76ers race past Cavs behind 33 from Maxey

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tyrese Maxey made five 3-pointers and scored 33 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to their fifth straight win, 125-119 over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night.

The 76ers improved to 4-0 with James Harden in the lineup. Harden had 25 points and 11 assists. Joel Embiid added 22 points and nine rebounds.

Maxey, though, stole the show.

The second-year guard out of Kentucky tore through the Cavaliers in the second half and seemingly turned Embiid and Harden into bystanders. His best sequence came in the fourth. Maxey hit a 3 that gave the Sixers a one-point lead, then he drained a 3 off a pass from Harden on the break that made it 110-106 and had the Philly crowd going wild.

Harden held his arms high and beckoned the crowd to get even louder.

Harden, who had at least 20 points and 10 assists for the third time in four games, picked up his third foul at 8:32 in the second quarter and took only four shots through three. Yet, he still had 18 points (and nine assists) on the strength of two 3s and 8 of 8 from the free-throw line.

He’s dynamic pairing with Embiid was expected. But his presence has turned Maxey into a knock-off Allen Iverson since his arrival.

Maxey made 76ers fans -- and, frankly, the 76ers -- forget about Ben Simmons with his play this season.

He turned it on in the third quarter and brought the Sixers back from long-range, attacking the net, and even with a nifty pass off the break to Embiid.

Maxey hit two 3s and scored 14 points in the quarter to bring the Sixers back from 21 points down to grab a lead late in the third. He buried a 3, then came back right with a 12-footer to make it a three-point deficit. The speedy guard tossed the ball to Embiid for the easy bucket that sent the