MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NEW YORK, NY — This is a continuation of the first, second, and third quarter recaps of the 64th NBA All-Star Game (#NBAAllStarNYC). After starting the game, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson entered the fourth quarter on the bench. Curry had 15 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists in 21 minutes of play and Thompson 7 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists in 20 minutes of play.
4TH QUARTER: Kerr Closes Out The Game With CP3
The second unit led by Russell Westbrook‘s 36 points played up until the 5:22 mark of the 4th quarter, but Chris Paul stayed in the game when West head coach brought back the starters, except for Thompson. In the front court was LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMarcus Cousins, although Marc Gasol replaced Cousins with 4:19 to go in the game.
Curry got a key steal after Kyrie Irving pirouetted in the left corner against Curry, eventually driving the baseline and meeting both Curry and Gasol at the rim. But on the ensuing transition, Curry missed the pull-up three-pointer from the left elbow. The score was still 146-145, West, with 4:36 to play.
Russell Westbrook, who made a strong case for MVP and come in for Aldridge for a smaller lineup, hit his 37th, 38th, and 39th points on a three-pointer from the left elbow that seemed to be the nail in the coffin for the East, giving the West a 158-149 lead after Paul had connected on two straight buckets that followed a James Harden trey that had made it 151-148, West.
Another three by Harden gave the West a 161-153 bulge. The East couldn’t hit anything from deep in return, with Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, and Anthony again missing treys on successive offensive rebounds. Pau Gasol eventually got a putback bucket to make it 161-158, West, but with just 2.8 seconds remaining.
Curry couldn’t find anyone open on the ensuing inbound and called timeout to advance the ball to halfcourt. He got the ball on the side-out inbound, but the East wasn’t in the penalty yet.
Paul took the inbound next and bypassed Curry with 1.9 seconds remaining, as Kyrie Irving streaked by on defense, instead opting for Westbrook, who nailed two more free throws for a grand total of 41 points.
The East inbounded and didn’t shoot, ending the game with a West win, 163-158.
Curry ended the game with 15 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists, going 6-for-16 from the floor and just 3-for-10 from downtown. He also had a game-high 5 turnovers.
Thompson didn’t play in the 4th quarter as Kerr opted to go with the veteran Paul and the deserving Westbrook, who garnered MVP honors. Klay finished with 7 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, just 2-for-11 field and 1-for-9 beyond the arc.
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