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Wine and Gold Fall in Philly

The closing seconds of a quarter in the NBA can be the turning point in a ballgame. But it’s rarely the end of the first quarter.

Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, that was the case on Wednesday night in Philadelphia – as Spencer Hawes’ three-pointer at the first period buzzer gave the Sixers a one-point lead and sent the Cavaliers into a second-quarter tailspin they never recovered from. Cleveland stayed even after intermission, but it was too little, too late – with Philly cruising to the 114-99 win.

Doug Collins’ squad outscored the Wine and Gold, 38-14, in the second quarter – giving them all the breathing room they needed. Cleveland outscored Philly by a point in the third and by 10 in the fourth.

Kyrie Irving led both squads with 23 points – going 8-for-16 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from long distance. Irving and the rest of the starters got a good run, with each logging at least 26 minutes.

The Cavs’ point guard led four Cavaliers starters in double-figures. C.J. Miles, Tristan Thompson and Anderson Varejao notched 10 points apiece. Thompson doubled-up, adding 10 boards – four off the offensive glass – and swatting three Sixers’ shots.

Cleveland didn’t shoot the ball poorly – nearly 43 percent – but the Sixers shot an even 50 percent from the floor and handled the Cavs on the boards, 50-39.

Daniel Gibson came off the Cavalier bench to pour in 18 points – canning 3-of-5 shots from beyond the arc and hitting all seven free throws he attempted.

Dion Waiters returned home to Philly for the first time since being drafted No. 4 overall. The rugged rookie’s nerves might’ve gotten the best of him, though, as he went just 2-for-9 from the floor, missing all five treys he attempted.

The Sixers got big production from their bench as well, with Nick Young and Maalik Wayns netting 19 points apiece as a reserve.

The Cavaliers will close out their preseason on Tuesday night when they welcome the Indiana Pacers to The Q for a final tune-up before the regular season tips off one week later against the Washington Wizards.