Lakers blast Knicks behind Kobe’s 61 points

Kobe Bryant has matured significantly as a player in recent years, evolving from the early days of his career when he’d frequently “shoot first and ask questions later”—often to the detriment of his team.  Make no mistake, however—just because Kobe is a better rounded, more team oriented ball player now it doesn’t mean that he still can’t light it up when the situation calls for it.  On Monday night he did just that, setting a record for the current incarnation of Madison Square Garden with 61 points as the Lakers 126-117.

With power forward Andrew Bynum out of the lineup out of the Lakers’ lineup for 8 to 12 weeks with a knee injury, Kobe took the opportunity to make a statement that he can still single handedly carry his team if necessary.  The MSG crowd didn’t quite know how to react to his awesome display, and alternated between booing him and starting “M-V-P” chants in his honor.  The previous record for the current MSG building was held by longtime Knick Bernard King, who scored 60 on 12/25/84.  After the game, Kobe was very low key and humble about his onslaught:

"It's a blessing to do what you love and to have moments like this.”

He then talked about the forthcoming ear burning of Knicks’ courtside fixture Spike Lee, with whom Kobe is working on a film documentary:

"On a lighter note, I'm going to review this documentary I'm doing with Spike Lee tonight after the game and I didn't feel like sitting next to him and hearing him talking trash about the Knicks, so that was added incentive as well.  Seriously. He's going to get an earful tonight."

Kobe’s outburst also broke the record for most points by an opposing player in the current MSG—held by a “pretty fair” shooting guard named Michael Jordan.  Kobe wasn’t aware that he’d broken MJ’s mark, but said that he remembered the game in question:

"But I watched the game, actually, when he had that game just oohing and aahing and just marveling at the performance, as I'm sure we all were."

Kobe had some help from teammates Pau Gasol, who scored 31 points and pulled down 14 boards along with reserve Trevor Arizia, who added 13 points.  The Knicks’ David Lee noted that after observing Kobe’s serious demeanor it was apparent what was forthcoming:

"He wouldn't speak to anyone on the court. He was very quiet tonight. By the time he hit his first two 3s, you could see what he was attempting to do in the game.”

Lee was New York’s second leading scorer with 22 points, right behind Al Harrington who posted 24.  Wilson Chandler added 20 off the bench on a night when a total of six Knicks scored in double digits.  Of course with Kobe’s big night, they had to do so in order to keep their team in the game.

Kobe’s impressive performance quickly became the postgame talk in other NBA arenas—Miami Heat superstar Dwayne Wade had these comments:

"I've never had a night like that.  You could tell, just watching the highlights, he had a pep in his step and he was on a mission. With Bynum out, he's going to have to do a little more, and I think he understands that. I mean, 61 points, that's Kobe -- that's all you can say."

The Lakers play at Toronto on Wednesday with a huge rivalry rematch at Boston on Thursday.  The Lakers won the first round on Christmas Day, ending the Celtics’ franchise record 19-game winning streak in the process.  They’ll not get much relief following that heavyweight encounter, as they’ll head to Cleveland for a Sunday afternoon game against LeBron James and the Cavaliers.  The Knicks will welcome Boston and Cleveland to Madison Square Garden this week, with the Cavs coming to NYC on Wednesday followed by the Celtics on Friday.  They’ll then travel cross country to play the Portland Trailblazers at the Rose Garden Arena on Sunday.