Game 2 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics will take place Thursday evening with the No. 1 seed looking to put together another dominant showing after a 25-point win in Game 1. The Cavaliers will be looking to find more offense around Donovan Mitchell, who logged 33 points in a losing effort in the series opener. The Celtics had a letdown in the first round after a strong Game 1, so they’re likely to be more focused this time around.
Jarrett Allen continues to be listed as questionable as he recovers from a ribs injury. He has missed the last four games. Kristaps Porzingis remains sidelined for Boston with a calf strain and is expected to miss the whole series, although he’s apparently progressing well.
The Celtics are 13.5-point favorites according to DraftKings Sportsbook with the total set at 212. Boston is -950 on the moneyline while Cleveland is +625.
Cavaliers vs. Celtics, 7 p.m. ET
Pick ATS: Celtics -13.5
The Celtics are 53-15 in games after a win straight up and 35-29-4 ATS in the same category. The Cavaliers are 24-13 in games after a loss straight up and their ATS record is 20-15-2 in the same category. While Boston got big shooting performances from Derrick White and Jaylen Brown in Game 1, it also saw Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday and Al Horford combine to go 3-17 from deep. The Cavaliers got nothing from their bench in the series opener, and got little scoring in general outside of Mitchell.
Any time you get a spread like this, it’s tempting to believe the team that got smoked in Game 1 will bounce back. However, the Cavaliers didn’t shoot the ball well from behind the arc at all in the first round. It’s hard to see them turning around to the point where they dramatically close the gap on the Celtics. After being stunned by Miami at home in Game 2 in the first round, I think Boston takes care of business to go up 2-0 in this series.
Over/Under: Over 212
Game 1 went barely over its total and we’ve got another relatively low number for Game 2. Boston is 25-20 to the over as the home team this season and Cleveland is 19-26 to the over as the road side. The Cavaliers should eventually be better offensively, although I don’t see the Celtics dropping off substantially enough to see the under hitting. I’ll take the over on this line.