Houston Rockets vs Cleveland Cavaliers Prediction, 12/18/2023 Preview and Pick

Game: Houston Rockets vs Cleveland Cavaliers

Date: Monday, December 18, 2023

Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, OH

TV: Bally Sports Ohio

The Cleveland Cavaliers (14-12) will take on the Houston Rockets (13-9) at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Monday.

The Rockets faced the Grizzlies and notched a win by a score of 103-96 in their last game. Houston finished with a 36.4% FG percentage (32 out of 88) and made 11 out of their 29 shots from beyond the arc. From the charity stripe, the Rockets made 28 of 32 tries for a percentage of 87.5%. In terms of rebounding, they compiled a total of 51 with 15 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 18 assists for the contest in addition to forcing the other team into 17 turnovers and having 10 steals. When talking about the defense, Houston allowed 40.2% from the field on 37 out of 92 shooting. Memphis recorded 19 dimes and had 4 steals in the game. Furthermore, Memphis pulled down 48 boards (13 offensive, 35 defensive) and added 10 rejections. Memphis finished the game at 73.3% at the charity stripe by knocking down 11 of their 15 attempts. They buried 11 of 40 attempts from beyond the arc. When talking about fouls, the Rockets ended up finishing with 19 and the Grizzlies finished the game with 24 fouls.

Dillon Brooks is someone who came through in the matchup. Brooks shot 50.0% from the field and totaled 1 assist. He was on the hardwood for 40 minutes and also pulled down 7 rebounds. He ended up scoring 26 points on 10 of 20 shooting.

Get all of our NBA Picks

Houston will play this contest with a win-loss mark of 13-9 on the season. They cough up possession 13.3 times per game and as a unit are committing 21.9 personal fouls every game. As a team, Houston is grabbing 46.1 boards per contest and has accounted for 556 dimes on the campaign, which has them ranked 29th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Rockets are shooting 36.1% on shots beyond the perimeter (273 of 757) and 76.4% from the free throw line. They have an average of 109.5 pts per contest (27th in basketball) while connecting on 45.7% from the field.

On the defensive end of the court, the Rockets are forcing 12.7 turnovers every game while drawing 19.9 personal fouls. They currently rank 1st in the league in allowing assists to the opposition with 499 conceded this year. The Rockets are giving up a field goal percentage of 43.5% (826 of 1,898) and they relinquish 44.0 boards per contest as a unit. They are conceding 31.2% on shots from distance and they are 1st in the NBA in PPG from their opponents (105.1).

The last time they took the court, the Cavaliers got the win with a final of 127-119 when they played the Hawks. In reference to how they attacked the glass, Cleveland permitted Atlanta to pull down 34 overall (6 on the offensive glass). They went 41.7% from three-point range by connecting on 15 out of 36 and finished the game at 22 out of 25 at the free throw line (88.0%). The Cavaliers permitted the Hawks to make 41 out of their 85 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 48.2% for the contest. At the conclusion of this game, the Cavaliers went 49 out of 101 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 48.5%. With regard to three-point attempts, Cleveland converted 16 of their 42 attempts (38.1%). They were able to knock down 13 of the free throws for a rate of 86.7%. The Hawks were called for 21 fouls for the matchup which took the Cavaliers to the charity stripe for 15 tries. They coughed up the ball 10 times, while getting 8 steals for the matchup. The Cavaliers were able to snag 31 defensive boards and 18 offensive boards totaling 49 in this contest.

Jarrett Allen ended up being a factor for the Cavaliers for this contest. He knocked down 12 out of 14 for the game giving him a rate of 85.7%, and had 14 rebounds. Allen earned 25 points in his 35 minutes on the hardwood and tallied 1 assist in this matchup.

Cleveland has a win-loss mark of 14-12 so far this year. As an offense, the Cavaliers are hitting on 47.4% from the floor, which has them ranked 13th in the league. Cleveland has earned 2,889 points for the campaign (111.1 per game) and they collect 44.3 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 25.2 times per game (25th in basketball) and they cough up possession 14.4 times per contest. The Cavaliers are responsible for committing 19.3 personal fouls every game and they shoot 78.0% from the free throw line.

The Cavaliers on the defensive end are ranked 8th in the league in PPG surrendered with 111.2. They are forcing 14.6 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 45.7% from the field (8th in the league). The Cleveland defense concedes 36.3% on shots from distance (320 of 882) and their opposition knocks down 78.6% of their foul shots. They have allowed 24.3 assists and 43.3 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 5th and 11th in basketball.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Cleveland

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here