- The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Brooklyn Nets 114-107 on Monday night.
- Cleveland has won five straight games including the last four games of a six-game road trip where they went 5-1.
- The Cavs are the first team to go over their regular-season win total with their 27th win of the season and are the 5th fastest team in the last three decades to do so.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have been one of the most surprising teams in the NBA this season. And had it not been for the season-ending injuries to Collin Sexton and Ricky Rubio, this team could be even better.
But despite losing two key players, the Cavs have been playing with the next-man-up mentality. Led by Darius Garland, veteran Kevin Love, and Rookie of the Year betting favorite Evan Mobley, the Cavs are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games and have already accomplished something that no other team has yet this season: Go over their regular-season win total.
Cavaliers Outduel Nets
Final Score: Cleveland Cavaliers outduel Brooklyn Nets, win 114-107 (@cwmwrites) https://t.co/TT6tHToSga pic.twitter.com/WzyT1qFhME
— FearTheSword (@FearTheSword) January 18, 2022
The Cavs hosted the NBA championship betting favorites Brooklyn Nets on Monday and did so as -3 point spread favorite because the Nets didn’t have Kevin Durant who is expected to be out for 4-6 weeks with an MCL sprain. Despite missing KD, the Nets had both James Harden and Kyrie Irving available so it still wasn’t a walk in the park for the Cavs.
Garland solidified his case for an All-Star spot next month with 22 points and 12 assists, leading the Cavs to a solid 114-107 win over the Nets. Isaac Okoro added 15 points while Jarrett Allen had a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds against his former team. Cleveland also got double-digit scoring from Lauri Markkanen (14), Love (14), and Mobley (12).
Cleveland was just coming off a six-game road trip where they went 5-1, including wins in the last four games of the trip. With Monday’s win, the Cavs have now won 5 straight games, their longest winning streak since winning six in a row last month. The Cavs also had a pair of four-game winning streaks earlier in the season.
First Team to Cash the Over on Their Regular Season Win Total
The Cleveland Cavaliers are the first team this season to cash the over on their win total ?
✅ Over 26.5 wins pic.twitter.com/VK1Z8Fqa4H
— NBABet (@nbabet) January 18, 2022
With their win over the Nets, the Cavaliers moved to 27-18 on the season and became the first team this campaign to cash the over on their regular-season win total. The best NBA betting sites set Cleveland’s total at 26.5 wins before the start of the season and they have surpassed the total after playing only 54.8% of their total regular-season games.
By doing so in 45 games, the Cavaliers become the 5th fastest team in the last 30 years to clinch their regular-season win total. Only the 2013-14 Suns ( 34 games ), 1997-98 New Jersey Nets ( 40 games ), 2005-06 New Orleans Pelicans and OKC Thunder ( 44 games ) clinched their win totals faster than the 2021-22 Cavaliers, however, Phoenix’s win total was just 20.5 games while New Orleans’ and Oklahoma City’s total was just 21.5 and New Jersey’s total was just 22.5 games.
The Cavs however won’t be content with just hitting the over on their total. Cleveland is currently 4th in the latest Eastern Conference team standings and they are just 1.5 games behind the conference leaders ( and Central Division leaders ) Chicago Bulls who are at 27-15. The Cavs opened the season with a +2000 odds to make the playoffs at Bovada. Right now, ESPN’s BPI playoff odds are projecting the Cavs to finish the season with a 49-33 record and a 98% chance of making the playoffs. Not bad at all, really.
