Cleveland Cavaliers continue quest to clinch East when battling the San Antonio Spurs

SAN ANTONIO – The Cleveland Cavaliers can inch closer to clinching the best record in the National Basketball Association (NBA) Eastern Conference if they can beat the San Antonio Spurs on April 4 (April 5, Singapore time) in a late-season, inter-conference game in the Alamo City.

The Cavaliers (61-15) have a five-game lead over defending champions the Boston Celtics in the East race with six contests left to play. Cleveland have won two straight games and five of their past six, a stint that includes a 124-116 home win over San Antonio on March 27.

Cleveland’s most recent outing was a 124-105 victory over the visiting New York Knicks on April 2. Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points to pace the Cavaliers, with Jarrett Allen adding 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the floor. Darius Garland hit 17 points, De’Andre Hunter tallied 16 off the bench, Evan Mobley scored 13 and Isaac Okoro racked up 11 points.

Cleveland produced a 15-2 run that bridged the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth and held New York without a field goal for the first 2min 48sec of the final period.

The Cavaliers’ magic number to cement the top seed is now two, meaning any combination of two Cleveland wins or two Boston losses would give the Cavaliers the crown.

“I’m not paranoid,” Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said. “But you know how hard this league is. Every game is so tough. It’s tough to win in this league. There’s no guarantees. We’re not guaranteed the first seed by any means. We still got work to do.”

The Spurs (32-44) head home after a 113-106 win at the undermanned Denver Nuggets on April 2 behind Stephon Castle’s near triple-double (15 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists) and a team-high 20