Detroit win despite Bryant's 39

The Pistons got a great victory. Even with Kobe in front of them, scoring 39 points. And while the Lakers turned a 22-point blowout into a close game down the stretch, the Pistons held on for a 102-93 victory.

This way, the Pistons are 37-5 and have won 11 in a row.

Kobe Bryant shot 12-for-28 from the court. His three-point shooting did him in, with 3-for-11 from beyond the arc.

"Tonight it didn't matter if he made 50, 40, 20, 10," coach Flip Saunders noticed. "The idea was for us to win. It wasn't Kobe Bryant against us, it was the Lakers against Detroit."

The result was that the solitary star couldn't beat a team of five stars. All of the Pistons' starters scored in double-digits, compared to two for L.A.

"The best thing about us is, we feel we've got five superstars out there," said shooting guard Richard Hamilton, who scored 20 points. "Everybody says we don't have a superstar. No, we've got five superstars."

We must notice that The Lakers hadn't lost four regular-season clashes in a row to the Pistons since the early 1970s. Asked whether there's a rivalry between the teams that fought for the NBA title two seasons ago, Bryant claims, "It's a little one-sided to be a rivalry."

In the end Detroit Pistons led by nine at halftime and blew the game open in the third quarter with a 9-0 run. Tayshaun Prince, who scored 19 points and checked Bryant most of the game, netted five during that run.

Bryant gets ready for "Just Another Game"

The world wants to see what will he come up with on the next game. And Kobe Bryant claims it's just one more game. But we know it is not. When the Lakers and the Warriors go to battle on Friday, the sports world will be watching the man who did a 81-point game. "We'll just go out there, do what we do, try to get the victory," Bryant said before Thursday's practice. "That's about it. Just go out there and do what we do, same old thing. Punch the clock. It's normal, it really is." Bryant, whose 81 points record is second in NBA history behind Wilt Chamberlain's 100 in 1962, thinks that as long as fans are excited for Friday's game, it doesn't matter why. "It's good for us," he said. "I think if anything, it's given a lot of writers a lot to talk about, whether it's good, bad or indifferent."

The NBA world after Kobe's 81 points record

Nobody can deny the importance of his last achievement. Kobe Bryant's 81-point record Sunday night in the game with Toronto was eye-popping stuff, regardless how you view the Lakers' star.

Wether you love him or hate him, you have to give credit for the second-highest NBA scoring game ever. His talent has never been questioned, and on this night - 28 of 46 from the field, 7 of 13 from 3-point range, 18 of 20 from the free-throw line - he was at his best.

After all, we can say that this match, this singular performance, was what the Shaq-Kobe feud was all about. Now you can see why there is no more Shaquille O'Neal in L.A., no more shared spotlight. This was all Kobe, all the time, the way he's always felt it had be. And most of the fans too.

Kobe Bryant has his championship rings, earning three as a co-star with O'Neal. But the co-star thing drove him nuts, and drove Shaq out of town.

Today the story is different in the Lakers dressroom. Kobe is the man, the face and facade of the Lakers. He is the headliner on a 22-19 team with zero chance of winning a championship.

Kobe Bryant Super Record: 81 Points

Kobe Bryant, usually unstoppable, this time was more than that. The Los Angeles Lakers' star made a phenomenal 81 points Sunday night _ the second-highest total in NBA history _ in a 122-104 victory over the Toronto Raptors.

Just Wilt Chamberlain's storied 100-point match nearly 44 years ago ranks higher. "Not even in my dreams," Bryant noticed. "That was something that just happened. It's tough to explain. It's just one of those things.

"It really hasn't, like, set in for me. It's about the `W,' that's why I turned it on. It turned into something special. To sit here and say I grasp what happened, that would be lying."

Actually, the Lakers trailed by as many as 18 points early in the third quarter, angering Bryant. "He was ticked off," teammate Lamar Odom noticed. When asked what Bryant noticed at that stage, Odom replied: "Nothing. That's when it's bad."

Bryant made 51 points after the Raptors extended a 63-49 halftime lead to 71-53. The Lakers outmade the Raptors 38-14 to finish the third quarter to go ahead for good.

"That was amazing, remarkable," Odom noticed.
It’s good to know that Bryant, the NBA's leading scorer, left to a standing ovation with 4.2 seconds remaining, having shot 28-of-46 from the floor, including 7-of-13 from 3-point range, and 18-of-20 from the foul line.

With the 18,997 supporters at Staples Center chanting "MVP! MVP!" Bryant made two free throws with 43.4 seconds remaining for his final points. He made 27 points in the third quarter, 28 in the fourth.

"We are on a journey, and to put on a show like this for the supporters here in L.A. is truly something special," Bryant noticed. "I grew up in front of these people, and now they are seeing me as an older, young man."

The 27-year-old Bryant joined the Lakers out of high school, and is in his 10th NBA season.

Chamberlain made 100 points for Philadelphia against the New York Knicks at Hershey, Pa., on March 2, 1962, shooting 36-of-63 from the field and 28-of-32 from the foul line while playing all 48 minutes.

In addition, Chamberlain had 59 points in the second half _ the just player with more points in a half than Bryant's 55 after halftime in this match.

Chamberlain's second-highest total was 78 against the Lakers in three overtimes on Dec. 8, 1961.

Michael Jordan's career high was 69 points, and just four players had ever made more than 70 _ Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, David Thompson and David Robinson.

Bryant made it five. His previous career record was 62 points during a 112-90 victory over Dallas. "I was just determined. I was just locked in, tuned into what was going on out there," Bryant noticed. "These points tonight mattered. We needed them. The points I put in the basket were instrumental. It means a lot more."

Bryant raised his scoring average to an NBA-leading 35.9 points this season.

"I never imagined I would see history like that," noticed Devean George, a teammate of Bryant's with the Lakers for 6 1/2 seasons. "I can't tell you where that came from. He just kept attacking, attacking, attacking _ every time he got the ball."

Bryant played nearly 42 minutes, going the entire second half until being lifted by coach Phil Jackson.
We also know that Jackson coached Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to six championships in the 1990s and the Lakers, with Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal, to three more titles, from 2000-02.

"That was something to behold," Jackson noticed. "It was another level. I've seen some remarkable matchs, but I've never seen one like that before."

Baylor held the Lakers' previous franchise record of 71 points at New York on Nov. 15, 1960. Lakers special assistant Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA's all-time leading scorer, saw that match, too.

"Elgin's match was an amazing performance, also," Abdul-Jabbar noticed. "I don't think there's any comparison. Elgin did it without 3-point lines. His match was attacking the hoop and hitting jumpers inside 20 feet. Kobe's range is unreal, and he does it his way.

"It was a real treat. His skill to shoot from long range and also attack the hoop, split the defense and get in close for opportunities near the basket is unique. He's made a niche for himself, and he deserves it."

Bryant made all but 15 of his team's 42 points in the third quarter, and all but three of their 31 in the final period.

"You're sitting and watching, and it's like a miracle unfolding in front of your eyes and you can't accept it," Lakers owner Jerry Buss noticed. "Somehow, the brain won't work. The easiest way to look at it is everybody remembers every 50-point match they ever saw. He had 55 in the second half."

Bryant made a season-low 11 points in the Lakers' 102-91 victory over the Raptors in Toronto last month. He has led the Lakers in scoring in the last 21 matchs in which he's played, and is averaging 45.5 points in 10 matchs since sitting out a two-match suspension. "We were just watching him shoot," Toronto's Chris Bosh noticed. "He takes the type of shots where you don't think they're going in, but suddenly he's rolling, so he's kind of hard to stop. We tried three or four guys on him, but it seemed like nobody guarded him tonight."

Bryant's 51 points were not enough

The Lakers have played more games than any other this season in the NBA. And no player in the tournament has made more big fourth quarters than Kobe Bryant.

But this time the story was sad for them. What looked like a fantastic night for the Lakers as Bryant and Lamar Odom leaped to bump chests with 35.5 seconds left in regulation ended with an agonizing 118-109 overtime loss to the Sacramento Kings.

"We beat the team, but they won." Odom said a deep phrase.

"Many of crazy things can happen in the NBA," Bryant added, "and tonight was one of those nights."

Indeed, with only the clock standing between them and their seventh win in eight games, the Lakers gave away the game, winding up in overtime as Brad Miller drilled an improbable 3-pointer with 4.1 seconds left.

It wasn't quite payback for Robert Horry's shot in the 2002 Western Conference finals, but the Kings' faithful would take it. Bryant finished with 51 points, the eighth 50-point game of his career, but it was not enough.

If the Lakers thought their days of late-game disappointings were behind them - they had won their previous four games decided by six points or fewer - they were sorely mistaken. They led 102-97 with 35.5 seconds to play as Odom connected on a 3-pointer.

It came after Kobe Bryant, who had taken shots on five consecutive possessions down the stretch, kicked a pass to Odom at the top of the key. He scored just 1 of 5 3-pointers for the night, but hit the shot that counted.

But Odom made a major mistake after Miller made one of two free throws for the Kings. With the Kings electing not to foul, Odom drove to the basket with 16 seconds left on the shot clock.

In the last part, the Lakers could have taken the clock inside of the final 10 seconds, but Odom was called for a charge with 22 seconds remaining against Kenny Thomas. Odom thought the call was questionable, but it was not.

"I take the blame for that one," Odom said. "I should have ran the clock down a little bit more. First time in a long time that my aggressiveness beat me. But I had just hit that shot and I was thinking, 'Get to the basket.'

"I just wish I had put my team in a better place. A flop call on a team that's dead, though, that kind of gave them new life."

The Lakers still had a chance to win, but Mike Bibby (40 points) connected on a 3-pointer to make it 102-101 with 18.7 seconds left. Bryant sank two free throws for the Lakers - he set the franchise record for consecutive foul shots made Thursday - but Sacramento got the ball with a chance to tie.

The Lakers denied Bibby a shot on the Kings' final play of regulation only to watch as Kwame Brown tried to help inside and left Miller alone beyond the arc. Miller, a 32 percent 3-point shooter, drilled the shot.

"I must have stayed at home," Brown told us. "He hit a desperation shot and I should have hugged him closer. I trusted my quickness to get back to him. I got back, I just should have stayed at home."

Jackson let Odom have the final shot of regulation for the Lakers, hoping he would redeem himself, but Odom couldn't connect. The Lakers fell apart in overtime, as they were outscored 14-5 and Odom fouled out.

The Lakers have played 22 games decided by six points or fewer, the most in the NBA. Bryant, meanwhile, leads all players in fourth-quarter scoring, averaging 9.1 points per game.

Kobe Bryant was especially aggressive Thursday against a Sacramento team that was forced to use Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia and Jason Hart on him with Bonzi Wells still injured.

Is important to say that Bryant looked to be up to his old tricks in the final four minutes, taking the game upon himself. He posted up Garcia with the Kings sending Miller to double-team. They couldn't get Bryant, however, to give up the ball.

He pulled up on the right side, pump-faked twice to get Garcia in the air and knocked down a 19-footer. Bryant hit 3 of 5 jumpers down the stretch, including one over the 7-foot Miller.

Bryant and Shaquille face to face

It has been a really long story, and now the longest trade in professional sports history is nearly over. We can say that Shaquille O'Neal brought something unexpected to Los Angeles Staples Center Monday night: A pregame greeting for former Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant.

The teams stretched during warm-ups, at that time O'Neal reached down to Bryant, who was being stretched by a trainer, and extended a hand. Is good to notice that this was O'Neal's first public acknowledgement of Bryant since the center left the Lakers in the 2004 offseason. The game ended too late for this edition of The Star.

After that encounter and during the pregame captains' meeting, O'Neal and Bryant embraced and shared a laugh. The eyes of the world were on them. The referee gave a wuick look. Kobe tapped Shaquille's head twice. When the video screen showed a second embrace, the crowd cheered, with Bryant raising his arm to acknowledge the ovation.

Both embraced just before the opening tip, leading to another ovation. Heat coach Pat Riley said he expected an eventual thaw. "One day, you've just got to move on," he thinks, "but it's an individual decision."

Bryant, with 37 points, is ascending. O'Neal might have a couple more memorable playoffs in him, but he is clearly descending. Other players wedged their way onto the stage Monday night, including Andrew Bynum, who was born when O'Neal was 15 years old.

Indeed, the Lakers did catch Miami at the end of a seven-match, 12-day trip, however they also looked new and vastly different from the distracted band that plodded through November. They even looked cleansed, ready for brand new questions, as they held off the Heat, 100-92.

Kobe Bryant scores 41, but Lakers lose

The Portland Trail Blazers were able to defeat Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night, even though Kobe Bryant scored 41 points, ending his streak of 45-plus games at four, The game ended 113-103 for the Blazers.

"They came out and performed a lot harder than we did,'' Bryant told the reporters. "After the last showing they had on their court, I'm sure they took it upon themselves and played with more effort and much heart. And they did it.''

Kobe Bryant, who had 23 points at the half, dunked with 23.9 seconds left to make the score 111-103, but the Lakers couldn't get any closer. This way, they ended a three-game winning streak.

"The Coach explained what it was all about,'' guard Steve Blake explained. "He only said you've got to play with a lot of heart and a lot of passion. You've got to desire it.''

For the records, Kobe had scored at least 45 points in his last four matches, becoming the first player to score as many since Wilt Chamberlain in 1964. Elgin Baylor also reached the milestone in 1961.

Kobe Bryant Bio: The Athlete and the Star

Kobe Bean Bryant is more than an idol in Los Angeles Lakers; he is the greatest star in the NBA and the world knows that for sure. His father was the former Philadelphia 76ers player Joe "Jellybean" Bryant. Although personal issues and criticism have lowered his esteem in the thoughts of many, Bryant's uncanny mix of talent, skill, athleticism, and work ethic still inspire most to see him as one of the premier athletes in the game nowadays. As such, many fans and critics consider him to be one of the greatest players of his time.

Kobe Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The reason he got the name Kobe is uncommon, and he loves it. Bryant's grandmom told him when she first heard his name, she thought, "What in the world were Pam and Joe thinking naming him Kobe; perhaps they'll have time to change it before the birth certificate is registered. Maybe they'll give him a more conventional name". But he kept it.

When he was 6, he, his two sisters, and his parents moved to Italy. In that land, his father began playing professional basketball. While living there, he step by step became habituated to the lifestyle and subsequently learned to speak the Italian language fluently. In 1994, the Bryants moved back to the USA. He says that after a outstanding high school career in the Philadelphia suburb of Lower Merion, at Lower Merion High School, Bryant achieved national recognition as a prodigal basketball talent. He then scrapped his original plans of continuing on to college by making the leap from high school directly to the NBA, a bold but controversial decision made by the then seventeen-year old. It is known that he was in the first place selected 13th by the Charlotte Hornets in the 1996 NBA Draft, but they traded him on July 11, 1996 to the Los Angeles Lakers for center Vlade Divac. At that time he was young and somewhat introverted, but his talent made an impression on his teammates on the practice court. Despite his natural talent, Bryant frequently had trouble relating to teammates away from the basketball court, and he struggled to make friends early in his career.

It's good to remember that during this time the 20-year old Bryant first met 16-year old Vanessa Laine on the set of a music video where Laine was working as a background dancer. The two began dating and were engaged six months later. They got married on April 18, 2001 in Dana Point, California, while Laine was still a senior at Marina High School in Huntington Beach, California. Their baby Natalia Diamante was born on January 19, 2003. Bryant's parents initially disapproved of the marriage because of the couple's young age, but have since reconciled with Kobe. In November 2004, after Vanessa suffered a miscarriage (due to an ectopic condition) in the spring of 2005, the Bryants announced that they are expecting another child in May 2006.

Bryant's career as an NBA player out of high school has been nothing short of exceptional. By the age of 24, Bryant had already won many individual awards, from his annual inclusion in the All-NBA teams and a seven time selection into the NBA All-Star team. Bryant, along with former teammate Shaquille O'Neal, helped lead the Los Angeles Lakers as perennial championship contenders, resulting in three consecutive NBA championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Indeed, The Lakers also ventured to the 2004 Finals against the Detroit Pistons, but lost the series four games to one. After the loss to the Pistons, Bryant opted out of his contract to test the free agent market. After flirting with the idea of joining several teams, including the Lakers' cross-town rivals the Los Angeles Clippers, he signed a new seven-year deal with the Lakers worth over $136 million on July 15, 2004.

Fans can see that Bryant's image and achievements on and off the basketball court made him one of basketball's most popular and marketable players. Even big corporations like McDonald's and Coca-Cola had him part of their image. For several years, he had an exclusive apparel and shoe deal with Adidas but is currently under a four-year, $45 million advertising contract with Nike

Many people agree that Kobe Bryant's meteoric career rise in the NBA is attributed to his consummate work ethic. In each of his years in the league, Kobe showed improvement in all areas of his game, from offense to strength to defense. On-court he is a quite composed and competitive player with impressive concentration, able to deliver the toughest and clutch shots at the times most required. These attributes, for the most part, have made him a premier player in the NBA.

One peace of his talent: on December 20, 2005, in one of the most spectacular individual scoring feats in NBA history, Bryant marked a career-high 62 points in only 33 minutes of play in a 112-90 rout of the Dallas Mavericks. His 30 points in the third quarter alone surpassed the Lakers' previous franchise record of 24 points in a single quarter. Bryant had outscored the entire Dallas Mavericks team 62-61 by the time he departed at the end of the third quarter. His career night was only 9 points shy of Elgin Baylor's franchise record of 71, and may well have broken it had he stepped foot on the court during the fourth quarter.