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Sunday, January 26
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Suns at Cavs: What bettors need to know
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Phoenix Suns at Cleveland Cavaliers (-1.5, 204.5)
The Phoenix Suns had built some momentum with three wins in their previous four games before a setback against Washington at home on Friday. A Sunday visit to Cleveland could do them well, with three straight wins over the Cavaliers. The Suns handed the Wizards 21 turnovers last time out and were beaten on the boards 44-30 - a familiar recipe for disaster, according to forward P.J. Tucker, who told the Arizona Republic, "Whenever that stuff goes together, it's a setup for a bad situation."
Cleveland snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Milwaukee on Friday and after wrapping up 2013 11 games under .500 at 10-21, the Cavaliers have shown subtle improvement at 6-6 in the month of January. Forward Tristan Thompson said the team is progressing as a group, albeit slowly, telling the Cleveland Plain Dealer, "It's a process and we've got to keep working at it and getting better." Thompson (14 points, 10 rebounds) and guard Kyrie Irving (10 and 10) each notched double-doubles, while Anderson Varejao led all scorers with 16 points in Friday's win.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), FSN Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE SUNS (24-18): Phoenix sits seventh in the Western Conference standings at present but with Dallas just a half game in its rear view and at 4-6 in its last 10 games, things aren't exactly comfortable. But the Suns are a team that has surprised this season and is only a few days removed from a 24-point thrashing of the powerhouse Indiana Pacers, allowing them to look at Friday's slip-up as an aberration. "It was a tough night," said Jeff Hornacek and Channing Frye took it as a lesson, adding, "We can't win like that."
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (16-27): Cleveland's effort against Milwaukee left was appreciated by coach Mike Brown, who said, "I'll take this every game." The Cavaliers are still a team that is very much trying to find its identity, however, and part of that comes with taking the same approach to every game at this level. "We've got to be professionals," said Thompson, adding, "We can't wait for a guy to dunk on us or (Brown) to show some emotion for us to turn on the engine."
TRENDS:
* Under is 7-1 in the last eight meetings.
* Suns are 5-0 ATS in their last five Sunday games.
* Cavaliers are 6-2 ATS in their last eight home games.
* Over is 4-1 in Suns last five overall.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Phoenix is 6-4 in its last 10 visits to Cleveland and has won three straight as the road team in the series.
2. The Suns' 104.2 points per game is good for seventh in the NBA, while the Cavaliers rank in the bottom third of the league in scoring, averaging 96.4 points.
3. Cleveland has been solid on the offensive boards all year, averaging 12.5 per game - good for sixth in the league.
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Sunday, January 26
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Suns at Cavs: What bettors need to know
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Phoenix Suns at Cleveland Cavaliers (-1.5, 204.5)
The Phoenix Suns had built some momentum with three wins in their previous four games before a setback against Washington at home on Friday. A Sunday visit to Cleveland could do them well, with three straight wins over the Cavaliers. The Suns handed the Wizards 21 turnovers last time out and were beaten on the boards 44-30 - a familiar recipe for disaster, according to forward P.J. Tucker, who told the Arizona Republic, "Whenever that stuff goes together, it's a setup for a bad situation."
Cleveland snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Milwaukee on Friday and after wrapping up 2013 11 games under .500 at 10-21, the Cavaliers have shown subtle improvement at 6-6 in the month of January. Forward Tristan Thompson said the team is progressing as a group, albeit slowly, telling the Cleveland Plain Dealer, "It's a process and we've got to keep working at it and getting better." Thompson (14 points, 10 rebounds) and guard Kyrie Irving (10 and 10) each notched double-doubles, while Anderson Varejao led all scorers with 16 points in Friday's win.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), FSN Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE SUNS (24-18): Phoenix sits seventh in the Western Conference standings at present but with Dallas just a half game in its rear view and at 4-6 in its last 10 games, things aren't exactly comfortable. But the Suns are a team that has surprised this season and is only a few days removed from a 24-point thrashing of the powerhouse Indiana Pacers, allowing them to look at Friday's slip-up as an aberration. "It was a tough night," said Jeff Hornacek and Channing Frye took it as a lesson, adding, "We can't win like that."
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (16-27): Cleveland's effort against Milwaukee left was appreciated by coach Mike Brown, who said, "I'll take this every game." The Cavaliers are still a team that is very much trying to find its identity, however, and part of that comes with taking the same approach to every game at this level. "We've got to be professionals," said Thompson, adding, "We can't wait for a guy to dunk on us or (Brown) to show some emotion for us to turn on the engine."
TRENDS:
* Under is 7-1 in the last eight meetings.
* Suns are 5-0 ATS in their last five Sunday games.
* Cavaliers are 6-2 ATS in their last eight home games.
* Over is 4-1 in Suns last five overall.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Phoenix is 6-4 in its last 10 visits to Cleveland and has won three straight as the road team in the series.
2. The Suns' 104.2 points per game is good for seventh in the NBA, while the Cavaliers rank in the bottom third of the league in scoring, averaging 96.4 points.
3. Cleveland has been solid on the offensive boards all year, averaging 12.5 per game - good for sixth in the league.
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