Durant, friends win it for West
Scoring marks fall in droves
ORLANDO — For the West, it was the Kevin Durant-russell Westbrook show. For the East, it was the Lebron James-dwyane Wade show.
Two players from the Oklahoma City Thunder. Two from the Miami Heat. Potential NBA Finalists going at it in the 2012 NBA All-star Game.
Durant, Westbrook and their Western Conference teammates got the best of James, Wade and the Eastern Conference 152-149 Sunday, the West’s second win in a row.
Durant won his first All-star MVP Award, scoring 36 points and grabbing seven rebounds.
“It’s just exciting to be named an All-star, but to step it up another level and become MVP, it’s only something that as a kid you dream about,” Durant said.
Durant, who made a run at Wilt Chamberlain’s 50-year-old All-star Game scoring record of 42 points, had a tough time containing his joy. “Man, words can’t describe it,” he said.
Westbrook had 21 points, eight on spectacular dunks, which were another highlight of the game.
“They’re both great kids that work extremely hard,” Thunder coach and West coach Scott Brooks said. “They’re real competitive. They’re always about the team. . . . They’ve taken us to a good level, but we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
James also had 36 points (including a record-tying six three-pointers) and added seven assists and six rebounds. Wade had the third tripledouble in All-star Game history with 24 points, 10 assists and 10 boards.
The East trailed by 21 points early in the third quarter of a game then lacking defense and competitiveness. But as is sometimes the case with player pride in an exhibition, the contest heated up.
“Being a competitor, no matter All-star Game or not, you don’t want to get blown out,” James said.
The East cut the lead to 150-149 and had a chance to lead with less than 20 seconds to play. Blake Griffin, who had 22 points, won it with his defense, stealing James’ pass.
“I can’t turn the ball over like that,” James said. “I let my team down. . . . Definitely wish I could have that one back.”
Kobe Bryant scored 27 points, moving ahead of Hall of Famer Mi- chael Jordan as the All-star Game’s all-time leading scorer with 271. Bryant started the game in fourth and passed Oscar Robertson and Kareem Abdul-jabbar in the first half.
The points and dunks — there were 45 — came fast and forceful. Where has this scoring been during the regular season? Of course, defense is played then.
The teams set a record for points scored in a non-overtime game, surpassing the record set last year, when the West won 148-143.
The West set an All-star record for points in a half with 88 in the first, passing the previous mark of 87 set by the West in 1989. The teams also tied the record for points in a half (157) in the first.
Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard played gracious host AllStar weekend, throwing parties, gushing over the city and directing focus to the event. Howard, who can opt out of his contract after this season and is the subject of trade talks, did his best to make sure the weekend was not about him.
During a timeout in the first quarter, Howard sat down next to Magic owner Rich Devos. But Howard mostly was irrelevant, totaling nine points and 10 rebounds.
Even though Oklahoma City and Miami have the best records at 27-7, Durant didn’t entertain the idea of a possible Finals matchup. He said, “You’re taking (that) down the line, man. It’s too early for that.”