NEW YORK — Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook scored 41 points, leading the Western Conference to a 163-158 victory over the Eastern Conference in the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden.
Westbrook came within one point of Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star Game record set in 1962, when the Hall of Fame center played for the Philadelphia 76ers. Westbrook made 16 of 28 shots, including five of nine from behind the 3-point arc, and was selected the game’s Most Valuable Player.
Westbrook did set the record for most points in a half, scoring 27 before halftime. He eclipsed the mark set by Glen Rice in 1997 and matched by Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving in last season’s game in New Orleans.
Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James led the East with 30 points, while Houston Rockets guard James Harden added 29 points for the West, which won for the fourth time in five seasons.
The game featured the most combined points (321) in All-Star history. Sixteen players scored in double figures, and the teams took a combined 263 shots.
For the West, Portland Trail Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge contributed 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting. For the East, Atlanta Hawks forward Kyle Korver added 21 points, all on 3-pointers.
New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony received a nice hand from the crowd before the game. In possibly his last game of the season, he totaled 14 points on 6-of-20 shooting. Anthony might soon undergo knee surgery.
A nifty layup that resulted in a trip to the foul line by Irving forged a 148-148 tie with 4:19 remaining. Harden then executed a crossover move on James before hitting a step back 3-pointer from the left wing, giving the West a 151-148 edge. The East never caught up again.
Westbrook reached 39 points with a 3-pointer that made it 158-151 with 2:22 remaining, and finished off his night with two foul shots with 1.3 seconds left.
The first quarter featured nine dunks and 13 3-pointers as the West took a 47-36 lead. The East held an 18-16 edge after James knocked down consecutive 3-pointers.
The West scored the next 12 points on two 3-pointers by Aldridge and 3-pointers by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and Harden. Korver knocked down three straight 3-pointers to get the East to within 39-32, but Westbrook scored six points in the final 91 seconds including a two-handed dunk at the buzzer.
Westbrook continued his show by scoring 11 of the West’s first 13 points of the second quarter. He had three straight 3-pointers and another thunderous dunk, and the West opened a 60-42 lead.
Westbrook’s layup after five straight offensive rebounds by the West extended the lead to 67-49 and set the record for points in a half.
The East cut the deficit to 83-82 at halftime after Irving sank a 3-pointer with 25 seconds left.
Harden scored 15 first-half points. James paced the East with 22 points in the opening two quarters.
NOTES: Sunday marked the fifth time that New York hosted the All-Star Game. It also hosted the game in 1954, 1955, 1968 and 1998. … Toronto G Kyle Lowry and Washington G John Wall were first-time starters. It was the first time that the East’s starting backcourt consisted of first-time starters since Allen Iverson (Philadelphia) and Eddie Jones (Charlotte) got the nod in 2000. … The Warriors had two starters in the game for the first time since 1967, when Rick Barry and Nate Thurmond combined for 54 points in the Cow Palace near San Francisco. … Miami F Chris Bosh is the third player in NBA history to be a five-time All Star with two different teams. The others are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Milwaukee and Los Angeles Lakers) and Kevin Garnett (Minnesota and Boston). … Former Knicks play-by-play broadcaster Marv Albert called his 20th All-Star Game.