NBA All-Star Game 2016 Breaks Record for Most Points Scored
February 15, 2016
The 2016 NBA All-Star Game dished out a shootout on Sunday, setting the record for most combined points with 369, according to ESPN Stats & Info. That total surpassed the previous high marks of 321 and 318 set in 2015 and 2014, respectively.
The West defeated the East 196-173.
Here is a look at some of the top scorers:
2016 NBA All-Star Game | |||
West Player | Points | East Player | Points |
Russell Westbrook | 31 | Paul George | 41 |
Stephen Curry | 26 | John Wall | 22 |
Anthony Davis | 24 | DeMar DeRozan | 18 |
Source: NBA.com |
Paul George set an All-Star Game record with nine three-pointers, per ESPN Stats & Info. He finished with 41 points, just one point shy of Wilt Chamberlain's record set in 1962, per SportsCenter's Twitter account.
Western Conference head coach Gregg Popovich was incredibly impressed with George's performance in his first season back after suffering a gruesome leg injury:
Indiana Pacers @PacersGregg Popovich talks #PaulGeorge: "To come back and play at that level athletically, it just stuns me... It’s great that he’s back."
Russell Westbrook, however, was named MVP, becoming the first player ever to individually win the honors in consecutive All-Star Games, per 120 Sports:
120 Sports @120SportsRussell Westbrook becomes first player in NBA history to individually win #AllStarGame MVP back to back years. https://t.co/rAaYXPBVTh
The West broke a more dated record with its performance in the second quarter, per NBA.com/Stats:
NBA.com/Stats @nbastatsWith 52P in 2Q the West set a record for pts in a quarter (50, West, 1970) + pts in a half w/ 92 (89, West, '14): https://t.co/16dloA8mdW
And its 92 points were the most by a team in a first half as well, per Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
Chris Paul did his part with a game-high nine assists in the first half, which put him well on his way to exceeding his average of 12.9 per All-Star Game in his previous nine appearances, per NBA.com/Stats. He ended the night with 16 assists.
As ESPN noted on Twitter, the defensive efforts weren’t on prominent display:
ESPN @espnSo far, not much defense. The West and the East combined for an All-Star Game record 182 points in the first half. https://t.co/H7CQOEkGfu
Here is a look at George driving the lane completely uncontested, courtesy of the NBA:
NBA @NBA#PaulGeorge breaks down the Ole defense & finishes with the flush on TNT! #NBAScratchreel https://t.co/AAUhaPkcog
George had 14 points in the first quarter for the East and was 4-of-7 from downtown.
One of the few defensive highlights came from Kobe Bryant, who surpassed Michael Jordan with his 38th career All-Star Game steal, per ESPN Stats & Info.
The All-Star Game is every bit an exhibition with the loose style of play and general lack of defensive effort. It’s still fun, though, to see the superstars light up the scoreboard.
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