The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers, 118-112, at Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday.

The 76ers (37-19) moved to 22-8 at home and will enter the 2023 All-Star break in high spirits following this win against another Eastern contender, the Cavaliers (38-22), a team that fell to 13-16 when playing on the road. Philadelphia got off to a strong start and that was enough to get the job done, however, as the Sixers raced out to a 38-24 lead in the first quarter and later bolstered that to a 25-14 score in the second quarter, building a huge advantage with 24 minutes left to go. However, the Cavaliers played the second half with a different attitude, and it could be said the only lacked time to complete the comeback. Cleveland won the third quarter by a 32-24 score and the fourth one by a 42-31 score, but that was not enough to get the job done. The Sixers held on when it mattered the most, and they managed to escape with a win in what could easily be a preview of a potential Eastern Conference Finals come playoff time.

Joel Embiid led the way for the 76ers with 29 points and 14 rebounds, but he also added five assists and two steals. James Harden also chipped in with a double-double after recording 19 points and 12 assists, but he also had four rebounds. De’Anthony Melton had 17 points and four assists, and Tobias Harris posted 13 points. P.J. Tucker ended up with 10 points.

Donovan Mitchell led the way for the Cavaliers with 33 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Darius Garland had a strong game and posted 27 points with six boards, three steals and two rebounds. Jarrett Allen had 12 points, seven boards and four assists, and Evan Mobley sniffed a double-double after recording 23 points with nine rebounds. No other Cleveland player scored in double digits in this contest.