Lakers 126, Knicks 117: Kobe Bryant dumped in a cool 61 points -- that's a new Madison Square Garden record -- and the Lakers pulled away from the Knicks, who got as close as two in the second half. Bryant only had 34 points in the first half. Michael Jordan once put up 55 -- the cool kids call it "double nickels: -- and Bernard King had 60 on Christmas in 1984. Bryant even heard chants of MVP and got cheered for his performance. Pau Gasol had 31 points as well. Al Harrington had 24 and David Lee had 22 -- and 12 rebounds -- for the Knicks.
The schedule doesn't get any easier for the Knicks. They get the Cavaliers on Wednesday and the champion Celtics on Friday. Good luck with that.
