Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Steve Kerr and the rest of the Warriors coaching staff went home winners on Sunday night, as the Western Conference All-Stars defeated the East 161-158 in the 2015 NBA All-Star Game. Russell Westbrook scored 41 points for the West and was named All-Star game MVP, but both Warriors players made their presence felt on the game as well.
Starting alongside James Harden, LaMarcus Aldridge and Marc Gasol for the West, Curry and Thompson made the Warriors the only franchise in the league with two starters in this year’s game. In a contest in which historically very little defense is actually played, the free-flowing setup allowed the Dubs’ backcourt to showcase the skills that have defined their growing reputations. Curry accrued six points, three assists and four reboundss in the first 8:32 of the game, while Thompson supplemented his 0-for-4 shooting by dishing out four assists in the first 7:01. Aided by some impressive dribbling and assists, particularly from Curry, the West carried a 47-36 lead into the second quarter.
Determined to not let the game get out of reach early on, the East used the second quarter to climb back in it, but not before Curry assisted on one of the best highlights of the game:
After that Curry to Nowitzki alley-oop (and hilarious ensuing celebration), the East would go on a 19-8 run over the final 3:13 of the quarter to trim the deficit to a single point and trail the West 83-82 heading into halftime. At the break, Curry had 10 points, seven rebound and four assists in 14:10, while Thompson tallied two points, three rebounds and four assists in 12:39. Russell Westbrook, on his way to securing his first All-Star Game MVP, notched 27 points in the first half, setting the new NBA record for most points scored in a single half of the All-Star Game.
Both of the Splash Brothers would start the second half and play the first 7:04 of the third quarter. Thompson continued to contribute in several areas of the stat sheet, accruing five points, one rebound and two assists over that span in what turned out to be his final playing time of the game. Curry also scored five points over the same segment, including quite possibly the play of the game right before they were subbed out:
The two sides would head into the fourth and final quarter with the score tied at 122, setting up for a competitive finish. Curry re-entered the game with 5:22 remaining and the West up 146-143. He’d gather two more rebounds and add another assist to his overall tally, as the West edged out the East in the final minutes to secure a 161-158 victory. In total, Curry notched 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 26:36, while his backcourt mate Thompson added seven points, four rebounds and six assists in 19:43. To his credit, Steve Kerr accomplished his goal of giving every one of his players an opportunity, as every member of the West team played at least 10 minutes in the contest.
The All-Star Game win became the icing on the cake of the Warriors’ All-Star Weekend experience, as the team will return to the Bay Area with multiple victories on its belt, including Stephen Curry’s winning performance in Saturday night’s Foot Locker Three-Point contest. In a season in which the Warriors have been sticking out for all the right reasons, they made sure the trend continued amongst the league’s biggest and brightest stars at NBA All-Star Weekend.