Lakers Vs. Knicks Final Score: Kobe Bryant Scores 33 As Los Angeles Rolls To 113-96 Win

In Phil Jackson’s final appearance at Madison Square Garden, Kobe Bryant came through in a big way, propelling the Los Angeles Lakers to a 113-96 win over the New York Knicks on Friday night. Bryant came out firing against the Knicks, scoring 19 of the Lakers’ 30 points in the first quarter to give the team an early two-point advantage.

The Lakers blew it open in the second, turning that two-point lead into a 14-point advantage at the half after holding the Knicks to just 20 second quarter points. With another strong defensive performance in the third, again holding the Knicks to 20 points, the Lakers were able to cruise down the stretch, breezing to a 14-point road win as Phil Jackson rested his starters with a comfortable advantage.

Kobe Bryant’s scored a game-high 33 points on 12-17 shooting while also adding a team-high 10 rebounds for the Lakers. Pau Gasol added 20 points and six rebounds, with Andrew Bynum adding 12 points and nine rebounds. Lamar Odom, 14 points, and Shannon Brown, 12 points, were also in double-figures on the night. Steve Blake dished-out a team-high seven assists in 23 minutes off the bench.

Amare Stoudamire led the way for the Knicks, finishing with a double-double himself. Stoudamire scored a team-high 24 points and had 10 points. Raymond Felton added 20 points and seven assists, Danilo Galinari had 14 points and Wilson Chandler had 13 points. Timofey Mozgov finished with a team-high 11 rebounds.

The Lakers improved to 38-16, good for a 10.5 game lead over the Phoenix Suns in the Western conference’s Pacific division. The Knicks fell to 26-26 on the year, 12 games behind the Boston Celtics in the Atlantic division.