Donovan Mitchell had 23 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, and Evan Mobley scored 22 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled away for a 119-95 win over the visiting Philadelphia 76ers in an NBA Cup game Friday night.
Mario Hezonja added 15 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for Cleveland, which snapped a two-game skid and improved to 4-1 at home. Peyton Watson had 13 points and nine rebounds in his return from a right hamstring injury.
The NBA-leading 76ers trailed by as many as 25 points in the fourth quarter. Their only lead came on VJ Edgecombe’s basket to open the game. Cavaliers franchise icon LeBron James, now with the 76ers, was held to eight points and seven rebounds while committing six turnovers in 32 minutes.
It ended James’ streak of 396 consecutive games scoring in double figures in Cleveland, dating to Dec. 29, 2004. The Akron, Ohio, native spent 11 seasons over two stints with the Cavaliers and led them to their only championship in 2016.
Jaylen Brown scored 20 points and Edgecombe finished with 19 for Philadelphia. Tyrese Maxey had 17, while Joel Embiid missed all nine of his field-goal attempts and finished with six points and seven rebounds.
Cleveland improved to 1-0 in East Group B, while Philadelphia dropped to 1-1.
After the 76ers pulled within two points early in the third quarter, the Cavaliers responded by taking their largest lead to that point at 91-74 on a Mitchell 3-pointer just before the buzzer. Mitchell briefly went to the locker room with a left knee issue earlier in the quarter.
In the second quarter, Cleveland extended its advantage to 46-30 on a Mobley basket, but Edgecombe erupted for 15 points in the period to cut Philadelphia’s deficit to 62-54 at halftime. Edgecombe had 17 points before the break, while Mobley scored 15 and Mitchell had 10 points and seven assists.
Mitchell scored six points in the first 80 seconds, helping the Cavaliers seize a 27-12 lead. He finished the period with 10 points as Cleveland remained in front 33-22. Maxey had six points for Philadelphia, but Embiid missed all seven of his shots.
Cleveland starting center Jarrett Allen (right knee bruise) did not play after taking a knee-on-knee hit from Thunder guard Jared McCain in the first quarter Wednesday.
Cavaliers small forward Jaylon Tyson (right ankle sprain) missed his fourth consecutive game, and swingman Sam Merrill (right elbow) exited in the first half.
Sixers backup center Adem Bona (cervical spine sprain), who was injured Wednesday against the Detroit Pistons, was inactive.
–Field Level Media
