On This Day in History: Kobe Bryant Scores 61 Points to Set MSG Record

By Djack

Whenever I get a chance to write about the greatest Laker of all-time, I take full advantage. Eight years ago today Kobe Bryant went into Madison Garden and broke the previous scoring held by Bernard King, which was 60 points. I doubt Kobe went into the game thinking tonight's the night I break Jordan's MSG scoring record, but as soon as he knew it was within reach, and he could smell it, he attacked it like everything else he does in life. That's just the unconscious competitor that lives inside the beast that is the black mamba. It's not like the Knicks were playing awful defense like they do now, Kobe had a hand in his face on every shot, it just didn't phase him. When Kobe enters that zone, aka when Kobe shifts to black mamba mode, it doesn't matter who's is guarding him, he's going to hit any shot that he can get an inch of separation on. All night long he demoralized whatever Knick defender dared to guard him for that particular possession, must be a real shitty feeling to know you're playing the best defense that you're capable of, and this man is still lighting you up for 61 points. Kobe received MVP chants, and they were loud; it was a road game which made it that much more impressive, and Knick fans weren't going to deny him the respect he deserved. Kobe finished that game shooting 61% from the field, he hit 20/20 free throws, and he only played 36 minutes. Pretty fucking impressive, actually really fucking impressive, but it was just another day at the office for Kobe Bryant. Watch for yourself if you don't believe me because I know the way I described it could sound far-fetched to those who don't remember this historic performance. I think I undersold the incredible display of athleticism and wizardry if anything...

The record Kobe set unfortunately no longer stands. The record once again belongs to Knick, as it should since MSG is their home arena. Carmelo Anthony scored 62 points to snatch the record from Kobe, it must've been destiny since he hit a half-court at the buzzer which proved to be the difference in breaking the record. Oh well, it is what it is, Kobe still holds 2 of the top 5 scoring performances ever at MSG. Yes, Kobe also had a 59 point performance earlier in his career at MSG. Safe to say Kobe stepped up his game when it came to playing in the NBA's most historic arena.