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It would be rather surprising to see anything but a win for the Cleveland Cavaliers when they host the New Orleans Pelicans. Join The Roar for live scores of the match from 11:30am (AEDT).
The Cavaliers, who still hold the best record in the Eastern Conference, having won 35 out of their 49 games, will be under a little bit of pressure to perform here.
They come into this match on the back of two straight losses, to the Charlotte Hornets by nine and the Boston Celtics by one. While this isn’t a cause for panic just yet, the Cavaliers need to prove, more so to themselves than anyone else, that they still have some strong form moving forward.
The losses have also allowed the Toronto Raptors to move within 1.5 games of the Cavaliers.
The Pelicans meanwhile sit in 12th place out west having won 18 of their 49 games. What will worry them more than the ladder position, is the fact that they enter this game with three straight losses to the Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs.
The teams have already met once this season, with that meeting coming in the middle of December at New Orleans. While the Cavaliers were expected to walk away with an easy victory, that was far from the truth as the match went to over time and the Pelicans were able to grab the win at the death.
They would outscore the Cavaliers nine points to three during the over time period, mainly on the back of Anthony Davis – who ended up with a massive 31 points and 12 rebounds.
It is quite surprising to learn that the Pelicans actually hold a little bit of a hoodoo over the Cavaliers, having won eight of their last 10 encounters.
Prediction
The Cavaliers enter this game with two straight losses, against teams you would have expected them to beat. That will concern them going into this one, as will the fact they are less than a month removed from a coach change. Expect them to fire up and get the job done over the Pelicans.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of this match from 11:30am (AEDT) and don’t forget to add your comments in the section below.
Follow Scott on Twtter @sk_pryde