The set-up: The 41-17 Cleveland Cavaliers are four games up on the 38-22 Boston Celtics in the race for the East's No. 1 seed. The two teams meet tonight in Boston, when the Celtics get a chance to prove they can beat the conference's best team:

Cleveland: The Cavaliers fell at home to Chicago on Saturday with LBJ sitting out but looked more like the defending champs in Monday's 102-95 win over the Bucks. James challenged his front office to add players when the team was struggling in January and PG Deron Williams was signed on Monday after being waived by the Dallas Mavericks (Williams 13.1 points and 6.9 assists in 40 games). The Cavs continued to add to their roster, as center Andrew Bogut will join the team later this week after he clears waivers.

Boston: After a 114-98 home loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Monday, the Celtics have lost three of four (no way to try to catch the Cavs!). Isaiah Thomas (29.6 & 6.2 APG) struggled with a 4 of 21 shooting performance and finished with 19 points. It ended his franchise-record streak of 20-point games at 43. There was good news though, as SG Avery Bradley (Achilles) returned from an 18-game absence on Monday and scored six points in 15 minutes (he averages 17.4 PPG and 6.7 RPG on the season).

The pick: The Celtics have lost twice to the Cavs this season, although both games were in Cleveland. Boston has not been able to contain LBJ and Co, as the Cavs have averaged 126.0 PPG in those two contests. If the Celtics can't beat the Cavs here, just when will they be able to? After tonight's game, the Celtics head out for a five-game West Coast trip that includes stops at Golden State and the Los Angeles Clippers. For Boston to win, the Celtics will likely need to outscore the Cavs and I'm making the Over a 10* play.