BOSTON CELTICS VS. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS ODDS & PREDICTIONS FOR MARCH 5, 2024

Greetings, basketball fans. Welcome back to our NBA coverage here at Latest Basketball News. One of the games from tonight’s slate features the Boston Celtics (48-12 SU, 30-27-3 ATS) taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers (39-21 SU, 29-29-2 ATS).

Here is a look at which squad has the edge going into this matchup and why.

Tipoff

• When: Tuesday, March 5, 2024
  
• Time: 7:30 PM ET
  
• Where: Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse
  
• Location: Cleveland, Ohio
  
• TV: TNT and NBC-BOS

Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Odds (Via DraftKings)

Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers – Regular Season Stats & Betting Trends

Can The Celtics Extend Their Streak To 12 Games?

Boston Celtics Season Stats:

• Scoring Offense: 121.3 PPG – 3RD                 
• Offensive Efficiency: 122.7 points per 100 possessions – 1ST                    
• Scoring Defense: 109.9 PPG – 4TH                   
• Defensive Efficiency: 111.2 points per 100 possessions – 2ND         

There are not enough superlatives in the English language when it comes to discussing the Boston Celtics. They have the best record in the Eastern Conference and the best record in the association. Boston also has a comfortable eight-game lead in the conference playoff race.

Additionally, they have posted wins in each of their last 11 contests. This includes a 140-88 win against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday. 

Jaylen Brown paced the Celtics with 29 points on 11-for-19 shooting from the field. He also connected on five of his 10 attempts from beyond the arc. Jayson Tatum added 27 points, five assists, and three rebounds while shooting 9-for-13 from the floor and 4-for-8 from 3-point range. 

This contest proved to be a one-sided affair on multiple fronts. The Celtics led by a 44-22 margin after the first 12 minutes of action. They increased their lead 82-38 at halftime en route to the team’s third-largest win in franchise history.

“It feels great, but, at the same time, it’s always within humility,” Brown said after the game. “We don’t take the game for granted. We didn’t come and mess around and that’s just how we show our respect to the game; we handle business and take care of it. … It’s a lot of respect for the Golden State Warriors, but we feel like it’s our time now.”

For whatever reason, the Warriors opted to utilize a soft brand of defense on Brown. He made them pay the price, scoring 19 points in the opening stanza. 

“For the most part my job is to get to the paint,” Brown said via CBS Sports. “We got enough 3-point shooters on our team, so I don’t take a lot of 3s for the most part throughout the season because we have enough of that. I get to the paint to open it up for everybody else, but if you want to dare me to shoot, we can do that too. I thought it was a little disrespectful, but we took advantage of it and didn’t look back.”

As if the 140 points on offense were not impressive enough, the Celtics also excelled at the other end of the floor. The Warriors shot 39.1 percent from the field while connecting on just seven of their 41 attempts from distance. 

Simply put, the Celtics are playing at a championship level right now. 

Can The Cavaliers Keep Pace With The League’s Top Team?

Cleveland Cavaliers Season Stats:

• Scoring Offense: 114.3 PPG – 18TH          
• Offensive Efficiency: 116.2 points per 100 possessions – 16TH              
• Scoring Defense: 109.5 PPG – 2ND                  
• Defensive Efficiency: 111.3 points per 100 possessions – 3RD          

Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers currently hold down the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference and trail the second-place Milwaukee Bucks by just one game in the standings. The Cavaliers have gone 5-5 over their last 10 outings and come into this matchup on the heels of a 107-98 loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday.

Sam Merrill – who averages 8.6 points per contest – scored a team-high 21 points off the bench on 7-for-13 from the field. 

Darius Garland added 19 points, five assists and four rebounds. Jarrett Allen finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists. 

Cleveland head coach J.B. Bickerstaff offered an honest assessment of his team’s performance against the Knicks. 

“I thought we played in spurts,” Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “I thought we had a good second quarter. I thought we had a good fourth quarter effort-wise. But to come out of halftime and give up 36 points to a team that was down as many guys as they were down, that’s disappointing. Defensively, we’ve got to be better than that.

The Cavaliers will need a solid effort at both ends of the floor to win against a Celtics squad that is playing at an extremely high level. 

Now that we have set the table for this Eastern Conference showdown, let’s look at the betting trends for both sides.

The Picks

The Spread

The Celtics opened as a consensus 3.5-point favorite. That line has climbed to 7.5 points for the road team (per OddShark.com). Here is a look at how both ball clubs have fared against the spread this season. 

• The Boston Celtics have covered the spread in each of their last six outings.
• Boston is 2-4 ATS in its last six matchups against Cleveland.
• The Celtics are 4-0-1 ATS in their last five games against Eastern Conference opponents.
• Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers are just 1-8 ATS in their last nine contests. 
• Cleveland is 0-5 ATS in its last five home games.
• In their last eight games against Eastern Conference teams, the Cavaliers are 1-7 against the spread.

Based on the above trends, going with the road team to cover is an easy choice here. 

Prediction: Boston Celtics (-7.5)

Over/Under

The projected over/under total for this matchup opened at 218 points. At the time of this writing, the line has climbed to 219 points (per Pre-Game.com). Here is why going with the “over” is the smart choice. 

• The total has gone OVER 13 times in the Celtics’ last 19 games against Central Division opponents.
• The OVER total is 4-1 in Boston’s last five March games.
• The total has gone OVER five times in the Cavaliers’ last six games against Boston.
• From an offensive standpoint, the two teams average a combined 235.7 points per game, which is 16.7 points higher than the projected points total.
• Defensively, the Celtics and Cavaliers are giving up 219.4 points per outing. This is .4 higher than the over/under total for this matchup. 

Prediction: OVER 219 points

Player Prop Bets

The key player to watch for the road team is Jayson Tatum. He currently has -110 odds of scoring more than 28.5 points and -120 odds of finishing with less than 28.5 points. 

Here’s a look at how his numbers stack up against the projected points total for this matchup. 

• In 21 career games against the Bucks, he is averaging 23 points per contest.
• On the season, Tatum is averaging 27.1 points across 57 outings.
• In 26 road contests, he is averaging 26.9 PPG.

• Tatum has played against Eastern Conference teams 37 times this season. In those contests, he is averaging 26.9 points per outing.
• In 11 matchups against Central Division opponents, Tatum is averaging 26.3 points per game.
• Over his last 10 outings, Tatum has averaged 27.4 points per contest, exceeding the points total for this matchup four times during that stretch.

Prediction: Jayson Tatum UNDER 28.5 points

With Donovan Mitchell on the shelf with a bone bruise on his left knee, my key player to watch for the home team is Darius Garland. He currently has -120 odds of scoring more than 21.5 points and -110 odds of finishing with less than 21.5 points. 

Let’s take a glance to see how his numbers stack up against the projected points total for this matchup. 

• In 13 career games against the Celtics, he is averaging 17.8 points per contest.
• On the season, Garland is averaging 18.4 points per game across 36 outings.
• In 16 home contests, he is averaging 18.1 PPG.

• Garland has played against Eastern Conference teams 25 times this season. In those contests, he is averaging 20.4 points per outing.
• In four Tuesday night appearances this season, Garland is averaging 21.3 PPG.
• In 10 matchups against Atlantic Division opponents, he is averaging 20.1 points per game.
• Over his last 10 outings, Garland has averaged 17.8 points per contest, exceeding the points total for this matchup two times during that stretch.

Prediction: Darius Garland UNDER 21.5 points

James Tillman’s Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Picks

• The Spread: Boston Celtics (-7.5)
• Over/Under: OVER 219 points
• Player Prop Bet #1: Jayson Tatum UNDER 28.5 points
• Player Prop Bet #2: Darius Garland UNDER 21.5 points