76ers: Three Takeaways from Loss vs. Cavaliers

On Tuesday night, the Philadelphia 76ers fell to the Cleveland Cavaliers, what were the takeaways from their loss.

On Tuesday night, the Philadelphia 76ers played their final game of the in season tournament group stage as they hosted the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Cavaliers would come out the gate strong scoring 65 points in the first half in part due to large performances from Georges Niang, Jarrett Allen, and Darius Garland, while Philadelphia trailed due to their offensive struggling to keep up.

While the Sixers trailed, they managed to come back and force an overtime, as Philadelphia's offense would tighten up and shoot 41% from the field in the closing two quarters, with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey scored 11 points a piece in the fourth quarter.

Despite this redemption, Philadelphia would fall in overtime as Joel Embiid fouled out as he sent Garland to the free throw stripe, with Maxey missing the game-tying three pointer.

With their loss to the Cavaliers, the Sixers' wild card hopes fall into the hands of the Miami Heat, who have two more games in the in season tournament remaining, with their first falling on Wednesday against the New York Knicks.

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What were the takeaways?

The Sixers know how to comeback

Despite the Sixers dropping their in-season tournament finale, they made it closer than what it could've been.

After dropping their lead in the first quarter, the Sixers managed to find themselves at a 18 point deficit in the early parts of the third quarter, in which they would overcome by the end of regulation.

Their 57 point second half is where the comeback happened, with Maxey, Embiid, and Harris combining for 44 points in the second two closing quarters of regulation, while Danuel House Jr. put up five points from the bench.

Embiid's big defensive night

While the initial emphasis may fall onto the reigning MVP's huge night on the offensive end, putting up a huge 32 points, while also grabbing 13 boards for his side, his defensive efforts were even more important.

Embiid managed to record five blocks against the Cavaliers on Tuesday night, which surprisingly isn't a season high, having blocked six shots against the Portland Trailblazers earlier on in the season.

While his blocks may have been the key part of the story, his ten defensive rebounds were massive for the Sixers as they broke through Cleveland's 18 point lead.

The Cavaliers are still trouble without Mitchell

While the Cleveland went into Tuesday's match without their leading scorer, Donovan Mitchell, it didn't slow down their offense at all.

Darius Garland picked up the slack left by Mitchell's absence, dropping 32 points, which more than makes up for the 29 points that the former Utah Jazz guard averaged prior to his injury.

Jarrett Allen and Max Strus had notable performances for J.B. Bickerstaff's side, as the duo combined for 46 points.

Former Sixer George Niang made his return to the Wells Fargo Center felt, making two shots from down town, en route to a 12 point night against his former team, as he went off for eight points in the second quarter.