RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
CLEVELAND (AP) -- The NBA's best team -- record-wise -- so far this
season had its best night.
|  | | Sixers guard Allen Iverson muscles by the Cavaliers' Trajan Langdon in the second quarter Saturday. |
Allen Iverson scored most of his 27 points after Philadelphia's
big men had blown it open Saturday night and the 76ers rolled to a
112-78 victory over the cold-shooting Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Sixers began their longest road trip of the season -- five
games in eight days -- by needing only to play a half to put away
the Cavs, who missed 14 straight shots in the second quarter and
suffered their worst loss in Gund Arena history with a sellout
crowd on hand.
"I felt bad because they had a big house and we played our best
game of the year," Sixers coach Larry Brown said. "That was a
total team effort."
Brown wasn't the only one feeling sorry for the fans.
Cavs coach Randy Wittman didn't emerge from the locker room for
nearly a half hour after the game.
"I want to apologize to our fans with the display of our
effort," said Wittman, whose team dropped its fourth straight
after a 9-3 start. "Early success, we took it the wrong way and we
have to get that back. ... If guys can't handle that, guys won't
play. If we have to play five guys we will."
Iverson had 14 points in the third quarter and 16 in the second
half to pad his 23.1 scoring average. But it was the Sixers'
frontline of 7-foot-1 Matt Geiger, 6-10 jumping jack Theo Ratliff
and 7-foot Todd MacCullough who were "The Answer" for
Philadelphia.
The trio combined for 23 points in the second quarter when the
Sixers opened a 28-point lead. They also disrupted the Cavs'
offensive flow by contesting everything Cleveland threw up.
"Everybody that came in did a good job," said George Lynch,
"and the big guys took them out of their offense. We played a
flawless game."
Geiger added 15 points, MacCullough 14 and Ratliff had 12 and
seven blocks as the Sixers improved the NBA's best record to 14-2
and beat the Cavs for the seventh straight time.
"We would have beaten a lot of teams tonight the way we
played," Brown said.
For the second straight game at home the Cavs couldn't drop a
shot in the second quarter.
The Sixers, who hold opponents to a league-low 40.3 shooting
percentage from the floor, forced the Cavs to take some tough
shots, but Cleveland missed some easy ones, too.
Chris Gatling scored 13 points for the Cavs, who shot a
season-low 33 percent (30-for-90). The loss was also the second
worst at home.
"We had no emotion, no energy," said Gatling, who said Wittman
got everyone's attention during his postgame speech. "The meeting
was about motivation. Coach told us what we were doing wrong. We
know it."
After scoring just four points in the second period of a loss on
Tuesday against Boston, the Cavs went more than six minutes without
scoring in the second as they missed 14 shots in a row.
A sellout crowd of 20,562 lost interest early and in the third
quarter a few fans began chanting, "We need an offense!" as the
Cavs fired up bricks and turned the ball over.
"The me-me-me stuff got us in trouble," Wittman said. "We
didn't play smart. We totally got away from what got us nine wins.
When things get tough you can't splinter. We've lost the edge, that
nastiness."
When Iverson stole a pass and went in for an uncontested layup
to make it 91-54 with 10:33 left, many in the Gund Arena grabbed
their coats and headed for the exits. Iverson, too, was done for
the night less than two minutes later.
Leading by seven after one, the Sixers ripped off 17 straight
points during a 25-4 spurt to open the second quarter as the Cavs
missed six of their first 17 field-goal tries.
Amazingly, Iverson scored just two points during the spurt.
Instead, it was MacCullough, Ratliff and Geiger doing the damage
inside.
MacCullough didn't play in the first quarter but scored 11
points -- nine in the 17-0 spree -- in the second period as the
Sixers took a 58-39 lead at the half.
On two possessions, MacCullough outran the Cavs' big men down the
floor for easy layups.
Game notes
Cleveland's worst home loss came on Dec. 1, 1990, a 120-8
loss to Chicago. The Cavs' previous record home loss was 31 against
Seattle on Jan. 4, 1995. ... Philadelphia is off to its best start
since the Sixers won the NBA title in 1982-83. That season they
were 24-5 at the end of December. ... Ratliff got cut over the left
eye in the third quarter and got four stitches before returning.
... Cavs G Brevin Knight, activated on Friday for the first time
all season, sat out with an injured left ankle. ... Cavs F Lamond
Murray injured his right big toe in the fourth quarter and left the
game. X-rays were negative. ... The Sixers have won nine of the
last 13 against Cleveland after losing 22 of 23.
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NBA Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Cleveland Clubhouse
RECAPS
Atlanta 101
Milwaukee 94
Charlotte 94
Utah 89
Philadelphia 112
Cleveland 78
Orlando 95
New Jersey 74
New York 100
Minnesota 90
Miami 93
Washington 90
Portland 96
Houston 85
Denver 103
Seattle 92
Dallas 97
Golden State 78
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