Wake Forest Athletics
Wednesday Morning Basketball Report
2/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2009
Chris Paul and Tim Duncan helped lead the Western Conference to a 146-119 rout of the Eastern Conference on Sunday, Feb. 15, at the 58th NBA All-Star Game in Phoenix, Ariz.
The only player to score a double-double in the All-Star Game, Paul totaled 14 points and shot 7-of-14 from the floor, in addition to recording a game-high 14 assists. Paul, who had missed four of the Hornets' last five games with a groin injury, added seven rebounds and three steals in 29 minutes of play.
Paul has now recorded a double-double performance in each of his All-Star appearances.
On Feb. 17, 2008, Paul came off the bench to orchestrate a third-quarter comeback but the West fell just short, losing 134-128. Paul again had a game-high 14 assists, to go with 16 points and four steals in front of a New Orleans' home crowd.
Paul's All-Star teammate the past two years and fellow former Demon Deacon, Duncan netted six points in 18 minutes at the 2009 NBA All-Star Game. He was 3-of-5 from the floor with three rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal.
Returning to regular-season action, last night's game between the New Orleans Hornets and Oklahoma City Thunder came down to the final seconds. Paul drove the lane and made a layup with only 2.7 seconds left in the game, propelling the Hornets to a 100-98 victory.
The Winston-Salem, N.C., native netted 21 points in the win. Paul was 9-of-18 shooting, including going 2-of-5 from behind the arc. He added eight assists, three steals and three rebounds.
Before the All-Star break, New Orleans lost at home to Boston, 89-77, on Wednesday. However, Paul was able to return to the starting lineup for the first time since Feb. 2. He played 31 minutes and went 6-of-15 from the floor for 13 points.
Paul currently leads the NBA in assists per game, steals per game, total assists and total steals.
The Hornets are now 31-20 and 3.5 games back in the Southwest Division. Tonight, they will host Orlando. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN at 8 p.m. ET.
The Southwest Division-leading San Antonio Spurs lost in overtime last night to the New York Knicks, 112-107, but Duncan continued to put up big numbers. He finished with 26 points on 8-of-16 shooting, with 15 rebounds and five assists.
In action last week at Toronto on Feb. 11, Duncan had another double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. He added seven helpers in the Spurs' 91-89 loss.
Duncan still ranks third in the NBA in double-doubles with 33. Paul is fourth with 31.
On Thursday, Duncan and the Spurs will play at 8 p.m. ET in Detroit. The game will be broadcast on TNT.
Staying in the Southwest Division, Josh Howard and the Dallas Mavericks have only played one game over the past week and are four games behind San Antonio with a record of 31-21.
Howard scored 17 points in the Mavs' 7-point loss to Boston on Feb. 12. He shot 6-of-19 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the line. He added three rebounds, two blocks, two assists and one steal before fouling out with 3:47 remaining in the game.
The Mavs will host New Jersey tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET.
For the Washington Wizards, Darius Songaila was able to start last Wednesday, Feb. 11, and play 29 minutes at Charlotte, after suffering an elbow injury in the game at Atlanta the previous night. He finished with six points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal in the Wizards' 101-89 loss to the Bobcats.
Last night, the Wizards hosted Minnesota and Songaila started again, finishing with 12 points. He went 5-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-2 from the free throw line in the Wizards' 111-103 win.
Songaila has converted on 13 consecutive free throw attempts dating back to Jan. 30.
He was also among the former Wake Forest men's basketball players honored at the halftime ceremony on Sat., Feb. 14, at the Joel Coliseum.
Songaila and the Wizards are back in action on Friday at New Jersey. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
