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81 for the Books

In this Jan. 22, 2006, file photo, Toronto Raptors' Matt Bonner can't stop Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant from getting to the basket in the first half of NBA basketball game in Los Angeles.

(MATT A. BROWN / AP)

Michael Jordan never did it.

Neither did Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the league's all-time leading scorer.

Wilt Chamberlain did it ... once.

Kobe Bryant carved out a piece of NBA history by scoring 81 points Sunday against the Toronto Raptors, the second-highest total ever and more than enough to lead the Lakers past the Raptors, 122-104, in front of an energized, if not disbelieving, sellout crowd of 18,997 at Staples Center.