Top 10: Most points in NBA game by one player

#2 Kobe Bryant - 81 points on January 22, 2006

Kobe's 81 point total is the highest in modern basketball with a 3-point line

Match Score: Los Angeles Lakers 122 - 104 Toronto Raptors

Statline: 81 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 28-of-46 from the field, 7-of-13 from 3-point range, 18-of-20 on free throws

In the greatest display of shooting in modern basketball, Kobe willed the Lakers to victory in a game that they trailed by double digits at halftime.

Despite his 26-point haul by halftime, the rest of the Lakers were unable to get it going on offense.

They were down 63-49, and Kobe had to turn on the afterburners in a manner that had become all too familiar for fans of the game who watched the Lakers with regularity at the time.

Except that he was able to single-handedly outscore the Raptors in both quarters, 27-22 in the third quarter and then 28-19 in the fourth.

The way Kobe caught fire in the second half for 55 points to turn a blowout right over on its head defies basketball logic.

One player shouldn't be able to so overwhelmingly outshine a basketball team firing on all cylinders as the Raptors were.

To demonstrate how little help he got, you can take a look at Odom's (8 points on 1-of-7 shooting), Kwame's (3 points on 1-of-5 shooting), Devean George's (0 points on 4 shots) or even Smush Parker's box score stats (13 points on 5-of-11 shooting).

If one man has ever left a singular stamp on a basketball game, it is Kobe Bryant and the game we're talking about is this one.