Los Angeles  - Kevin Durant was red-hot, and his opponents couldn't put out the fire.

The Oklahoma City player poured in 30 of his Rookie Challenge-record 46 points in the second half, leading the sophomores to their seventh-straight victory over the first-year stars 122-116 Friday night as the NBA's All-Star Weekend tipped off in Phoenix, Arizona.

Last year, Durant scored 23 points, but the rookies were beaten by the second-year stars. This year, the reigning rookie of the year doubled his production and obliterated the previous record of 36 points set by the Phoenix Suns' Amare Stoudemire in the 2004 contest.

Durant was also voted the game's most valuable player (MVP).

"I just wanted to go out, have fun and be myself," said Durant, who hit 17-of-25 floor shots, including four three-pointers, and all eight of his free throws in 31 minutes.

"Fortunately, my shots were going down, and my teammates did a great job of looking for me," he said. "We had a lot of fun out here, and I'm glad I won the MVP."

Jeff Green of Oklahoma City and Thaddeus Young of Philadelphia had 13 points each while Rodney Stuckey chipped in with 12 for the sophomores, who own an 8-2 all-time mark in the series.

Michael Beasley of Miami led the rookies with 29 points, and Eric Gordon of the LA Clippers added 19. Marc Gasol of Memphis and fellow-Spaniard Rudy Fernandez of Portland finished with 15 and 14, respectively.

When asked the difference in the game: "Number 35," Beasley said, referring to Durant's uniform number. "When he started feeling it, it was pretty much over."

The rookies led 61-58 at halftime and extended it to 89-74 with 13:35 left in the second half of the two 20-minute-period format.

Durant heated up with a trio of three-pointers in an 11-2 run to level the game at 89.

Two free throws by Durant with 4:46 remaining put the sophomores ahead 112-100. However, Mayo and Beasley buried threes to trigger a 10-2 run, drawing the rookies within 114-110. Again Durant took charge, scoring his team's next seven points.

He exploded to the basket for a driving layup and completed the three-point free throw after drawing a foul from Fernandez.

After Gasol's layup at the other end, Durant powered in for an emphatic dunk, giving the sophomores a 119-112 cushion.

Baskets by Beasley and Mayo pulled the rookies to within three with 12 ticks to go. However, Durant iced the victory with his final two points from the free-throw line to cap off his record-setting performance. (dpa)