NBA Preview D Wade vs The King

The NBA’s top two scorers face off for the second time in three days on Tuesday night when LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers square off with Dwayne Wade’s Miami Heat in the second game of a home-and-home series on the NBA betting schedule.

In Game 1 of the series on Sunday in Cleveland the Cavaliers erased a nine-point deficit entering the fourth quarter to cool off the Heat 93-86 as an 11-point favorite on the NBA odds. The victory extended Cleveland’s winning streak to six games overall and 16 straight at home. James led the way with 33 points, six rebounds, and nine assists for Cleveland, while some solid defense held Wade to only 24 points and eight assists for Miami. James also received some help from Mo Williams, who netted 20 points and Ben Wallace, who matched a season-high with 14 rebounds. Wade didn’t receive nearly as much help from his teammates, as only two other Miami players scored in double figures, Udonis Haslem with 15 and Daequan Cook with 12.

The loss snapped Miami’s four-game winning streak, but they should have a better chance against the Cavaliers on Tuesday night in Miami. All four of Cleveland’s losses this season have come on the road, while the Heat sport a much better record at home at 10-5, compared to a 6-8 mark on the road.

Also on tap on Tuesday night is an interesting matchup between Boston and Portland. The Celtics are finishing off a four-game west coast road trip in Portland after a rocky start in Los Angeles on Christmas Day. Boston lost two straight for the first time this season after falling to the Lakers and the Warriors, but they quickly bounced back against the Kings on Sunday with a 108-63 rout. Boston was a 13-point favorite in the win and easily covered the large spread. Kevin Garnett paced the Celtics with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Ray Allen got back on track with 19 points.

The Trail Blazers recovered from a loss by blasting Toronto 102-89 as an 8-point favorite on Saturday. Brandon Roy poured in 32 points to go along with nine assists, while Greg Oden finally broke out of a long slump with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Celtics and Blazers met up earlier this month in Boston when the Celtics crushed Portland 93-78 as an 8-point favorite. Allen led the Celtics with 19 points as all of Boston’s starters scored at least 12 points in the contest. LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with 13 points, while Roy struggled in the loss with only 12 points on 3-of-11 shooting.