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Sixers' Big Fourth Stymies Wine & Gold

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Wrap-Up -- On Sunday afternoon, the heavyweight Sixers simply wore the Wine & Gold down – outscoring the shorthanded Cavaliers by 19 points in the final quarter to avenge an early-season upset and take the 128-105 decision at The Q.

As they had in their November 23 victory in Philadelphia, the Cavaliers jumped out to an early lead – scoring 36 points in the opening quarter and jumping out to a double-digit lead at the start of the second.

But the Sixers outscored Cleveland by two touchdowns in that second period and, after the Cavs rallied back into contention after half – cutting Philly’s 13-point third-quarter lead to one – were able to completely pull away in the fourth.

Every Philadelphia starter, plus Landry Shamet off the bench, notched double-figures and Sixers guard Ben Simmons reached a triple-double by the third quarter. On the night, the Cavaliers were outrebounded by 15 – 48-33 – with Simmons (11) equaling the starters’ combined board totals by himself. Simmons’ 14 assists were also six more than Cleveland’s five starters combined.

The Cavaliers were led by Cedi Osman and Jordan Clarkson who finished with 18 points apiece.

Osman bounced back from a rough three-game stretch in which he’d shot 23 percent from the floor to go 6-of-10 from the floor, including 2-of-4 from deep, on Sunday afternoon – adding four boards in the loss.

Clarkson went 6-of-16 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the stripe, adding a team-best six rebounds to go with four assists.

Jordan Clarkson

Cave bench outscores Philly's 50-38 on Sunday afternoon.

Rodney Hood chipped in with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-5 from long-range, adding four assists and a pair of boards.

Matthew Dellavedova notched double-figures in his fourth straight game in his reunion tour with the Wine & Gold – finishing with 13 points, going 5-of-9 from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc to go with a team-best seven assists.

Collin Sexton rounded out the Cavaliers in double-figures with 12 points on 6-for-13 shooting to go with two assists and a pair of steals.

Aside from Ben Simmons’ trifecta, the Sixers were paced by Joel Embiid, who finished with a game-high 24 points on 10-for-16 shooting, adding nine boards and a pair of assists.

Turning Point -- The Sixers tried pulling away from the Cavs all night and when they went up by a baker’s dozen midway through the third, it looked like they might.

But after leading by 10 with 3:16 to play in the period, Cleveland went on a 9-0 run to cut Philly’s lead to just a single point with 30 seconds to play.

The Sixers were all business in that final quarter, opening the period on an 11-0 run to take a 15-point edge with 8:50 to play in regulation. The Cavs cut the lead to 10 on Delly’s long triple less than a minute later and Cleveland stayed within striking distance until the final four minutes, with Philly closing the contest on a 16-4 run.

By the Numbers4 … consecutive games that the Cavaliers’ bench has combined for at least 50 points – the first time Cleveland’s reserves have done so since December 1991. So far this season, the Wine & Gold’s bench has topped the 50-point mark on 11 occasions.

QuotableCoach Larry Drew, on his team’s effort against the Sixers on Sunday …

”I thought our guys played hard, at stretches we could have been better, but the margin for error in this game is very small for us. Margin for error is not just a turnover, it’s a bad shot, it’s a missed defensive assignment, it’s not getting back defensively or staying on the body of shooters – and (Philadelphia) capitalized.”

Up Next -- After wrapping up their second three-game homestand in the last seven games, the Wine & Gold will spend most of the remainder of this month on road – beginning with a three-game junket beginning Tuesday night against the Pacers in Indiana. The following night, Cleveland makes its second trip to Charlotte this season before wrapping up the roadie on Friday night against the Conference’s top squad. The Cavs come home next Sunday for a meeting with the Bulls before getting right back on the road – closing out December with stops in Memphis, Miami and Atlanta.

Calls of the Game