ATS. Boston is 5-1 to the UNDER in their last six on the road, and Cleveland now 7-1 to the OVER in their last eight vs. a team that scored 100 in their previous game. Boston is just 2-6 ATS in their last eight trips to Cleveland, and one of those was a late-season giveaway by the Cavaliers this season. Take Cleveland and the OVER.