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NBA Playoff Odds: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Orlando Magic Game 6

Written by Jimmy Boyd

cavs-magic-gm-6-52909 It was win or go home for the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 5 and they lived to see another day with a 112-102 victory. Cleveland jumped on the Magic early, just as it did in Games 1 and 2, taking a 35-18 first quarter lead, but Orlando would come storming back to make a game of it before eventually falling victim to a spectacular performance by league MVP LeBron James. Game 6 goes down in Orlando Saturday night at 8:30 pm EST with the action airing on TNT. NBA odds makers are anticipating another tight one, listing the Magic as 2-point favorites with the total set at 193.

Winning Game 5 at home to stay alive was expected of Cleveland. After all, it only had three losses at home this season and was inked in as a 7.5-point favorite by odds makers. Winning Game 6 to stay alive will be a much tougher task. The Cavs are 0-5 straight up and against the spread in their last five visits to Disney World, losing four of those games by 10 or more points. Overall, the Cavs are only 2-14 against the spread in the last 16 meetings with the Magic. There’s no question that Orlando has had Cleveland’s number over the last three seasons, winning 10 of the last 15 games, but now it will be the Magic feeling the pressure. Cleveland may have been the best team in the NBA this season, but it is the underdog in Game 6 and history is heavily stacked against it winning this series. The Cavs are not expected to win this game and that affords them the luxury of playing with nothing to lose. Any good team with that luxury can be very dangerous. There’s no doubt that it’s going to take another awesome performance from LeBron James, who recorded a triple double with 37 points, 14 rebounds, and 12 assists in Thursday’s win. If you think Cleveland can survive Saturday night, bet the Cavs at +2 at Bookmaker and get a 20 percent cash sign up bonus.

Orlando was able to steal Game 1 in Cleveland and hold serve at home to put itself in a position to win the series Saturday night. While the Magic battled back from a huge deficit to make Game 5 interesting, the team knows it will have a tough time winning any game in which Rafer Alston and Rashard Lewis shoot a combined 2 for 12 from beyond the arc. As a team, the Magic shot just 8 of 25 from three, which is a far cry from their 17 of 38 performance Tuesday night. While this team has lived and died with the three-point shot all season, mostly lived, the Magic don’t want to get too three-point happy. Dwight Howard has been a dominant force in the post for Orlando throughout this series, holding a big advantage over whoever the Cavs throw at him, and when the threes start flying Howard doesn’t get nearly as many touches. The Magic must also do a better job from the foul line in Game 6. They were just 28 of 41 (68.3%) in Game 5. The Magic were able to get to the line seven more times than the Cavs, but they only came away with one more make. If you think Orlando will do a better job of taking advantage of its opportunities in Game 6, bet the Magic at -2 to close out the series.

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