体坛英语新闻：Paul shines as West beats East at NBA All-Star

HOUSTON, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul bagged 20 points and 15 assists to take home the All-Star MVP trophy after he help the West defeat East 143-138 here on Sunday.

NBA commissioner David Stern awarded Paul the trophy. "Pretty special," said Paul about his first All-Star MVP reward in his career. "It's something I've never done."

"It's something that I definitely coming into the game wasn't trying to achieve or thinking that it might even be possible."

Paul averaged 12.4 assists, highest in NBA history, in his five All-Star shows. He totaled 62 assists, still 65 shy of Magic Johnson's 127 All-Star assisting record.

It was also an unforgettable night for Durant. The current top scorer in NBA buried 30 points in Sunday's show, averaging 28.8 points to set a new NBA All-Star record. He also became the first NBA player to get at least 30 points in three straight All-Star games.

"Blake Griffin and Dwight cleared the paint off for me, and I have a point guard like CP (Chris Paul) and Russ (Russel Westbrook)," said Durant about his achievement.

"The point guards made it easy for me."

Six players in the West team harvested double figures, as Blake Griffin made a couple of his brand dunks to contribute 19 points.

It was the third straight time for the West team to beat the East team. Carmelo Anthony topped the team with 26 points, Dwyane Wade had 21 and LeBron James took home 19.

"It's a fourth quarter game," said Erik Spoelstra, coach of the East team. "It's decided at the end, so it was a lot of fun."

The fourth quarter ended with a one-on-one challenge between Kobe Braynt and James, two great active stars in NBA history. The two combated for almost five minutes, trying their best effort both offensively and defensively.

"That's what those guys live for," said Spoelstra. "What we were all hoping for was at least this game would be close down the stretch, so there would be some compelling basketball and there definitely was for the fans."

The game started with Griffin's 4 points. Durant and Paul each made one beyond the arch to improve the score to 10-2. Durant made seven points in the first quarter to help the West team top their opponent 31-26.

However, the team with Bosh, James and Anthony wasn't to be easily beaten. The three big scorer carried the team on their shoulder, and the East team climbed up in the second quarter, levelling the score to 50-50 at the end of the first half.

Durant improve his score to 19 in the first two quarters, and Paul sent as many as nine assists in his 14:05 minute play on court.

Both team tried hard on defensive side in the second half. Paul continued adding up his assists, and the West moved a little faster than the East because of his steals and passes.

Durant converted a fast break chance to two points with 2:34 minute to play, extending the lead to 10 point. The East didn't get enough time to rally back, losing 5 points to their rival at the end.