Holly MacKenzie - Raptors.com
It was over when: Russell Westbrook made two free throws with a second remaining to secure a 163-158 victory for the Western Conference.
The game-changer: Westbrook finished with a game-high 41 points, one shy of Wilt Chamberlain’s All-Star Game record of 42. Westbrook set the All-Star record for points in a half when he scored 27 first-half points in 11 minutes.
Lowry’s 1st All-Star experience: Eastern Conference starter Kyle Lowry played 26 minutes and scored 10 points on 4-for-13 shooting. Lowry dished a team-high eight assists to go with three rebounds and four steals.
The Toronto highlight: After an early layup from Lowry, Portland’s LaMarcus Aldridge asked him where the dunk was. Lowry’s next basket was a put-back dunk off of a miss from Washington’s John Wall. During his post-game press conference, Lowry said it was the first time he had dunked in a game since 2009.
By the #’s:
26…minutes for Lowry in the game, trailing just LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and John Wall for minutes played on the Eastern Conference roster.
1…killer alley-oop feed to LeBron James for a gorgeous reverse dunk.
10…assists total from Lowry. Los Angeles Clippers point guard Chris Paul had a game-high 15 assists for the Western Conference.
They said it…
“I went to two of them, my rookie year and my second year and I said I'll never come back until I was an all-star. I happened to be one this year.” - Kyle Lowry on attending previous All-star games as a fan during his NBA career
“It was great. I missed too many shots that I thought I should make but I had fun, that's all I care about. My family up here, so it was cool.” - Lowry on the game being held at Madison Square Garden
“I just had fun, enjoyed it. Soak in the moment. It’s a big moment. Enjoy it.” - Lowry on his first All-Star experience
“My dunk. By far my dunk.” - Lowry on his favourite play of the game
Up Next: All-Star 2016 will be held in Toronto. “It's going to be a show,” Lowry said. “The city is amazing, the fans are amazing, the culture is amazing. It will be an unbelievable time.”