Sixers cut up by Cavs, losing 5th straight at home

Cavaliers 101 - 93 Sixers

Normally the Wachovia center is a sanctuary for the Sixers, whose road woes over the last few seasons have been well documented.

But at the moment the 76ers can't buy a home win, as last night's loss to the Cavs marked the fifth straight they have dropped in Philly.

Granted three of those loses have come against Orlando and the Lakers, both division leaders with a combined record of 35-8, and Cleveland are one of the league's hottest teams, having now won their last 10 games.

However home losses to the Bulls and the Nets are much less forgivable for a team that continues to underachieve.

Last Friday's win in Detroit showed the potential that this Sixers team has, but it has only been seen in very brief glimpses during the opening few months of the season.

Last night Philly became the latest side to be swept away in the wave of Cleveland's winning streak, but at least the Sixers rallied late on to force LeBron James to come back into the game, after he was able to sit out the fourth quarter of the Cavs last seven games.

The Cavs had won their previous nine games by an average of over 20 points, and it looked like they were going to win big again, as they led by 21 late in the third quarter.

However, to the 76ers credit they came back in the final period, cutting the deposit to just six with two minutes left in the game.

Lou Williams was big off the bench down the stretch, scoring 13 points in the fourth to get his team back in contention, but his and the Sixers effort came up short as the Cavs held on to go 18-1 in their last 19 games.

Philly had led the game after the first quarter and were down by just two at the half, before a nightmare third period killed off any serious hopes they had of getting a result.

During that time, the Sixers had a run where they made just 2 of 14 from the floor, the sort of spell that won't win you many ball games!

The hosts just could not cope with LeBron, who notched up a game-high 29 points, and got some help from Maurice Williams (27 points) and Brazilian forward Anderson Varejao (15 points).

Philly changed their starting lineup for this one, with Willie Green replacing Thaddeus Young, who has cooled off in recent weeks.

Green took up the shooting guard position, which meant Andre Iguodala moved over to small forward, and this benefited him.

Iguodala claimed a season-high 27 points and Lou Williams (22 points) supported him with his best stats of the year.

Andre Miller (22 points) made sure the 76ers had three players with over 20 points for only the second time this season, but unlike the win over Chicago it wasn't enough for the Sixers to get it done.

Green (1-6 for 2 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists) did not vindicate his selection ahead of Young, but the forward (6 points) hardly made a compelling case either.

Once again Philly couldn't hit a barn door from beyond the arc, making just one from 10 attempts, which meant that Cleveland could make the inside congested.

As a result Elton Brand (2 points) struggled on his return from a hamstring strain, as did Samuel Dalembert (2 points), although Brand did lead the team with 10 rebounds.

Three point shooting is really becoming a huge problem for the Sixers, and the fans are starting to show their frustration, as they booed the team off at the end of the third quarter.

Here are the highlights:


Philly's defence is the only positive for the franchise up to this point in the season, with yesterday being just the sixth time that the team have given up 100+ points this year.

However, the Sixers are 0-6 when their opponents have reached triple digits, as their offence is just not producing the goods.

The 76ers have now lost seven of their last nine games in dropping to 9-13 on the season, whilst the Cavs (19-3) are pulling away at the top of the central division.

Philly do get an immediate shot at revenge when they travel to Cleveland on Friday, but the way things are going at the moment, I wouldn't hold your breath!