The Utah Jazz will travel to Cleveland, Ohio to face the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Wednesday evening with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 PM ET and will air on Bally Sports Ohio.

 

Utah is in 12^th place in the Western Conference with a record of 10-17, however, they have won three of their last four games including a 125-108 win at home against the Brooklyn Nets on Monday. The Jazz have been a below-average scoring team in the NBA as they enter this game averaging 112.54 points per game which is below the league average of 115.09 points per game. Lauri Markkanen is averaging the most points and rebounds on the team with an average of 23.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game and is coming off a double-double against the Brooklyn Nets as he recorded 20 points and 10 rebounds in the matchup. 

 

Defensively, the Jazz have also struggled as they are allowing the 7^th most points per game in the league with an average of 119.52 points per game. The Jazz will look to win their 4^th game in their last five matchups and build off the momentum following Monday’s win against the Brooklyn Nets when they travel to face the Cleveland Cavaliers.

 

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference this season as they enter this game with a record of 15-12 which puts them in 6^th place in the Eastern Conference and are on a two-game winning streak following Monday’s 135-130 overtime win at home against the Houston Rockets.

 

Cleveland prefers to play at a slower pace than the average NBA team which has led them to be one of the better defensive teams in the NBA as they are allowing an average of 111.93 points per game which ranks 9^th in the NBA while also being a below-average team offensively as they are averaging the 8^th fewest points per game in the league with an average of 112 points per game. 

 

Donovan Mitchell continues to play at an All-Star level this season as he leads the team in scoring and steals while also being 2^nd on the team in assists with an average of 27.7 points, 1.82 steals, and 5.5 assists per game. The Cleveland Cavaliers will look to extend their winning streak to three games when they host the Utah Jazz on Wednesday evening.

 

BookMaker has the Cleveland Cavaliers listed as 7.5-point favorites at home against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday evening. Utah has won eight of the last ten while Cleveland has won two of the last three meetings. The Jazz are 6-3-1 ATS in the last ten while the Cavaliers are 2-1 ATS in the last three games in the series.

 

The Utah Jazz are 13-13-1 ATS overall, 3-10-1 ATS on the road, and 10-12-1 ATS as an underdog this season while the Cleveland Cavaliers are 12-13-2 ATS overall, 6-7-1 ATS at home, and 7-8-2 ATS as a favorite on the year.

 

Cleveland enters this game with a better record and has been the better team most recently in the series, winning two of the last three meetings. The Jazz have struggled to cover the spread on the road as they have one of the worst road records with a record of 3-10-1 ATS on the road. I look for those trends to continue which is why I am buying the .5 point and laying the points with the Cleveland Cavaliers when they host the Utah Jazz on Wednesday evening.