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NBA sophomores defeat rookies 122-116
2009-02-14
PHOENIX - Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant scored a Rookie Challenge-record 46 points to lead the NBA's sophomores to a 122-116 victory over the rookies on Friday night. Durant shattered the record of 36 set by Phoenix's Amare Stoudemire as a sophomore in 2004. Durant helped hold off a late charge by the rookies with a three-point play, an emphatic dunk and two free throws in the final minutes. Michael Beasley of Miami led the rookies with 29 points. Oft-injured Portland center Greg Oden was a late scratch with a sore left knee after bumping into Golden State's Corey Maggette on Thursday night. Though he was drafted two years ago, Oden was a member of the rookie team because he missed last season with injuries. The sophomore squad has won the last seven in the game designed to showcase some of the league's bright young talent during its All-Star weekend festivities. The rookies closed to 119-116 on a jumper by O.J. Mayo with 11 seconds left. But Durant made two free throws to push the lead back to five. "I approached it like a regular game," Durant said. "I wanted to go out and have fun. Fortunately my shots were going down." A lot of shots were successful in the procession of uncontested layups and wide-open 3-pointers. In the first of two 20-minute halves, the sophomores shot 68.4 percent from the floor, including 63.6 percent from beyond the arc. The rookies lagged at an almost embarrassing 52.6 percent from the field, and 40 percent from 3-point range, but still led 61-58 at intermission. Each bucket brought shrieks from thousands of pink-clad schoolchildren in prime seats in the lower bowl of U.S. Airways Center. "It is one of the bigger stages," Durant said before the game. "We just want to do it justice by coming out and playing hard." Durant played hard from the start. He hit 17 of 25 shots from the floor, 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, and made all eight of his free throws. Durant also tied for the team lead with seven rebounds. Durant was no ballhog. On a two-on-none breakaway in the second half, the crowd roared in anticipation as Durant dribbled toward the bucket. But Durant flicked the ball off the backboard to the 6-foot Aaron Brooks, who caught the pass but missed the jam. Brooks may have been blinded by Durant's Day-Glo orange high-tops, easily the game's most dazzling fashion statement. The only thing brighter was a canary vest worn by rookies assistant coach Dwyane Wade, who otherwise looked like a professor in his spectacles, bow tie and gray suit. Wade served as an assistant to rookies coach Kurt Rambis, while Dwight Howard assisted sophomores coach John Kuester. The teams wore jerseys -- white for the sophomores, purple for the rookies -- designed by 18-year-old Tim Ahmed from East Meadow, N.Y. It was the first time a fan-designed jersey has ever been worn during an NBA game or event; in the past, rookies and sophomores wore their regular team jerseys. The game was more about having fun than actual competition. But Beasley said he came to win. "It is not cool when you lose," he said before the game. "I like to be the cool guy. Cool guys don't lose. I will play hard." There was plenty of good-natured showboating. Rookie guard Russell Westbrook dunked and then bobbed his head at Durant, his Oklahoma City teammate. When Durant hung on the rim after an emphatic dunk early in the second half, Beasley signaled for a technical foul. The officials simply smiled.
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