Cleveland Cavaliers Travel to Miami to Face the Heat

The Cavaliers were recently able to snap a losing streak with a win over the Raptors. They’ll look to continue gaining momentum but are set on a collision course with the Miami Heat.

Considering neither of these teams are at full-strength, it’ll make for an interesting game. The question is, which of these teams is better fit to win at the end, more importantly, who will cover?

The Miami Heat could have one of their best players back in the lineup. Victor Oladipo could return to the lineup to face the Cavaliers. Unfortunately, the Heat are still missing a sizable group of players.

They’ll have to find a way to win with the group they have, something they’ve done rather well. It’s clear the Heat will be the favorites in this game, but by how much can they win?

Game Preview: Cleveland Cavaliers at Miami Heat March 11th

The Cleveland Cavaliers and their focus on defense will be key in this game. Shutting down the high-scoring offense of the Heat is vital to a Cavaliers win. Cleveland has the number one defense in the NBA in terms of points allowed.

On average, they only allow 103.32 points per game. We’ve seen them use this defense to get a 115-99 win over the Milwaukee Bucks before.

For Miami, they’ll need to find a way to get around this defense and create scoring lanes. The good thing for the Heat is they have quite an impressive defense of their own.

The Heat allow 104.60 points per game, ranking fourth in the NBA. Combining offensive ability with a strong defense is what’s put them atop of the East. They’ll hope to create even more distance Friday. 

Cleveland Cavaliers at Miami Heat Betting Prediction

These two last played in early December of 2021; the Cavaliers were actually favored to win. They came in as 5.5-point underdogs and won the game 105-94. This time, the Cavaliers won’t be the favorite, but they could cover the spread.

These two teams are eerily similar in terms of abilities; however, there’s one difference. The Miami Heat have Jimmy Butler and are at home.

Miami has gone 22-7 at home this season, with an ATS home record of 16-13. The Cavaliers are quite impressive against the spread as well, but we don’t think they cover here. In the last game we mentioned above, the Cavaliers were at home.

Playing in Miami and coming away with a win isn’t an easy task. The last team to do it was the Dallas Mavericks in early February.

The total in this game won’t be set very high, and for a good reason. Each of these teams possesses a top-five defense in the NBA.

With how they’ve performed lately, we think this game has more potential of going under than over. Our pick here is the Miami Heat and the under on Friday night.

* All odds provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.