Stephen Curry sank his last four shots from the right corner to defeat Sabrina Ionescu 29-26 in a Three-point Challenge at the NBA All-Star Saturday festivities.
Ionescu set the score to beat, matching the best numbers by any player in the NBA Three-Point Contest earlier won by the Milwaukee Bucks' Damian Lillard - only for Curry to rally late for the victory.
"I knew I had to get hot," Curry said of his closing run to win the Challenge champion's belt.
The first-ever shootout of the sexes was a groundbreaking showdown between elite guards - Golden State Warriors' Curry, the NBA's all-time three-point basket leader, and New York Liberty's Ionescu, the Women's NBA single-season three-point record holder.
"A night like tonight shows a lot of young girls and young boys that if you can shoot, you can shoot," said Ionescu. "It doesn't matter if you're a girl or a boy."
Both shot from NBA three-point range, Curry with an NBA ball and Ionescu with a WNBA ball.
"This couldn't have gone any better in the sense of us two taking the challenge in front of this stage. To deliver like that was unbelievable to watch," Curry said.
"I don't know if anybody can fill these shoes but this might need to be something we do more often."
Ionescu challenged Curry after she made 37 of a possible 40 points in last year's WNBA Three-Point Contest, the best score in any single round of a WNBA or NBA Three-point competition.
"That was amazing, just to be able to have this be the first-of-its-kind event and come out here and put on a show," Ionescu said. "Excited to be able to do it alongside the greatest to ever do it."
Curry hoped the matchup would inspire young talent to appreciate great shooting.
