Kapono Defends 3-Point Shooting Crown

By Bruin Basketball Report

Bruin Jason Kapono defended his 3-Point Shooting crown on All-Star Saturday with a record tying final round of 25 points.

Kapono, currently with the NBA's Toronto Raptors, matched three-time winner Craig Hodges' mark of 25 set in 1986, hitting ten straight shots at one point.  He hit all five money balls, worth two points, in the deciding round of the competition.

Cleveland's Daniel Gibson, who made 11 three-pointers in the Rookie Challenge game, finished second with 17 points and Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki had 14 in the final round.  Nowitzki was a late-replacement for an injured Kobe Bryant.

Kapono, the NBA's best three-point shooter this season, came prepared for the competition with his silky-smooth delivery from outside.  He is shooting 51% (50-98) from beyond the arc for the Raptors this year.

In other All-Star Saturday festivities, Orlando's Dwight Howard thrilled the crowd with a series of the most creative dunks ever performed in the competition, including a dunk Howard threw down while still behind the backboard. In the Skills Challenge, Utah's Deron Williams beat out New Orleans' Chris Paul.

In the Rookie Challenge game on Friday, Bruin Jordan Farmar scored 17 points and dished out a game-high 12 assists to help lead his Sophomore squad to a 136-109 win past the Rookies.  Fellow Sophomore teammate Daniel Gibson was named MVP of the game.

(photo credit: AP)