Halftime Report
After a tough loss on the road their last time out, the Raptors look much better today on their home court. Sitting on a score of 67-59, they have looked like the better team, but there’s still two more quarters to play.
The Raptors came into the contest with some extra motivation after the defeat they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Toronto Raptors
Current Records: Cleveland 18-14, Toronto 12-20
How To Watch
- When: Monday, January 1, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Scotiabank Arena — Toronto, Ontario
- TV: Bally Sports – Ohio
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
What to Know
The Cavaliers and the Raptors are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2021, but not for long. The Cleveland Cavaliers will head out on the road to face off against the Toronto Raptors at 7:30 p.m. ET on Monday at Scotiabank Arena. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they’ll have plenty of motivation to get the ‘W’.
It’s hard to win when your three-point shooting is a whole 27.4% worse than the opposition, a fact the Cavaliers found out the hard way on Friday. They fell 119-111 to Milwaukee. The loss hurts even more since the Cavaliers were up 48-33 with 7:42 left in the second.
Despite the defeat, the Cavaliers had strong showings from Jarrett Allen, who dropped a double-double on 30 points and 12 rebounds, and Donovan Mitchell, who scored 34 points along with nine assists and six rebounds. That’s the first time this season that Allen scored 30 or more points. Less helpful for the Cavaliers was Caris LeVert’s abysmal 0-6 three-point shooting.
Meanwhile, the point spread may have favored the Raptors last Saturday, but the final result did not. They fell just short of Detroit by a score of 129-127. That’s two games in a row now that the Raptors have lost by exactly two points.
The loss doesn’t tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Dennis Schroder, who scored 30 points along with nine assists. That’s the first time this season that he scored 30 or more points. The team also got some help courtesy of Pascal Siakam, who scored 35 points along with five rebounds.
Cleveland’s defeat dropped their record down to 18-14. As for Toronto, they have not been sharp recently, as they’ve lost five of their last six matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 12-20 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: The Cavaliers haven’t given up the ball easily this season, having only averaged 13.4 turnovers per game. However, it’s not like the Raptors struggle in that department as they’ve been averaging only 13 turnovers per game. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
The Cavaliers are hoping to beat the odds on Monday, as the experts think they’re headed for a loss. This contest will be their fifth straight as the underdogs (so far over this stretch they are 2-2 against the spread).
Odds
Toronto is a slight 2.5-point favorite against Cleveland, according to the latest NBA odds.
The over/under is set at 226.5 points.
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Series History
Toronto and Cleveland both have 5 wins in their last 10 games.
- Nov 26, 2023 – Cleveland 105 vs. Toronto 102
- Feb 26, 2023 – Cleveland 118 vs. Toronto 93
- Dec 23, 2022 – Toronto 118 vs. Cleveland 107
- Nov 28, 2022 – Toronto 100 vs. Cleveland 88
- Oct 19, 2022 – Toronto 108 vs. Cleveland 105
- Mar 24, 2022 – Toronto 117 vs. Cleveland 104
- Mar 06, 2022 – Cleveland 104 vs. Toronto 96
- Dec 26, 2021 – Cleveland 144 vs. Toronto 99
- Nov 05, 2021 – Cleveland 102 vs. Toronto 101
- Apr 26, 2021 – Toronto 112 vs. Cleveland 96
