Houston Rockets @ Cleveland Cavaliers - January 25, 2025

Alright, folks, we’ve got another exciting NBA showdown on our hands tonight as the Cleveland Cavaliers host the Houston Rockets at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. With the oddsmakers opening this one with Cleveland as 5.5-point favorites and an Over/Under set at 228.5, it’s time to break down what we can expect from both teams.

Let’s start with the Cavs, who are sitting pretty at 36-8 straight up and a solid 29-15 against the spread. They’ve been nothing short of impressive lately, boasting a record of 19-5 in their last 24 games. This team knows how to put points on the board, averaging around 121.7 points per game on nearly 50% shooting—49.7% to be exact! Their three-point shooting hasn’t been half bad either, coming in at just over 39%. And while they’re not perfect from the line, converting about 77.5% helps keep defenses honest.

Now defensively? The Cavs have shown they can lock it down too. Averaging over 44 rebounds per game along with nearly nine steals is no small feat; they’re disruptive and relentless when it comes to defending their home court.

On the other side of things, we have the Houston Rockets—a team that has had its ups and downs this season but still boasts a respectable record of 29-14 overall and an ATS mark of 25-18. They pulled off a tight win against these same Cavs back in January with a nail-biting scoreline of 109-108, so you know they have what it takes to challenge Cleveland.

Houston averages about 113.7 points per game but lags behind Cleveland in shooting efficiency—44.8% from the field and only around 33.8% from beyond the arc won’t cut it against a high-octane offense like that of Cleveland’s if they want to pull off an upset again tonight.

Overall though? I’m leaning toward Cleveland taking this one comfortably and covering that spread. Their recent form says they’re due for another bounce-back after that loss to Philadelphia—no way do I see them dropping two in a row at home.

With both teams capable of putting up points quickly (Cleveland especially), I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some fireworks early on… but my gut tells me tonight’s total will likely stay under that lofty number set by oddsmakers given both teams’ defensive capabilities lately.

So there you have it: I’m predicting a Cavaliers victory—one where they cover the spread—and while we’ve seen scoring flurries before, something tells me we’re looking at an UNDER night here for this matchup as well! Let’s keep our betting rituals strong and maybe toss some salt over our shoulder for good luck!