Cleveland takes on conference rival Miami

Audio By Carbonatix

Miami Heat (39-34, eighth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Cleveland Cavaliers (45-28, fourth in the Eastern Conference)

Cleveland; Friday, 7:30 p.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: Bam Adebayo and the Miami Heat visit Donovan Mitchell and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.

The Cavaliers are 29-18 against Eastern Conference opponents. Cleveland ranks seventh in the Eastern Conference in rebounding with 44.3 rebounds. Evan Mobley leads the Cavaliers with 8.9 boards.

The Heat are 23-20 against Eastern Conference opponents. Miami is 19-27 against opponents with a winning record.

The Cavaliers are shooting 47.8% from the field this season, 1.8 percentage points higher than the 46.0% the Heat allow to opponents. The Heat average 13.5 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.4 fewer makes per game than the Cavaliers give up.

The teams meet for the fourth time this season. The Heat won 120-103 in the last meeting on March 25. Norman Powell led the Heat with 19 points, and Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 28 points.

TOP PERFORMERS: Mitchell is averaging 28.3 points, 5.8 assists and 1.5 steals for the Cavaliers. James Harden is averaging 22.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 7.6 assists over the last 10 games.

Adebayo is averaging 20.3 points and 9.8 rebounds for the Heat. Tyler Herro is averaging 2.7 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Cavaliers: 6-4, averaging 118.1 points, 43.6 rebounds, 26.8 assists, 5.9 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 49.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.6 points per game.

Heat: 5-5, averaging 121.3 points, 42.9 rebounds, 29.2 assists, 8.5 steals and 3.9 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.7 points.

INJURIES: Cavaliers: Max Strus: day to day (injury management), Craig Porter Jr.: day to day (groin), Dean Wade: day to day (ankle), Jaylon Tyson: day to day (toe), Jarrett Allen: day to day (knee).

Heat: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.