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Wrap-Up -- One of the marks of a very good team is that it’s able to win when not at its best.
One night after seeing their 13-game win streak snapped, followed by travel snafus that had them arriving back in Cleveland at 4 a.m., the Cavaliers figured out a way to hold off the scrappy Sixers and return to the win column – taking the 105-98 victory on Saturday night at The Q.
After falling behind by double-digits in the opening moments, Cleveland righted the ship and led through most of the first three quarters. But it looked like they were running out of gas in the final period, but behind LeBron James, Jae Crowder and another big effort by the bench, the Wine & Gold were able to pull past the Sixers.
LeBron continued his MVP-caliber campaign, netting his third triple-double of the season and 58th of his Hall of Fame career – finishing with 30 points, 13 boards and 13 assists, all game-highs.
The 13-time All-Star saved his best for last – tallying nine points, seven boards and six dimes in the final period. On the night, LeBron was 9-of-23 from the floor – snapping his 13-game run of shooting better than 50 percent – going 2-of-6 from deep and 10-of-12 from the stripe, adding a team-high three steals in the win.
In Cleveland’s win over the Sixers in Philly in late November, the starters scored 56 points to the reserves’ 57. The disparity wasn’t quite so pronounced on Saturday, but the Wine & Gold’s second unit did account for 48 of the team’s 105 points.
Jeff Green, Dwyane Wade and Kyle Korver tallied 13 points apiece – with Green going 5-of-8 from the floor, adding six boards and a pair of steals, Wade going 6-for-10 and adding four helpers and Korver hitting on 4-of-8 three-point attempts, canning two in the final period.
Jae Crowder was the only other Cavalier starter besides LeBron in double-figures – finishing with 12 points and five boards. Half of Crowder’s point total came in the fourth quarter, when he nailed his first three-pointer to cut Philly’s lead to one midway through the period and his second with 41 seconds to play to put the victory on ice.
Both teams were without their starting centers on Saturday. Joel Embiid was given the first half of the Sixers’ back-to-back off with a date against DeMarcus Cousins and New Orleans on Sunday. Kevin Love was a late scratch with some left hip soreness after pregame warmups.
The Cavs notched their eight win in a row at Quicken Loans Arena with a 105-98 win over the Sixers on Saturday.
With Embiid and Love on the shelf – Amir Johnson and Ante Zizic got the respective starts and neither finished with a field goal or free throw on the night. Jeff Green started the second half in place of Cleveland’s 20-year-old rookie big man.
The Sixers still featured six players in double-figures, led by Robert Covington and J.J. Redick – who netted 19 points apiece. Philly’s prized rookie, Ben Simmons, doubled-up with 14 points, 10 assists and six boards.
Neither team shot the lights out on Saturday, but the Cavaliers canned 14 three-pointers and made almost twice as many trips to the free throw line (25-13).
Turning Point -- The Sixers made their charge against the travel-weary Wine & Gold to start the fourth quarter – jumping out on an 11-3 run and taking a five-point edge early in the period.
Philly kept the pressure on through the fourth, but Kyle Korver and Jae Crowder canned back-to-back triples midway through the period and two minutes later, Korver connected again to give Cleveland a one-point edge, 99-96.
The Sixers stayed within striking distance until Crowder drilled his second bomb of the quarter to put the Cavs up six – 104-98 – and give them their second win over Philly this season.
By the Numbers – 11 … straight wins for the Cavaliers against the Sixers, their longest current streak against any opponent. Since his return in 2014, LeBron hasn’t dropped a single decision to Philadelphia in a game he’s played.
Quotable – Kevin Love, on Cleveland’s streak being snapped on Friday in Indiana …
”This was a big win for us. After everything that we went through last night – being delayed for five hours, stuck in Indiana after a tough game and basically not getting to our homes until 4:30 in the morning – you whole day is kind of just screwed up. Your whole routine and your regimen is just kind of screwed up. But you’ve still got to be professionals. No one is going to feel sorry for you. So for us to show up and have our All-Star power forward out, and so many guys out, everyone just gave what they had.”
Up Next -- After Saturday night’s victory at The Q, the Wine & Gold get a couple days off before continuing their four-game homestand on Tuesday night when they welcome Dennis Schroder and the Hawks to town. On Thursday night, it’s an eagerly-anticipated matchup with Lonzo Ball and the Lakers followed by a visit by Quin Snyder’s Utah Jazz next Saturday. The Cavaliers hit the road for a pair – traveling to Washington next Sunday and Milwaukee the following Tuesday – coming home to take on the Bulls on December 21 before embarking on the three-game West Coast trip beginning with the Christmas Day game in Oakland.