The Miami Heat will face the Cleveland Cavaliers on March 20 (Wednesday) at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Arena. This is the third meeting between the two teams this season, with both teams winning 1-1 in the previous two. Cleveland won the most recent matchup on December 8, when Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and one steal. Jimmy Butler had 16 points, five rebounds,two assists and one steal for the Heat. Miami leads the all-time matchups against the Cavaliers by 77-51.
Preview
The Miami Heat are currently in eighth place in the Eastern Conference and are 4-6 in their last 10 games. With only 14 games left in the regular season, Miami needs to capture some more wins to stay in playoff contention. They are coming off a 98-91 loss against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday. Bam Adebayo scored 20 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in that game.
On the other hand, the Cavaliers are in third place in the Eastern Conference and are coming off a 108-103 win against the Indiana Pacers. Caris LeVert led the team with 23 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.
Starting lineup
The Heat will be without Kevin Love, Duncan Robinson, Josh Richardson and Tyler Herro in the upcoming contest. They have two players listed as questionable: Jimmy Butler and Nikola Jovic. However, Jimmy is expected to play. The Heat will most likely start with Patty Mills, Terry Rozier, Caleb Martin, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
The Cavaliers will be without Donovan Mitchell, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Max Strus and Ty Jerome on Wednesday. They are expected to start with Caris LeVert, Darius Garland, Georges Niang, Isaac Okoro and Jarrett Allen.
Betting tips
Jimmy Butler’s over/under for the upcoming game is 22.5 points. He is averaging 21.3 points this season. Bet on him to go under the mark, as he has scored 23 or more points in only one game of the last five.
Darius Garland has an over/under of 20.5 points for Wednesday. As Cleveland will be missing some key starters, Garland will have more scoring options. So you can bet on him to go over.
Also Read: Milwaukee Bucks vs Boston Celtics: Prediction (Mar 20, 2024)
Prediction
Currently, both teams are injury-ridden and are hoping for their key players to return. The Cavaliers are slight favorites to win the upcoming game at home. The result of the game also depends on Jimmy Butler’s participation. If he plays on Wednesday, the Heat should get the win. The game total is expected to go over 202 points.
