SALT LAKE CITY -- NBA All-Star Sunday was not all that much different from any other game night at the Delta Center: John Stockton passed, Karl Malone scored and the home team won.
Malone scored 28 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Utah Jazz teammate Stockton contributed 15 assists and seven rebounds Sunday night, leading the West to a 135-132 overtime victory over the East in the 43rd NBA All-Star Game.
'Give (Jazz) Coach (Jerry) Sloan credit, I just stole his plays,' said Phoenix Suns Coach Paul Westphal, who guided the West, calling a lot of plays for Malone and Stockton.
The two were named Co-Most Valuable Players, marking just the second time in All-Star history that the award was shared. Elgin Baylor of Minnesota and Bob Pettit of St. Louis won the award in 1959.
Stockton dished out eight assists in the first quarter alone, one shy of the single-quarter record of nine, set by Stockton himself in 1989.
'These guys are good,' Westphal said of the Jazz duo. 'They would have won the MVP if the game wasn't here. Stockton is the best point guard and Malone is maybe the best power forward. The people in Utah were rooting for them, and that may have helped them play their best, but they would have been MVPs no matter where the game was.'
The two are in their eighth season playing together, during which time Malone has averaged 26 points per game and Stockton has passed for more than 12 assists a game. The question has been raised whether Malone would have as many points without Stockton's pinpoint passing and whether Stockton's passing would seem as sharp without Malone's strong hands catching the ball and his unstoppable post-up moves.
'I'll throw out a country slang you city slickers might not understand... you can't have the chicken without the egg,' Malone said.
San Antonio Spurs center added 19 points for the West, including two free throws in the closing seconds that helped seal the victory.
Michael Jordan led the East with 30 points. Mark Price of Cleveland, who won the 3-point shooting contest Saturday night, scored 19 points for the East and made an All-Star record six 3-pointers in nine attempts. Shaquille O'Neal of the Orlando Magic, the first rookie to start in an All-Star Game since Michael Jordan in 1985, scored 14 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
The game, normally a showcase for the league's best players' offensive skills, featured a surprising amount of tough defense, especially early on. Three times in the first quarter the teams could not get a shot off before the 24-second clock ran out.
'I think there was better defense played than in a lot of the games we've been playing in lately,' Malone said. 'It was definitely really competitive. I think the guys just felt the intensity picking up. The guys just stepped up and really wanted to win. It was really competitive.'
Stockton scored 4 of his 9 points in overtime and Dan Majerle and Charles Barkley of the Phoenix Suns each sank key 3-point baskets in the extra session. Majerle's 3-pointer gave the West the lead for good at 124-123 and Stockton scored on a drive to push the lead to 126-123.
After New York Knicks center Patrick Ewing grabbed the rebound of Detroit guard Isiah Thomas's missed jumper and scored, Stockton nailed a jumper and then fed Charles Barkley for a 3-pointer that pushed the West's lead to 131-125 with 1:28 to go.
Scottie Pippen stole an inbounds pass and hit Ewing for an open jumper from the free-throw line, cutting the lead to 131-127 with 1:15 to play.
Jordan swiped the ball from Barkley, but missed a pull-up jumper and after Pippen fouled Dan Majerle and the Phoenix Suns forward hit both free throws.
Jordan kept the East's hopes alive when he drilled a 3-pointer from the left corner over the outstretched arms of Stockton, but Robinson hit two of four free throws in the final 14 seconds to put the game out of reach.
The East forced overtime on a 15-foot jumper by Ewing with eight seconds left in regulation. Ewing was wide open after taking a pass from Jordan.
'When I hit those shots at the end of the game I was just in the right place at the right time,' Ewing said. 'Michael was able to get the ball to me and I was able to hit the shots.'
'It seemed like a comfortable lead at the end of the game, but it evaporated,' Stockton said. 'With the kind of players out on the floor, particularly Michael Jordan...I don't think any lead is safe.'
Tim Hardaway of Golden State missed a foul line jumper in the final second that would have won the game for the West in regulation.
The All-Star Game went to overtime for the fifth time and the first since 1987. The East leads the all-time series 27-16.
