The Team USA had the upper hand in all the four quarters of the game, starting with a 40-30 lead in the first.
All roads led to the Spectrum Centre, here in the Down Town, on Friday night, at the beginning of the NBA All Star weekend.
And it turned out to be a great start where the young champions of Team USA downed Team World in the Rising Stars Challenge contest in a one-sided game in front of a packed house.
In the process, USA avenged their previous successive defeats with a handsome margin of 161-144.
It was a perfect curtain raiser before All Star Game contest which will feature some of the current legends of NBA on Sunday night.
Before the superstars take the centre-stage in the big match, the NBA’s emerging stars shone bright putting up an attractive display of basketball combining speed with agility and intelligence.
The Team USA had the upper hand in all the four quarters of the game, starting with a 40-30 lead in the first.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma walked away with the MVP honors with 35 points for Team USA while Boston Celtics’s Jayson Tatum added 30 points.
For the Team World, honourary coached by superstar Dirk Nowitzki, it was Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons who led the way 28 points on 14-for-17 shooting and six assists. Rookie Luka Doncic of Dallas Mavericks added 13 points.
“There was a lot of great players out there, All-Stars, we’re all young rising stars in this league. Obviously, it’s an exhibition, but it’s always better to have bragging rights whenever you can,” said an elated Kuzma after the game.
Asked about his mindset, while heading into the game, Kuzma said: “Just to play hard, give back to the game. I played in this game last year, and I was really lackadaisical, and I didn’t want to do that again.”
On court in the post match, Kuzma had said the bonus of $25,000 to each member of the winning team was a part of his motivation. But was extra money a motivation? “Yes,” he said. And they thought of it in the second timeout.
“I broke the huddle by saying “bonus, one, two, three. So there you go.”
All in all it turned out to be an entertaining night for fans who thronged in good numbers to watch the future superstars play together.
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