The Eastern Conference finally stopped Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin — then stopped their losing streak at the NBA All-Star game.
Kyrie Irving had 31 points and 14 assists and was voted the game’s MVP, Carmelo Anthony made an All-Star record eight 3-pointers and scored 30 points, and the East rallied for a 163-155 victory over the West on Sunday night.
“It’s a great honor,” Irving said. “We had a few MVPs. Everyone out here today is an MVP.”
Durant and Griffin each finished with 38 points, four shy of Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star game record. But the East scored the final 10 points to pull out a game it trailed by 18.
Irving scored 15 points in the fourth quarter as the East ended a three-game losing streak. LeBron James had 22 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
“The superstars of our league were just telling us to compete on every play,” Irving said. “Trying to play as much defense as possible. You know, sticking to our game plan. We had a game plan going in and we executed.”
Griffin shot 19 of 23, while Durant finished with 10 rebounds and six assists.
But the West was shut out after Durant’s 3-pointer gave it a 155-153 lead with 1:59 left. Indiana’s Paul George made three free throws, Anthony nailed his final 3-pointer, and James scored to make it 161-155. George closed it out with two more free throws and finished with 18 points.
The battle everyone was looking forward to seeing was Kevin Durant taking on LeBron James, but the real battle turned out to be which one of the two Eastern Conference all-stars — Carmelo Anthony or Kyrie Irving — would take home all-star MVP honours.
Anthony, the Knicks star who spent the weekend answering questions about whether he will even be a Knick past this season, set an all-star record hitting eight three-pointers for a 30 point-night, but wound up second fiddle to Irving.
The Cleveland point guard, a somewhat dubious pick by the fans to start, wound up with an East-high 31 points and a game-high 14 assists in leading his team to a 163-155 win, snapping a three-game winning streak for the Western Conference.
James, who finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, gave the MVP pick his stamp of approval.
Source: Yahoosports