KING’S COURT
LeBron leads Cavs over misfiring Sixers
PHILADELPHIA » The 76ers aren’t ready to challenge the Cleveland Cavilers. Well, at least not yet. LeBron James scored 30 points in his marquee matchup against Sixers rookie Ben Simmons and the Cavs pulled away for their eighth straight victory, 113-91, on Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
The Sixers (11-8) had a miserable night from beyond the arc, missing 25 of their 28 attempts. Two of those makes came during a third quarter push in which they briefly cut Cleveland’s lead to three.
Joel Embiid scored 30 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in 33 minutes.
Simmons, who has drawn comparisons to James, had an uneventful 10 points and eight rebounds before leaving midway through the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle.
Robert Covington was 0-for-9 from behind the arc.
The Sixers had a threegame winning streak snapped. They finish a sixgame homestand against Washington on Wednesday before heading to Boston for the second game of a back to back.
Dwyane Wade had 15 points off the Cavs (13-7) bench. Cleveland’s reserves outscored the Sixers’ 55-30.
Having spent shootaround answering questions about Simmons, James came out on fire and scored 22 of his points during an 8-for-14 first-half performance.
James hit three 3s in the opening half, including a buzzer-beater after he chased down his own miss in the corner and sank a triple as Embiid closed out.
The Sixers, meanwhile, never got their 3-point shot untracked and were 0-for11 in the first half. They trailed, 53-45, at intermission.