New York Knicks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Game 2 Prediction, NBA Odds
The Knicks silenced their naysayers on Saturday with a 101-97 series-opening win in Cleveland to claim both home court advantage and the top of the odds as invigorated -169 favourites on the NBA playoff series prices. Now facing the possibility of losing three in a row for the first time since mid-February, the Cavaliers also look to reverse a dismal trend at the sportsbooks, where they have covered just once in six outings. However, Cleveland has been dominant while claiming the win in each of their past eight Game 2 appearances.
Despite their shocking loss in Game 1, the Cavaliers have strengthened to 5-point favourites since opening as 4-point chalk. The Knicks are pegged as a +167 moneyline bet, and the total is listed at 214.
Knicks vs. Cavaliers NBA Playoff Betting Odds
Tuesday night’s matchup at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse marks the fifth overall meeting of the season between these Eastern Conference rivals. The Knicks have now won four straight since dropping a 121-108 decision in Cleveland back on October 30, claiming victory by an average of 7.8 points in those victories. Saturday’s Game 1 win also bodes well for the Knicks, who suffered just one total defeat while defeating the Cavaliers in three previous playoff matchups. Saturday’s contest continued the trend towards low scoring when these teams meet. These teams have combined to score fewer than 210 total points nine times during a steady 8-1-1 run for the UNDER.
New York Knicks
While neither one of these turned in an offensive performance for the ages in Game 1, Jalen Brunson set himself apart with a sensational second half, scoring 21 after recess and finishing the contest with a team-high 27 points. With Julius Randle sidelined by injury, Brunson put this team on his back down the stretch. The 26-year-old has now averaged 26.9 points per game over his past 10 outings, and has also averaged 6.3 assists over his past six contests. Making his first appearance since March 29, Randle made his presence in his highly anticipated return, scoring 19 and adding 10 rebounds. However, the rust was evident at times, with the 28-year-old going just 7-for-20 from the field and 2-for-4 from the free throw line.
Cleveland Cavaliers
For the second time in as many outings, the Cavaliers failed to hit the century mark in points. The Cleveland offence received little help from the team’s supporting cast, with the bench going just 4-for-13 on the evening and recording just 14 points. Evan Mobley’s recent scoring woes also continued in Game 1. The 21-year-old mustered just eight points on 4-for-13 shooting and has dropped just 14 total points over his past two outings after averaging 18.1 points over his previous 14 games. That left the scoring responsibilities once again in the hands of Donovan Mitchell, who led all shooters with a game-high 38 points in Game 1 and has now averaged 36.4 points over his past eight outings. Jarrett Allen remained a beast under the bucket with 14 rebounds, but unless this club can generate greater distributed scoring on Tuesday, they will be traveling to the Big Apple later this week down 2-0 in this series.
NY
CLE