The Cavs and Thunder will square off in a highly-anticipated rematch of the conference’s best.

Just eight days after the highly publicized initial matchup of conference leaders, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder will square off at the Paycom Center on the national stage once again. The Cavs came out victorious in round one, a back-and-forth 129-122 win at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. No doubt the Thunder will be looking to exact some revenge in front of their home crowd.

Who: Cleveland Cavaliers (34-5) at Oklahoma City Thunder (33-6)

Where: Paycom Center - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

When: 7:30 p.m. - Thursday, January 16

TV: TNT

Line: Thunder -3.5

Expected Cavs starting lineup: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Dean Wade, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen.

Cavs injury report: Emoni Bates - OUT (G League), JT Thor - OUT (G League), Luke Travers - OUT (G League)

Expected Thunder starting lineup: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Lu Dort, Jaylen Williams, Jaylin Williams

Thunder injury report: Chet Holmgren - OUT (hip), Isaiah Hartenstein - OUT (leg), Ajay Mitchell - OUT (toe), Nikola Topic - OUT (knee), Osuane Dieng - OUT (G League), Dillon Jones - OUT (G League)

What to watch for

Mitchell rebound?

The most impressive part of the Cavs’ victory over the Thunder last week was that they overcame a very poor shooting night from Donovan Mitchell. Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley, and the bench (namely Max Strus and Ty Jerome) all came to the rescue and saved the day, a testament to the depth and growth of the Cavs roster.

Last season, the Cavs went the way Mitchell did. If he had a poor night, the team had a tough time overcoming it. The Cavs are more well-equipped to handle a Spida dud, yes. But facing the number one defense in the league even with Mitchell playing well is challenging. To make matters even more sticky is the return of Alex Caruso, who did not play in the initial matchup in Cleveland. His point-of-attack defense is notorious around the league and just adds to the Thunder’s defensive aptitude. Caruso is yet another quality defender to throw out there.

Despite Mitchell’s subpar shooting night, the Cavs still hung 129 points on the Thunder-- the most they have given up on the season. Kenny Atkinson’s offense is humming along, but an effective Mitchell changes the dynamic even further. Look for the Cavs to try and get him going early to set the tempo.

SAN LEANDRO — A man apparently upset over not being allowed to board an out-of-service bus at the San Leandro BART station was arrested Sunday night for allegedly stabbing another man in the face, authorities said.

The 50-year-old injured man was treated at the scene for a superficial laceration and did not require hospitalization, authorities said.

The stabbing happened about 10:14 p.m. Sunday in the bus zone of the station, which is at 1401 San Leandro Blvd.

BART officials said the suspect, identified as Chinook Bacon, 35, of Hayward, was apparently upset over being denied entry onto an out-of-service bus. He had a verbal altercation with the bus driver and then attacked the 50-year-old man who was nearby, authorities said.

Bacon, who has a prior voluntary manslaughter conviction, apparently did not know the person stabbed.

Someone flagged down some San Leandro police officers making a traffic stop nearby and they arrested Bacon. A knife was recovered at the scene.

Bacon was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon other than a firearm and brandishing a weapon. He was being held in lieu of $35,000 bail at Santa Rita Jail pending arraignment in court on Wednesday.

According to prior media accounts and court records, Bacon was prosecuted as an adult when he was 17 years old as a result of a December 31, 2009 multi-vehicle collision in East Oakland that left a 66-year-old grandmother dead and several other people injured.

He was driving a stolen Toyota sedan at the time; when he thought he had been spotted by police, he sped off, reaching speeds in excess of 80 mph, media accounts said. Oakland police said at the time they had not actively chased him. He drove through two stop signs before colliding with a vehicle at 62nd Avenue and Foothill Boulevard. The vehicle he struck held the woman who was killed and two other occupants, who were injured. Passengers in the stolen car were also injured.

Bacon was initially charged with murder, voluntary manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, vehicle theft and evading police, court records say. In May of 2011 he pleaded no contest and was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and the other charges were dismissed, court records say. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison.