Tari Phillips scored a team-high 18 points and had 11 rebounds to lead the West to an 81-65 win over the East on Sunday in the first ABL All-Star game.
Phillips, a 6-foot-3 center/forward for the Seattle Reign, also was named the game's MVP. She combined with Portland's Natalie Williams for a total of 26 rebounds as the West dominated the boards 70-34. Williams finished with 16 points, all in the second half.The West led by as much as 18 points in the first half, but with 3:21 left in the half, Columbus' Nikki McCray scored six points during an 11-3 run to pull the East to within seven at the break.
The East opened the second half with a 13-0 run, fueled by six more points from McCray, who finished with a game-high 20 points. The East got its first lead at 4:52 in the third quarter at 44-43 when Tonya Edwards of Columbus was fouled as she made a layup and then converted the foul for the three-point play.
Portland's Katie Steding tied it at 45-45 and teammate Michelle Marciniak pulled the West ahead for good by hitting two free throws with 5 minutes left in the third quarter.
Williams took over after that, scoring the next six points to help West pull away.
The game wasn't without controversy.
New England's Clarissa Davis-Wrightsil was ejected with about 3 minutes left in the game after she hit Seattle's Cindy Brown with an elbow to the head. The two were tied up going after a rebound. Brown suffered a concussion and was taken to a hospital for evaluation. Davis-Wrightsil had 17 points when she was ejected.
Jennifer Jacoby, of Portland, picked up $5,000 for winning the 3-point shooting contest. Phillips won a sport utility vehicle for her MVP award.