Shake Milton Erupts in Blowout Win Over Cavaliers

By Kevin McCormick, Sports Talk Philly Editor

The Sixers would take on the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night looking to end a two-game losing skid. They would also be looking to pick up their first win against this Cavs team as they had won the previous two matchups.

Behind a strong performance from the supporting cast, the Sixers would pick up a blowout victory. They would beat the Cavs by a final score of 114-94 and finish 4-2 on this season-long road trip.

Shake Milton would wind up being the star of the night for the Sixers. He would knock down some shots early and never look back. When all was said and done he would have a team-high 27 points in just 27 minutes of action.

What stood out most from Milton's performance was his three-point shooting. His shot has been up and down all season, but he would find the range in this one. Milton was spotting up all over the confidently stepping into shots from beyond the arc. He would end the game with five triples on just seven attempts.

Another Sixer who would catch fire in this game is Seth Curry. He would also step out and hit five threes en route to being the team's second-leading scorer with 19 points. Over this recent stretch of games, Curry has been less reluctant to pass up good looks and it would pay off against the Cavs.

Dwight Howard has had his struggles during this road trip but would put on a great performance to end things on a high note. He would rack up a double-double, scoring 18 points and grabbing 15 rebounds.

He had his lapses in the two games against the LA teams, but Howard reminded everyone tonight how impactful he can be when he remains locked in.

Lack of energy was a key area that hurt the Sixers in their last game against Denver, and they would not make the same mistake twice against the Cavaliers. The defense effort in this game compared to their last game would be a night and day all-around. As a team, they would grab 11 steals and block eight shots.

What was most impressive about this win is that they pulled it off even with subpar nights from Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris. Harris would finish with just 12 points in 15 minutes of action, having to sit a large part of this game due to foul trouble. Simmons was aggressive from the start but would struggle to get his shots to fall. He would end the night shooting 2-11 with five points.

With this win, the Sixers improve to 33-15 on the year and winners of five of their last seven games. They still remain half a game behind the Brooklyn Nets for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Looking ahead, the team will travel back to Philly for a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves. We could also potentially see Joel Embiid make his triumphant return to the lineup.

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