National Basketball Association
Cleveland 95, Philadelphia 85
When: 6:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 10, 2016
Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Officials: #25 Tony Brothers, #29 Mark Lindsay, #52 Scott Twardoski
Attendance: 19226

PHILADELPHIA -- LeBron James was struck in the face by a pass from a Cleveland Cavaliers teammate while warming up Sunday before a game against the Philadelphia 76ers.

The star forward later inflicted far more punishment on the lowly Sixers.

James scored 12 of his 37 points in a decisive 14-0 fourth-quarter run as the Cavaliers beat Philadelphia 95-85, their seventh consecutive victory.

James, whose point total matched a season high, also finished with nine assists and seven rebounds for Cleveland, which improved its Eastern Conference-leading record to 26-9. The Cavaliers also won their fifth straight on the road and their sixth straight over Philadelphia, and they completed their first four-game season sweep of the Sixers since 1995-96.

"I've played in a lot of big games in my career, and I've seen it all," James said, adding that he was trying to stay "even-keeled" on a night when the Cavs shot just 38.9 percent from the floor.

"They look at me as the leader of this team, and I've got to be that way all year 'round," he said of his teammates. "They needed me a lot tonight, and I was able to come through."

James, who was struck by a pass from reserve forward Anderson Varejao beforehand, shot 15-for-22 from the floor, including 3-for-5 from 3-point sniping.

Forward Kevin Love added 15 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists for Cleveland, and guard J.R. Smith scored 14 points. Forward Tristan Thompson had 10 points and 10 boards.

Center Jahlil Okafor had 21 points to lead Philadelphia, which dropped its third straight and saw its NBA-worst record fall to 4-36. Guard Ish Smith had 18 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, and forward Nerlens Noel contributed 12 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots.

"They are championship material," Philadelphia coach Brett Brown said of the Cavaliers. "I was proud, for the most part, of our effort tonight."

The Sixers cut a 12-point deficit to 81-79 early in the fourth quarter, but James returned to the game with 7:32 remaining after resting early in the period.

He made a jumper, then a free throw, then a fastbreak layup off Love's outlet pass. James' 3-pointer with 6:05 remaining increased the Cleveland lead to 89-79, and after a stick-back by Thompson, James capped the flurry with a dunk on the break, again off a feed from Love.

That put Cleveland ahead 95-79 with 3:21 left.

"He's been doing that for a long time," Cleveland coach David Blatt said of James. "It's nothing new, and we have confidence in him, and obviously he has the confidence in himself to make the plays because he's done it so many times."

Cleveland led by as many as nine early in the second quarter, and as many as eight later in that period, but Okafor crammed seven of his 12 first-half points in the last 1:12 of the quarter, all while guarded by Timofey Mozgov, a 7-foot-1 reserve center.

That allowed the Sixers to cut the gap at halftime to 48-47.

James had 14 points and five assists in the half for the Cavs, who shot just 32.7 percent from the floor. J.R. Smith added 11 first-half points.

Ish Smith backed Okafor with 11 points and six assists before the break.

James scored nine points in a two-minute, 40-second span of the third quarter, including a reverse, fastbreak dunk after a 70-foot outlet pass from Love and a 3-pointer, giving Cleveland a 72-60 lead.

Philadelphia closed the gap to 75-69 by the end of the period, on a 3-pointer by forward Robert Covington in the final minute, then continued to charge early in the fourth quarter. Ish Smith's 3-pointer with 8:22 left drew the 76ers within 81-79.

NOTES: Sixers coach Brett Brown said before the game that he will continue to play C Jahlil Okafor and F Nerlens Noel in tandem, even though Noel is more comfortable playing in the middle, as was the case last season. "I can't quit on that now," Brown said. "(Noel is) just 21. ... I feel like Nerlens Noel has made the most sacrifices out of anybody. ... To think we're going to say, 'You're never going to play a (power forward) spot at 21 years old isn't really fair to anybody, especially you.'" ... Brown also said that it is difficult for his young team not to be in awe of a player like Cleveland F LeBron James. "How can it not be?" he said. ... Cavs G Kyrie Irving played his ninth game since returning from offseason knee surgery, having scored 70 points in the previous three. "Just like his minutes have progressively gone up, I think also his comfort level and his performance have improved," coach David Blatt said, "and it's great to see. ... It's good news for us going forward."
Top Game Performances
 
Cleveland   Philadelphia
LeBron James 37 Scoring Jahlil Okafor 21
LeBron James 9 Assists Ish Smith 10
Kevin Love 15 Rebounds Nerlens Noel 9
Tristan Thompson 6 Free Throws Made Jahlil Okafor 3
Matthew Dellavedova 2 Steals T.J. McConnell 2
Kyrie Irving 1 Blocks Nerlens Noel 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Cleveland 95 38.9 9-32 16-23 20 51 2 9 11
Philadelphia 85 45.5 6-18 9-19 22 48 7 6 19
Upcoming Games
  • Philadelphia will play their next game at home against Chicago. The 76ers have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .111 after a loss.
  • Cleveland will play their next game on the road against Dallas. The Cavaliers have a W/L % of .808 after a win and .556 after a loss.