Yeah, I guess Kobe Bryant is on fire. His 81 points for the Lakers tonight is the second-highest total in NBA history, bettered only by Wilt Chamberlain's 100 points in a much different era. Sounds like the Staples Center crowd went crazy when Kobe left the game with 4.2 seconds left. Only three other players—Elgin Baylor, David Robinson and David Thompson—have even scored 70.

"I couldn't even dream of this when I was a kid," Bryant said. "There was no way possible."

He put up 62 points against Dallas last month, but sat out the fourth quarter with the game a rout. Sunday night's game was a little closer, a 122-104 win over the Toronto Raptors.

More than an hour after the game's end, the Times' Lakers blog was silent on the feat and the Times website carried a wire story.