Cleveland Cavaliers 119, Philadelphia 76ers 95: Cleveland owns the paint and the glass
Cleveland outscored Philadelphia 50-30 in the paint and out-rebounded it 56-42, ending the 76ers' five-game winning streak at Rocket Arena.
The Philadelphia 76ers went to Rocket Arena with five straight wins and came home with their worst result of the season. The Cleveland Cavaliers won 119-95 on Friday. The game was decided inside, where Cleveland scored 50 points in the paint to Philadelphia's 30 and won the rebounding battle 56-42.
Philadelphia never led by more than 2. Cleveland's lead reached 25. It was a reversal of the season's first meeting, a 114-106 Sixers win in Philadelphia.
How it was won
The first quarter set the terms. Cleveland scored 33 to Philadelphia's 22 and opened an 11-point lead that the Sixers spent the rest of the night chasing.
The second quarter was Philadelphia's best. The Sixers outscored Cleveland 32-29 and went to the half down 62-54, still within reach.
The third quarter closed it. Cleveland won it 29-20, stretched the lead to 91-74, and added a 28-21 fourth to finish the job.
The shooting explains most of the gap. Philadelphia made 31 of 85 from the field, 36 percent, and 10 of 40 from three. Cleveland shot 45 percent, 40 of 88, and made 13 of 37 from deep. When the Sixers missed, Cleveland was there: a 14-rebound edge on the boards meant few second chances for Philadelphia and plenty for the hosts.
The other categories were close. Turnovers were 16 for Philadelphia and 15 for Cleveland. The Sixers made 23 of 29 free throws and the Cavaliers 26 of 34. Cleveland had 25 assists to Philadelphia's 20.
Jaylen Brown led Philadelphia with 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, but made 2 of 9 threes. VJ Edgecombe was the most efficient of the three leaders, scoring 19 on 3-of-5 shooting from deep. Tyrese Maxey had 17 points and 4 assists and went 2 for 9 from three. Those three combined to make 7 of 23 threes. The rest of the roster made 3 of 17.
For Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell had 23 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists despite making 1 of 6 threes. Evan Mobley scored 22, made 3 of 4 from deep and pulled down 6 rebounds. James Harden added 17 points and 6 rebounds and made 3 of 7 threes.
Against the number
Philadelphia closed as a 2.5-point favourite and lost by 24, so Cleveland covered by 26.5 points. The moneyline went the same way: the Sixers at -152 lost, and Cleveland at +128 paid.
The total closed at 232.5 and the teams scored 214, an under by 18.5. Philadelphia's 95 points did most of the work there. A team that shoots 25 percent from three rarely helps an over.
The market had Philadelphia as the better side on the road, built largely on the five-game run and the earlier win over Cleveland. Friday's result was well outside that range. Full prices and line history are on the game page.
What's next
Philadelphia falls to 8-2 and goes straight back on the road, visiting the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, November 8. The Sixers beat Chicago 126-107 at home last week, one of five straight wins before Friday. The open question is whether the shooting returns. The Sixers had won close games at Detroit, Charlotte and Indiana without much margin, and a 10-for-40 night from three leaves none.
Cleveland improves to 5-4. Its next game was not in the schedule information we have, and we will add it to the odds board when it is posted.
