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**TheGame** · 05-04-2016, 08:07 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/4

Preview: Hawks (48-34) at Cavaliers (57-25)

Date: May 04, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (AP) Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue celebrated his 39th birthday on Tuesday and proudly showed off a few gray hairs - silvery-speckled souvenirs of job-related stress.

'I dyed mine gray,' Lue joked. 'My Barack Obama look.'

Well, Lue may soon be grayer than the president if King James doesn't get to the free-throw line more often.

LeBron James attempted just one foul shot - completing a 3-point play with 2:09 left - in Cleveland's Game 1 win over the Atlanta Hawks, who overcame an 18-point deficit before fading in the final four minutes and losing by 11.

Over the course of his 13-year career, James has played in 183 playoff games, and this was just the first time he attempted only one free throw. Twice he took zero.

Lue wasn't about to risk a fine from the NBA for complaining about the officials heading into Game 2 on Wednesday, but he thought James deserved more whistles than were heard.

'When he attacks the basket, he's so strong and athletic and he goes with so much force that a lot of times, guys are bouncing off of him, but still, those are fouls,' said Lue, who improved to 5-0 in his first postseason in charge. 'We just got to continue to play through it and got to continue to keep attacking and, hopefully, we'll get those calls.'

On one late sequence, James got whacked in the face as he drove to the basket by Atlanta's Paul Millsap and crashed to the floor. Sprawled next to a few photographers on the baseline, James held his head as play continued without him. The Hawks then enjoyed a 5-on-4 advantage for several seconds before James lumbered up the floor still smarting from Millsap's blow.

James gets his share of favorable calls, no doubt. But to this point in these playoffs, the four-time MVP has only tried 16 free throws in five games.

That's hardly preferential treatment for a superstar.

Atlanta did all it could to slow him down, and James still posted 25 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and five steals in 40 minutes as the Cavs improved to 9-0 against the Hawks in the postseason. The Hawks may need a new strategy to prevent the Cavs from taking a 2-0 lead.

While they did a serviceable job on James, the Hawks were unable to stop Kyrie Irving (21 points) down the stretch, they scored one field goal in the final 4:29 and they couldn't handle Tristan Thompson, who snared 14 rebounds, including a vital one on the offensive end that led to James' game-sealing 3-point play.

Thompson's uncanny ability to come up with rebounds has been an issue since last year's Eastern Conference finals when he averaged 11 rebounds during Cleveland's four-game sweep, outplaying Millsap and Al Horford, a pair of All-Stars.

Atlanta's dilemma - and this is true for any Cleveland opponent - is that when a second player commits to guarding James, it makes it easier for Thompson to rebound.

'If you help, then he's active on the boards,' Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said. 'I know it's more important that we make them miss first. That's our priority and then we have to have all five guys in there getting after it. Credit to him. He's a good player. He plays off their penetration and shots well. If we continue to make the first shot difficult and then all five guys participate, that gives us our best chance.'

The Hawks won't have any chance if Kyle Korver doesn't get going.

Atlanta's sharpshooter attempted just one shot - and missed a 3-pointer - in nearly 37 minutes as he was unable to shake free from Cavs guards J.R. Smith, who hounded him all over the court. But while Cleveland's strategy on Korver worked, Hawks guard Dennis Schroder made the Cavs pay by dropping five 3-pointers and scoring 27 points.

Lue made a late adjustment, going over screens instead of under them, to make it tougher on Schroder.

Cleveland's only concern coming out of Game 1 was the health of Kevin Love, who banged his right shoulder when he got Hawks guard Kent Bazemore off his feet with a pump fake and drew a hard foul while trying a 3-pointer.

Love, who scored 17 points on just 4 of 17 shooting in Game 1, was not spotted at the team's facility when the media was allowed in following practice, but Lue said the forward was 'fine.'

'No problems,' Lue said.

And maybe one less gray hair.

**TheGame** · 05-04-2016, 08:08 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/4

Wednesday's NBA playoffs betting preview and odds: Hawks at Cavaliers

The lone game on the NBA schedule for Wednesday features the Atlanta Hawks attempting to even their Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Cleveland Cavaliers. We break down all the action so you can cap the game like a pro.

Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers (-7, 198)

Cavaliers lead 1-0

The Cleveland Cavaliers keep knocking off Atlanta in the postseason and look to do it for the 10th consecutive time when they host the Hawks in Wednesday's Game 2. Cleveland continued its playoff mastery of Atlanta with a 104-93 series-opening victory on Monday as it held the Hawks to 37.9 percent shooting from the field.

The Cavaliers let an 18-point third-quarter lead get away in Game 1 but outclassed Atlanta down the stretch to deal the Hawks another loss. "They're a great team," Atlanta shooting guard Kyle Korver told reporters. "They beat a lot of people. It's not just us. Are we getting closer to getting over the hump? I don't know. ... We definitely got to get that win first." Cleveland drained 15 3-point baskets and received a stellar all-around effort from forward LeBron James, who had 25 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and five steals. "We played an OK game," James told reporters. "I don't think we played to our standards. The first game is always kind of a feel-out."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT

LINE HISTORY: The Cavaliers opened at 7.5-point favorites at home for Game 2. By Tuesday morning the public, somewhat surprisingly, bet the Hawks enough to force the books to drop the line to -7. The total opened at 199 and came down a half point to 198.5. Check out the complete line history here.

ABOUT THE HAWKS (52-37, 45-43-1 ATS, 39-50 O/U): Backup point guard Dennis Schroder was superb with a playoff career-best 27 points in Game 1, and he made five of Atlanta's 11 3-pointers. His play helped the Hawks make the second-half charge on a night in which starting guards Jeff Teague (eight points on 2-of-9 shooting) and Kyle Korver (three points, 0-of-1 shooting) were highly unproductive. "I think we can play better," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters. "Obviously, Dennis had a great game for us but overall, the whole group, we can play better. Defensively, we had some possessions where we gave ourselves a chance and we just couldn’t come up with a couple of rebounds late when it was tied (at 86)."

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (62-25, 40-44-3 ATS, 43-44 O/U): Power forward Kevin Love had 17 points and 11 rebounds while struggling through a 4-of-17 shooting performance in the opener. He also appeared to tweak his right shoulder late in the contest - it was his left shoulder that he dislocated in last season's playoffs - but insisted the injury was minor. "I’m fine. I was telling (general manager David Griffin) after the game I can't catch a break with that shoulder, but I'm fine," Love told reporters. "It was just one of those plays. You've always got to watch it when you pump-fake at that 3-point line on a jump shot. You can take a hit, but I feel good."

TRENDS:

* Hawks are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
* Cavaliers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. NBA Southeast.
* Under is 7-0 in Hawks last 7 after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game.
* Over is 7-2 in Cavaliers last 9 Wednesday games.
* Hawks are 0-5 ATS in the last 5 meetings.

**TheGame** · 05-04-2016, 08:08 AM

Re: NHL Betting Info. 5/4

Game 2 - Hawks at Cavaliers
By Brian Edwards

Even with Kevin Love out with a shoulder injury and Kyrie Irving missing Games 2 and 3 of last year’s Eastern Conference finals, Cleveland made easy work of Atlanta in a four-game sweep. For the first 2.5 quarters of Monday’s East semifinals lid-lifter, everything looked the same between the Cavaliers and the Hawks.

When Dennis Schroder committed a turnover that turned into a Cleveland fast break and a LeBron James’ dunk, Tyronn Lue’s squad took a 72-54 lead with 3:56 remaining in the third quarter and Game 1 appeared to be a done deal. Ah, but folks, that’s why they play these games.

On a night at Quicken Loans Arena when franchise stalwart Al Horford played one of his worst games in recent memory and Kyle Korver was smothered and covered to the extent that he only was able to get one shot off despite playing 37 minutes, Schroder sparked a 26-7 run and Atlanta took its first lead of the game on an alley-oop pass from Schroder to Horford for an emphatic dunk in traffic with 8:00 remaining.

Kyrie Irving answered with a 3-pointer, but Schroder came right back and penetrated to the rim for an easy layup to knot the score at 82-82. Again, however, Irving responded with a bucket in the lane, but a Paul Millsap basket pulled Atlanta even once more. Irving put the Cavs back in front with a 15-footer, only for Schroder to answer with a layup of his own.

With the game tied, the Hawks had three straight empty possessions resulting in a pair of 3-point misses and a turnover by Kent Bazemore. Nevertheless, after a Tristan Thompson free throw gave Cleveland a one-point advantage, Horford put the Hawks back ahead by one with a short jump hook at the 4:28 mark.

From there, however, the Cavs went on a 10-0 run over the next three minutes. The spread cover was still in doubt when Millsap made a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 97-90 with 1:28 remaining. But Cleveland scored seven straight to capture a 104-93 win to hook up its betting backers as a 7.5-point home favorite.

The 197 combined points dipped ‘under’ the 200-point total.

Cleveland (62-25 straight up, 40-44-3 against the spread) led 30-19 at the end of the first quarter to easily cover first-quarter wagers as a three-point favorite. Lue’s squad enjoyed a 51-41 advantage at intermission to cover first-half bets (-4.5).

Trailing by 10, Atlanta was made a 1.5-point underdog for second-half bets (+11.5 adjusted). Therefore, when Lamar Patterson hit an otherwise meaningless trey with 18 seconds remaining, he gave gamblers taking the Hawks in the second half a winner.

James produced 25 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and five steals, while Irving finished with 21 points and eight assists. Love had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, but he was just 4-of-17 from the field. Also, he appeared to injure his shoulder and turn his ankle in the fourth quarter. In fact, as of Tuesday afternoon, Love was listed as ‘questionable’ for Game 2.

J.R. Smith had 12 points, five rebounds and three assists without a turnover. He drained a huge 3-pointer when the Hawks were up by one midway through the final stanza. Smith was also terrific with his defense on Korver.

Schroder had a career-playoff-high 27 points to go with six assists. However, he committed five turnovers, but the Hawks wouldn’t have been within spitting distance without his scoring efforts. Like Schroder, Bazemore played poorly at crunch time, but he played outstanding for the most part, tallying 16 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals. Mike Scott continued to provide solid minutes off the bench, making all three of his shots while contributing seven points, four boards and two assists without a turnover in only 16 minutes of playing time.

Millsap had 17 points, 13 rebounds, four blocked shots, three assists and two steals, but he was only 6-of-19 from the field. Horford had 10 points, six boards, three blocks and two steals, but he went 4-of-13 from the floor. Teague played only 22 minutes, finishing with eight points on 2-of-9 shooting, but he did dish out four assists without committing a turnover.

Atlanta (52-37 SU, 45-43-1 ATS) can’t count on the type of performance it received from Schroder in Game 1 throughout this best-of-seven set, but it has to feel great about having a chance to win on the road with minimal production from Horford, Teague and Korver, who were All-Stars last season.

For Game 2, the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas opened Cleveland as a 7.5-point favorite with a total of 199 late Monday night. By lunch on Tuesday, though, the number was down to seven while the tally remained at 199 points. The Hawks were +280 on the money line (risk $100 to win $180), while the Cavs were favored by four for first-half wagers.

Cleveland owns a 36-8 SU record and a 22-22 ATS mark at home this year. Meanwhile, Atlanta is 22-23 SU and 21-23-1 ATS on the road.

The Cavs have won eight in a row over the Hawks, going 7-1 ATS in the process. They have won all four meetings this season both SU and ATS.

The ‘under’ has cashed in four in a row for the Hawks and 10 of their last 12. They have seen the ‘under’ go 50-39 overall, 25-20 in their road assignments.

The ‘under’ is 44-43 overall for the Cavs, but the ‘over’ is 23-21 in their home outings.

5dimes has the updated series price as Cleveland -1100, leaving Atlanta at +700 on the comeback (risk $100 to win $700).

Tip-off for Wednesday’s Game 2 is slated for 8:05 p.m. Eastern on TNT.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

-- Loyal readers know I’m a long-suffering Hawks fan, so you can imagine how I was pacing around my living room during the fourth quarter of Game 1. My reactions to each play had my dog scared to death (she bolted upstairs to my bedroom after Horford’s dunk to put us in the lead). I only mention this to note that I’m not second-guessing here; I first-guessed, though I can’t reference my twitter feed because I had no time or patience to get on my computer or phone to voice this thought. Though it would have been an against-the-grain move that would’ve drawn criticism galore had it not worked, but I knew Schroder was gassed and (as we used to call it on the playground) “shot out” (didn’t have any more made shots left in him) when he asked out of the game midway through the fourth quarter with the game tied. Budenholzer brought him back in for Teague 62 seconds later at the 5:22 mark, but Schroder missed both of his shots and committed a pair of costly turnovers the rest of the way.

-- Horford and Millsap combined to make only 2-of-16 shots in the first half of Game 1. Love was 1-of-10 in the first 24 minutes.

-- From 5dimes again, the odds to win the East (as of Tuesday afternoon): Cavs -360, Raptors +600, Heat +1200 and Hawks +1800.

-- Doc Rivers stated Monday that the Clippers will not entertain trade offers for Chris Paul, Blake Griffin or DeAndre Jordan this offseason. Take that for what it’s worth. I’m not saying they will, but things can certainly change on that front.

-- Things I’ve been diggin’ about these playoffs:

1 - Kobe’s Bryant’s absence.

2 - Charles Barkley!

3 - Every second of Inside the NBA, especially the late-night version.

4 - Klay Thompson’s nastiness at both ends.

5 - That insane pass by Tony Parker to LaMarcus Aldridge for the key 3-pointer at crunch time of Game 2.

6 - Atlanta finally beating Boston in the playoffs with that Game 6 pimpslap.

7 - Austin Rivers’ toughness, effort and performance in Game 6 at Portland. After taking an elbow that required 11 stitches and nearly closed his left eye shut with swelling, he produced 21 points, six rebounds and eight assists without a turnover.

8 - Great effort by the Spurs’ fan holding Steven Adams in the corner at the end of Game 2.

9 - Paul George’s overall play and that backdoor cover to hook me up in Game 7.

10A - The fact that I’ll be at Game 3 on Friday night at Philips Arena. It will be the first time I’ve seen LeBron play in-person.

10B - Manu Ginobili's postgame presser on Monday night. He was absolutely right about not blaming the no-call for losing the game. The Spurs got the steal and had a great chance to score and win the game regardless.

-- Things that are chafing me to no end about the playoffs to date:

1 - Chris Webber!!!!!! (to be clear, this assessment is 24/7/365 and has nothing to do with his rant about the no-call at the end of OKC-San Antonio Game 2)

2 - Marv Albert’s stellar (as usual) work being drowned out by Weber’s utter incompetence and propensity for being an insufferable pain in the ass with nearly everything that comes out of his mouth.

3 - James Harden’s effort (or lack thereof) on defense and his deplorable body language when his team is getting spanked.

4 - Injuries to key players like Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and Steph Curry, in addition to Chris Bosh, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley, who went down in the regular season.

5 - How one of my favorite players ever (Al Horford) is costing himself lots of cash with the way he’s struggled with his shot.

6 - That foul by Serge Ibaka on Aldridge shooting a 3-ball when OKC was up four with 13 seconds left in Game 2 (what on earth was he doing?!).

7 - Kyle Lowry’s immense struggles. Let’s see how he plays against the Heat when he’s not being defended by George Hill.

8 - Not saying the Pacers would’ve won, but that call has to be made underneath on the obvious push when Indiana was poised to get an offensive rebound down by three with 12-13 seconds remaining.

9 - The thought of being forced to hear C-Webb’s voice/analysis of EVERY game for the rest of the OKC-SA series. Really, TNT? What a nightmare.

10 - Budenholzer giving minutes to Mike Muscala ahead of Kris Humphries.

**TheGame** · 05-04-2016, 08:11 AM

Re: NBA Betting Info. 5/4

NBA

Wednesday's game

Atlanta-Cleveland (C 1-0)
Cavaliers won their last eight games (7-1 vs spread) vs Hawks, covered four of last five played here. Four of last six series games went over the total. Cleveland made 15-31 on arc in Game 1 win; all five starters were +15 or better. Atlanta lost five of last six road games; its starters shot 32% in Game 1. Schroder had 27 points in 29:00 off bench. Cleveland is 4-2 vs spread in last six home games.

Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 26-18, Over: 13-31
Second round: Favorites: 4-2, over: 3-3

**Satch** · 05-04-2016, 09:28 AM

Re: NBA Betting Info. 5/4

Preview: Atlanta At Cleveland

When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Where: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio

Matchup Edge

ATL	Edge in:	CLE
	Points Per Game
	Field Goal %
	Free Throw %
	Defense
	Rebounding
	Turn Overs
	Bench

The Cleveland Cavaliers keep knocking off Atlanta in the postseason and look to do it for the 10th consecutive time when they host the Hawks in Wednesday's Game 2. Cleveland continued its playoff mastery of Atlanta with a 104-93 series-opening victory on Monday as it held the Hawks to 37.9 percent shooting from the field.

The Cavaliers let an 18-point third-quarter lead get away in Game 1 but outclassed Atlanta down the stretch to deal the Hawks another loss. "They're a great team," Atlanta shooting guard Kyle Korver told reporters. "They beat a lot of people. It's not just us. Are we getting closer to getting over the hump? I don't know. ... We definitely got to get that win first." Cleveland drained 15 3-point baskets and received a stellar all-around effort from forward LeBron James, who had 25 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and five steals. "We played an OK game," James told reporters. "I don't think we played to our standards. The first game is always kind of a feel-out."

TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT

ABOUT THE HAWKS: Backup point guard Dennis Schroder was superb with a playoff career-best 27 points in Game 1, and he made five of Atlanta's 11 3-pointers. His play helped the Hawks make the second-half charge on a night in which starting guards Jeff Teague (eight points on 2-of-9 shooting) and Kyle Korver (three points, 0-of-1 shooting) were highly unproductive. "I think we can play better," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer told reporters. "Obviously, Dennis had a great game for us but overall, the whole group, we can play better. Defensively, we had some possessions where we gave ourselves a chance and we just couldn’t come up with a couple of rebounds late when it was tied (at 86)."

ABOUT THE CAVALIERS: Power forward Kevin Love had 17 points and 11 rebounds while struggling through a 4-of-17 shooting performance in the opener. He also appeared to tweak his right shoulder late in the contest - it was his left shoulder that he dislocated in last season's playoffs - but insisted the injury was minor. "I’m fine. I was telling (general manager David Griffin) after the game I can't catch a break with that shoulder, but I'm fine," Love told reporters. "It was just one of those plays. You've always got to watch it when you pump-fake at that 3-point line on a jump shot. You can take a hit, but I feel good."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Cavaliers' postseason winning streak against the Hawks is the second-longest active one behind Cleveland's 12-game playoff victory streak against first-round opponent Detroit.

2. Atlanta C Al Horford had just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting in the opener, marking the fourth time in seven postseason games that he has tallied 10 or fewer points.

3. Cleveland PG Kyrie Irving had 21 points in Game 1 - his lowest output in five games this postseason.

PREDICTION: Cavaliers 106, Hawks 97

**Satch** · 05-04-2016, 09:29 AM

Re: NBA Betting Info. 5/4

ATS Trends

Atlanta

Hawks are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points.
Hawks are 5-15-1 ATS in their last 21 Conference Semifinals games.
Hawks are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games vs. a team with a winning % above .600.
Hawks are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game.
Hawks are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up loss.
Hawks are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600.
Hawks are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 road games.
Hawks are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
Hawks are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 vs. NBA Central.

Cleveland
Cavaliers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. NBA Southeast. Cavaliers are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games playing on 1 days rest. Cavaliers are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 home games. Cavaliers are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 Conference Semifinals games. Cavaliers are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games following a straight up win of more than 10 points. Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 Wednesday games.

OU Trends

Atlanta

Under is 4-0 in Hawks last 4 overall.
Under is 5-0 in Hawks last 5 games following a straight up loss.
Under is 6-0 in Hawks last 6 when their opponent scores 100 points or more in their previous game.
Under is 4-0 in Hawks last 4 vs. Eastern Conference.
Under is 7-0 in Hawks last 7 games following a ATS loss.
Under is 7-0 in Hawks last 7 after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game.
Under is 5-1 in Hawks last 6 road games.
Under is 5-1 in Hawks last 6 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
Under is 5-1 in Hawks last 6 vs. NBA Central.
Under is 4-1 in Hawks last 5 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600.
Under is 20-8 in Hawks last 28 games playing on 1 days rest.
Under is 13-6 in Hawks last 19 Wednesday games.

Cleveland
Over is 7-2 in Cavaliers last 9 Wednesday games. Over is 8-3 in Cavaliers last 11 vs. NBA Southeast. Over is 5-2 in Cavaliers last 7 games following a ATS win. Under is 24-11 in Cavaliers last 35 Conference Semifinals games.

Head to Head

Favorite is 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
Home team is 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
Over is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings in Cleveland.
Over is 15-7 in the last 22 meetings.
Hawks are 0-5 ATS in the last 5 meetings.
Hawks are 0-4 ATS in the last 4 meetings in Cleveland

Announcement

NBA Betting Info. 5/4

NBA Betting Info. 5/4

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