A Look Ahead to Games 3 and 4
While the Cavaliers have no significant differences in their traditional home and road split-statistics, their wins and losses tell the story. They are 5-1 at home and 3-4 on the road. As for advance stats: their offensive rating increases to 110 at home compared to 105 on the road.
That could be attributed to King James averaging 37.7 points per game at home compared to 29.7 on the road. They also allow roughly seven fewer points per 100 possessions, owning a defensive rating of 105 at home compared to 112 on the road.
So far this series, the Celtics have given the Cavaliers fits on offense and defense. In the 2018 Playoffs, the Cavaliers offensive rating is 107.4 and their defensive rating is 109.1. This series, their offensive rating is down to 93 and their defensive rating is at 112.8.
Boston’s stingy defense has yet allowed Cleveland to score 100 points and they boast a 5-1 record in the postseason when holding teams under the 100-point mark.
The Celtics are also 9-1 when they reach the 100-point mark. The question for these next two games becomes can they produce the same offense in Cleveland that they were able to at home? Their scoring average drops from 110 at home to just 95 points on the road.
That 15-point dip is the result of a five less assists per game, a field goal percentage that drops 6 percent (41.1% on the road) and a three-point percentage that drops 7.9 percent (30.8% on the road).
The X-Factor for these next two games? “Scary Terry”. The Celtics’ starting point guard averages 20 points per game at home to12.8 on the road. His field goal percentage drops from 46% to 34% and he shoots significantly worse from beyond the arc.
His 45.5% from three-point range dips to 24.4%, which seems to play a role in his lower scoring average. After a quiet scoring performance in Game 1, Rozier bounced back with 18 points in Game 2. Look for him to provide some extra offense to get the Celtics over the hump and win their second road playoff game.
Boston’s only road win this postseason came at the most-opportune time in a crucial Game 3 in Philadelphia to take a 3-0 series lead. They look to take at least one game in Cleveland to give themselves a similar opportunity as the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. They are a perfect 9-0 in Boston in the 2018 NBA Playoffs and would have the chance to close the series in Game 5 at home.
When Celtics’ guard Brown was asked what he thinks about the national media’s perception that they can’t play well on the road, he responded by stating, “My reaction is that I can’t wait for Game 3. I’ll leave it at that.”
Next: Boston Celtics defense has been spectacular
Game 3 will take place in Cleveland on Saturday. The game will be played at 8:30 on ESPN.