Cleveland has lost four games in a row after falling to the Golden State Warriors 112-94 on Friday night, and are hoping to avoid falling back to .500 on the season.
Sacramento has also been struggling of late as they've lost four of their last six games, including a 118-108 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Friday.
Projected Starting Lineups
Cleveland Cavaliers (19-18)
G Kyrie Irving – 21.0 ppg, 5.1 apg
G Matthew Dellavedova – 4.6 ppg, 3.3 apg
F Mike Miller – 3.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg
F Kevin Love – 17.7 ppg, 10.5 rpg
C Timofey Mozgov– 8.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg
Sacramento Kings (15-21)
G Darren Collison – 16.6 ppg, 6.0 apg
G Ben McLemore – 11.9 ppg, 3.2 rpg
F Rudy Gay – 20.8 ppg, 6.2 rpg
F Jason Thompson – 5.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg
C DeMarcus Cousins – 23.8 ppg, 12.3 rpg
What to watch for:
Can Cleveland stop DeMarcus Cousins?
Cleveland brought in center Timofey Mozgov to help fix their interior defense, and this game will be the first test for their improved unit. No one has been able to slow DeMarcus Cousins down all season, and he's the key to Sacramento's offensive attack. If the Cavs can limit his effectiveness, they'll win this game.
Bench Production
Sacramento's bench is one of the worst in the league, while Cleveland's bench isn't very deep after injuries to LeBron James, Iman Shumpert, and Anderson Varejao. Both sides rely heavily on their starting lineups, so whichever bench unit can give their team an extra boost will likely come out on top.
Prediction: Cavs win 101-98
In this matchup between two struggling teams, this game should come down to the very end. Cleveland has more talent, even without LeBron James, and will be able to make more plays down the stretch to pull out the win.
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