Kobe, Gasol Step Up in 4th to Lift Lakers

NEW YORK (NBA.com exclusive) —

Kobe Bryant didn’t scored 81 points like he did four years ago on this date against the Toronto Raptors.

He didn’t match the 61 he had in his visit to Madison Square Garden last February.

But despite continuing to play with a broken index finger on his shooting hand, Bryant took the game over in the second half by scoring 22 of his 27 points as the Lakers downed the Knicks 115-105 before a capacity crowd of 19,673 at Madison Square Garden that included former President Bill Clinton and several members of the New York Jets.

The Lakers (33-10) have now won seven straight against the Knicks (17-25). Overall, New York has dropped three of four and five of eight.

Read the full story at NBA.com.

(Photo courtesy Getty Images via NY Times)

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Written by Adam Zagoria

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Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle. A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.