The Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers are playing live on the NBA schedule on Friday night and the matchup is from Bankers Life Fieldhouse starting up at 7 pm ET as LeBron James matches up against the team he beat in the eastern conference finals last year and he will take the court with Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving riding a long winning streak with the Cavs.
The Cavaliers now are right back in the mix at the top of the eastern conference, as they are now a half-game ahead of the Chicago Bulls in the division standings. The Bulls had a significant lead and the Cavaliers were one game under .500 when this streak started and now they are in first place in the division. James and the Cavs have been playing very well on both sides of the ball lately and now the team has the chance to win another game in a row to extend the winning streak.
The Cavaliers come into the matchup after winning over the Clippers and Love bounced back from a couple tough games to lead the way with 24 points. James added nine rebounds and now they have the chance to keep this run going, as they play losing teams in the Pacers and the Lakers next and the game against LA will be back in Cleveland.
The team is now ranked in the top 10 in scoring in pints per game and they have continued to improve on defense, ranking 13th in points allowed per game. James has started flowing better with his teammates and the defensive efficiency has continued to get better as well. The Pacers come into the game after a win against the Pistons and that matchup saw George Hill lead the way with 20 points and six assists.
The Pacers have won just 18 games this season and they have been very different compared to last season and the biggest issue is the loss of Paul George. The Cavs come in with a 31-20 record and have not lost since they were 19-20 and the Pacers come in at 18-32. Indiana will next play against the Hornets on the road and they are ranked 26th in the league in scoring and sixth in the league in points allowed per game.
James is leading the Cavs in scoring and he had 23 points in the win against the Clippers. Kevin Love, James and Kyrie Irving all have played well with each other over this time and now they will try get the winning streak to 13 games. Hill coming back has been big for the Pacers, as he has been injured for part of the season and the team has played much better when he is in the lineup.
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