ORLANDO @ CLEVELAND (CLE -3, 194.5)
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MAGIC VS. CAVALIERS 5/5/24
The Cleveland Cavaliers finished the regular season with 48 wins. That was one more than Orlando. The Cavaliers were able to secure home-court advantage in their opening-round series against the Magic by earning the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
So far in the series, the home team has won every game. Game 7 is this afternoon in Cleveland. Will the home cooking continue? In order to set up its first Game 7 since the 2009 playoffs, Orlando held serve on Friday night. The fifth-seeded Magic defeated the Cavaliers 103-96, thanks to 27 points from Paolo Banchero and 26 more from Franz Wagner. Donovan Mitchell scored 50 for Cleveland..
Mitchell made 7-of-13 shots in the fourth quarter to account for all 18 of his team's points. Despite playing through a knee injury, he finished the game making 22-of-36 field goals. He’ll need a big game for Cleveland today. One big positive for Cleveland is that in their last nine meetings with Orlando, the Cavs have won eight times.
Injuries might make it more difficult for the Cavaliers to advance to the conference semifinals. In addition to Mitchell's knee problems, Evan Mobley also seemed to twist his ankle on Friday during the second quarter. Jarrett Allen missed his second straight game with bruised ribs. Allen played in the first four games of the series and averaged 17 points and 13.8 rebounds.
Due to a rib contusion, All-Star center Jarrett Allen missed his second straight game. He played in the first four games of the series with averages of 17.0 points and 13.8 rebounds. Allen is listed as questionable for today’s game.
Gary Harris, Orlando's starting shooting guard, missed practice on Friday due to a right hamstring injury he suffered during Game 5. He is also listed as questionable for today and will likely be a game time decision.
Four of the six games in the series have gone Under the total. Both teams rank in the top ten in Under percentage. The Magic rank fifth (38-48-2, 55.2%). The total has gone Under in five of Orlando’s last seven games. Today’s total is the lowest of the series at 194.5.
History is on Cleveland’s side. Home teams in Game 7 after losing Game 6 on the road are 14-2 SU and 9-7 ATS. Winning a Game 7 on the road in the NBA is very difficult.
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FREE PICK: WENDELL CARTER JR. OVER 8.5 REBS + ASTS
Carter has hit this prop in each of the last two games in the series. He had 11 rebounds and assists in Game 6 and 13 in Game 5. Carter is averaging 7.5 rebounds and assists per game in the series and averaged 8.6 during the regular season. If Allen doesn’t play for Cleveland, Carter definitely clears this prop. Even with a less-than-100-percent Allen on the floor, Carter will still take advantage and go Over this number.
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