Through 3 Quarters

The Washington Wizards were expected to take an ‘L’ in this one, but so far it isn’t playing out to script. Either team is in a position to win, but they lead against the Cleveland Cavaliers 70-66.

Power forward Kyle Kuzma has taken over for the Wizards, currently boasting 28 points (40% of their total) in addition to ten boards and two blocks. One thing to keep an eye out for is Deni Avdija’s foul situation as he currently sits at four.

Cleveland has enjoyed the tag-team combination of small forward Cedi Osman and center Jarrett Allen. The former has 17 points and four assists, while the latter has ten points along with eight rebounds.

Cleveland hasn’t lost 70% of the games in which they were down heading into the final period this year, so a win here would be refreshing.

Who’s Playing

Washington @ Cleveland

Current Records: Washington 27-32; Cleveland 35-24

What to Know

The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Washington Wizards are even-steven against one another since December of 2015 (12-12), but not for long. Cleveland will look to defend their home court this past Saturday against the Wizards at 8 p.m. ET. Cleveland is out to keep their seven-game home win streak alive.

Cleveland was close but no cigar this past Thursday as they fell 106-103 to the Detroit Pistons. The top scorer for Cleveland was small forward Lauri Markkanen (22 points).

Speaking of close games: Washington fought the good fight in their overtime game against the San Antonio Spurs this past Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result, falling 157-153. Despite the loss, the Wizards got a solid performance out of power forward Kyle Kuzma, who had 36 points and seven assists along with eight rebounds. Kuzma’s performance made up for a slower matchup against the Brooklyn Nets two weeks ago.

The Cavaliers are the favorite in this one, with an expected 7.5-point margin of victory. Now might not be the best time to take Cleveland against the spread since they’ve let down bettors for the past three consecutive games.

Having both suffered close losses, these teams will no doubt be fighting for every inch to win this one. We’ll see which team satisfies their hunger and which team leaves with an empty stomach.

How To Watch

• When: Saturday at 8 p.m. ET
• Where: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse — Cleveland, Ohio
• TV: Bally Sports – Ohio
• Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
• Follow: CBS Sports App
• Ticket Cost: $55.00

Odds

The Cavaliers are a big 7.5-point favorite against the Wizards, according to the latest NBA odds.

The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Cavaliers as a 7-point favorite.

Over/Under: -110

See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.

Series History

Cleveland and Washington both have 12 wins in their last 24 games.

• Dec 30, 2021 – Washington 110 vs. Cleveland 93
• Dec 03, 2021 – Cleveland 116 vs. Washington 101
• Nov 10, 2021 – Washington 97 vs. Cleveland 94
• May 14, 2021 – Washington 120 vs. Cleveland 105
• Apr 30, 2021 – Washington 122 vs. Cleveland 93
• Apr 25, 2021 – Washington 119 vs. Cleveland 110
• Feb 21, 2020 – Cleveland 113 vs. Washington 108
• Jan 23, 2020 – Washington 124 vs. Cleveland 112
• Nov 08, 2019 – Cleveland 113 vs. Washington 100
• Feb 08, 2019 – Washington 119 vs. Cleveland 106
• Jan 29, 2019 – Cleveland 116 vs. Washington 113
• Dec 08, 2018 – Cleveland 116 vs. Washington 101
• Nov 14, 2018 – Washington 119 vs. Cleveland 95
• Apr 05, 2018 – Cleveland 119 vs. Washington 115
• Feb 22, 2018 – Washington 110 vs. Cleveland 103
• Dec 17, 2017 – Cleveland 106 vs. Washington 99
• Nov 03, 2017 – Cleveland 130 vs. Washington 122
• Mar 25, 2017 – Washington 127 vs. Cleveland 115
• Feb 06, 2017 – Cleveland 140 vs. Washington 135
• Nov 11, 2016 – Cleveland 105 vs. Washington 94
• Mar 04, 2016 – Cleveland 108 vs. Washington 83
• Feb 28, 2016 – Washington 113 vs. Cleveland 99
• Jan 06, 2016 – Cleveland 121 vs. Washington 115
• Dec 01, 2015 – Washington 97 vs. Cleveland 85

Injury Report for Cleveland

• Darius Garland: Out (Back)
• Caris LeVert: Out (Foot)
• Rajon Rondo: Out (Toe)
• Collin Sexton: Out for the Season (Knee)

Injury Report for Washington

• Kristaps Porzingis: Out (Knee)
• Bradley Beal: Out for the Season (Wrist)