Team LeBron was crowned winners of the 2019 NBA All-Star Game, beating Team Giannis by a final score of 178-164.
Team Giannis got the game off to a strong start with 53 points in the first quarter. They entered halftime with a 95-82 lead, but Damian Lillard, Bradley Beal and Klay Thompson caught fire in an explosive third quarter that saw Team LeBron outscore Team Giannis 50-36.
That trio combined to make eight of Team LeBron's 12 made 3-pointers in the period.
#TeamLeBron SPLASHES 1⃣2⃣ threes in the 3rd Q! 💦
— 2019 NBA All-Star (@NBAAllStar) February 18, 2019
Watch on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/OdMsgrZOOA
Team LeBron then took control in the fourth quarter with Kevin Durant leading the charge to the tune of 11 points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from the field and 3-for-3 from 3-point range.
Team Giannis, meanwhile, went ice cold in the fourth, shooting 34.2 percent from the field and 26.1 percent from 3-point range. Stephen Curry in particular struggled down the stretch, but he capped off his night with a highlight dunk in the closing seconds.
Steph went with the reverse off the bounce to finish the #NBAAllStar game! pic.twitter.com/1tR0zdQI8e
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 18, 2019
Durant finished the game with a team-high 31 points and was named MVP for his efforts. It's the second time he's been named MVP of the All-Star Game.
The only player to score more than Durant was Giannis Antetokounmpo, who put up 38 points on a heavy dosage of dunks.
OH MY 🔨🔨🔨#GiannisAntetokounmpo | #KiaAllStarMVP pic.twitter.com/6TtuOmCMO4
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) February 18, 2019
Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks teammate Khris Middleton was tied with Paul George for the second-leading scorer on Team Giannis with 20 points. Klay Thompson was the second-leading scorer on Team LeBron with 20 points, followed by Kawhi Leonard and LeBron James, who had 19 points each.
The spotlight now shines on the Chicago Bulls, who will host the 2020 NBA All-Star Game.
