Cleveland Cavaliers (20-3, first in the Eastern Conference) vs. Charlotte Hornets (6-16, 13th in the Eastern Conference)
Charlotte, North Carolina; Saturday, 1 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Charlotte is looking to stop its five-game home losing streak with a win over Cleveland.
The Hornets have gone 5-15 against Eastern Conference teams. Charlotte is 2-8 against opponents over .500.
The Cavaliers are 15-3 in conference play. Cleveland is seventh in the league with 28.2 assists per game led by Darius Garland averaging 6.6.
The Hornets are shooting 42.6% from the field this season, 2.9 percentage points lower than the 45.5% the Cavaliers allow to opponents. The Cavaliers average 9.4 more points per game (122.0) than the Hornets give up (112.6).
TOP PERFORMERS: LaMelo Ball is averaging 31.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.9 assists for the Hornets.
Donovan Mitchell is averaging 24.5 points, 4.2 assists and 1.6 steals for the Cavaliers.
LAST 10 GAMES: Hornets: 1-9, averaging 105.6 points, 44.1 rebounds, 23.7 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 42.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 112.4 points per game.
Cavaliers: 7-3, averaging 122.3 points, 45.0 rebounds, 28.2 assists, 8.4 steals and 4.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.2 points.
INJURIES: Hornets: LaMelo Ball: out (calf), Grant Williams: out for season (knee), Miles Bridges: day to day (knee), Tre Mann: out (back).
Cavaliers: Emoni Bates: out (knee), Max Strus: out (ankle), Craig Porter Jr.: day to day (illness).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
