Last night (Sunday) Kobe Bryant scored 39 points, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to reach 20,000 as the Los Angeles Lakers held off the New York Knicks 95-90 at Madison Square Garden.
Bryant added 11 rebounds and eight assists in his first game at the Garden in nearly two years. His 3-pointer in the opening minute of the third quarter allowed him to reach the milestone at 29 years, 122 days.
Wilt Chamberlain (29 years, 134 days) and Michael Jordan (29, 326 days) are the only other players to reach the landmark before turning 30.
Bryant’s last basket came in the final minute after the Knicks had trimmed a 25-point deficit to one. The victory capped a 3-1 road trip for the Lakers, who headed home to host Phoenix on Tuesday.
Bryant was back at MSG for the first time since Jan. 31, 2006. He was hit with a one-game penalty by the NBA before the Lakers’ game here last year for striking San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili in the face in the previous contest.
Bryant scored 12 points in the first quarter, helping the Lakers open a 31-21 lead, then became more of a playmaker in the second. He had five assists in the period, the last coming on former Knicks forward Trevor Ariza’s 3-pointer at the buzzer that made it 55-37.
Along with their no assists, the Knicks had seven turnovers in the period, drawing boos when Quentin Richardson threw the ball over the head of a wide-open Crawford on what should have been an easy breakaway.
The Lakers’ lead grew to 25 in the third quarter, but the Knicks were within 75-61 headed to the fourth.
Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.