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May, 16 2008 8:00pm EST
TOTAL: Under 179 (-110)
WIN for +1.82 unit(s)

Boston Celtics at Cleveland Cavaliers

UNDER the total in Cleveland vs Boston @ 8:05 PM ET An injury to Daniel Gibson could trigger even more of a defensive struggle than was already anticipated in this match-up. The Cavaliers guard separated his left shoulder in Game Five and is unavailable for the next week. By then, the Cavs could be done for the season as theyre down three games to two in this series. The key for Cleveland tonight is playing much stronger on the defensive end. They allowed Boston to pull away in Game Five when the Celtics created separation with a 29-17 third quarter! Now, with Gibson out, many of the Cavs backcourt minutes could fall to Sasha Pavlovic. Devin Brown and Damon Jones could also see extended minutes. None of these players can make up for what Gibson could do on the offensive end. However, each of these players knows that their value could be most beneficial on the defensive end. Before Game Five, a 96-89 Celtics win, the road team had scored an average of just 76.5 points per game in this series. With this type of road team production continuing for a Celtics team that is 0-5 on the postseason road, we see no reason that tonights game will get over the total. Boston will be looking to grind out a win by employing their solid defense in hopes of frustrating LeBron James and the Cavaliers. Keep in mind that, although James shot better in Game Five, the Cavaliers star has struggled with his shot for nearly all of this series. This is why, not including Game Threes surprising high score, the Cavaliers have averaged just 80.5 points per game in this series! In other words, even though the odds makers are forced by the expected action on this game to put up a total around 180, that is going to be a tough point total for these teams to get to. Boston has averaged just 80.5 points in their two road games in this series. As you can see, an 82-79 final here would not surprise and thats still well short of the number posted on this total. One of the surprise contributors for Boston in Game Five was Rajon Rondo as he scored 20 points and dished out 13 assists. However, hes not likely to continue that success on the road, hes only made 25 of 64 (39%) of his shots away from home in these playoffs. The Celtics just dont have the confidence to go on the road and score a ton of points as they are simply hoping to (finally!) notch a road win by simply grinding it out. Just like in Game Four in Cleveland (which only totaled 165 points) the Celtics will simply battle hard to stay tight to the Cavs throughout the game with hopes of springing the upset late. It didnt quite work out for the Celtics in Game Four but it did work out for UNDER players as it will again in Game Six!