Jordan Brand Classic 2015: Score, Results, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

The West team just barely edged out the East, 118-116, in the 2015 Jordan Brand Classic on Friday night inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. 

In keeping with the All-Star motif, defense came at a premium in the first half. The West led 61-47 at halftime. It's worth noting that the teams were only playing with 20-minute halves.

Once the second half began, though pride started taking over. Nobody wanted to be shown up on national television, and bragging rights were on the line. This was an opportunity for some of the best players in the country to prove themselves.

The East trailed for much of the second frame until Isaiah Briscoe hit a step-back three-pointer to tie the game at 103-103. The fight over the lead continued for a bit until the West went ahead 113-109 with a little over a minute left after a bucket underneath from Malik Beasley. From there, the West held on for the win.

Of course, the final result takes a back seat to the individual performances from some of the game's biggest names.

Plenty of current NBA stars have played in the Jordan Brand Classic, and it's a near certainly that this year's edition featured a few future All-Stars as well. Those taking part in the event was basically a who's who of blue-chip recruits. Jaylen Brown, Stephen Zimmerman, Skal Labissiere and Cheick Diallo, in addition to Briscoe and Beasley, were just a small handful of those involved.

No star shone more brightly than Diallo. According to 247Sports' composite rankings, he's the No. 2 power forward in the country, and since he remains undecided, Friday's game was a chance for him to impress potential schools one more time.

He finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds, taking home co-MVP honors.

ESPN's Jeff Borzello feels that games like the Jordan Brand Classic are the perfect showcase for somebody with Diallo's skill set:

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman was particularly impressed with how Diallo dominated without having to dive deep into his bag of tricks:

Gary Bedore of KUSports.com made the case that the Kansas Jayhawks are the place for Diallo at the next level:

Allonzo Trier was the other co-MVP of the game. His 28 points led all scorers, and more impressively, he went 8-of-10 from the field, per Slam Magazine:

Scout.com's Evan Daniels and The Salt Lake Tribune's Tony Jones praised Trier's aggressiveness when it comes to finding his own shot:

The Arizona Wildcats congratulated their incoming recruit on a job well done:

A lot of eyes were on Labissiere, whom ESPN's Chad Ford reported a few days ago is already considered among the top players for the 2016 draft. Scout.com's Rob Harrington believes that Labissiere's jumper is what help separates him from the other top big men in the 2015 class:

Harrington added that the talented center is still a bit raw but possesses an incredibly ceiling:

Kentucky Wildcats fans will likely see some version of the highlight below quite often in Lexington, per ESPN College Basketball:

"

Future Villanova Wildcat Jalen Brunson finds Kentucky big Skal Labissiere. #NEXTvsNEXT https://t.co/WauqgDHM5k

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) April 18, 2015"

Labissiere likely won over a few fans during an interview on the ESPN2 broadcast when he was asked what his goals for his basketball career, per Kyle Tucker of The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Kentucky:

After watching the 2015 Jordan Brand Classic, it's hard not to get excited about next year in college basketball, even if it is months away.

It is a bit of a letdown watching the best freshman in the country leave for the NBA after a season, but there's always a new crop of stars ready to take their places. Labissiere, Diallo and Trier will be among the diaper dandies to watch in 2015-16.