INQUIRER Sports

LOS ANGELES—KOBE BRYANT SCORED 41 points while becoming the youngest player to reach 24,000 to lead the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers to a 114-98 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.

Ron Artest had 19 points and seven assists in the fourth straight win for the defending NBA champions, who played without injured big men Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol.

Lamar Odom managed just three points before fouling out on his 30th birthday, but Bryant carried the Lakers while reaching his latest scoring milestone 38 days before Wilt Chamberlain did. With a second-half surge, he even overtook Grizzlies guard Allen Iverson for 16th place on the NBA’s career scoring list.

At New York, LeBron James scored 33 points in his only visit to Madison Square Garden this season, leading Cleveland over New York, 100-91.

James added nine assists and eight rebounds, but fell just short of passing Kobe Bryant as the active scoring leader at the Garden. James improved his average to 30.4 points, with Bryant averaging 30.5 in 11 visits.

James had scored 50 or more in two of his last three visits, joining Michael Jordan as the only visiting players with multiple 50-point games at the current building.

At Portland, Oregon, Brandon Roy had 24 points and five rebounds, and Steve Blake added 15 points as Portland got a lift from its new-look lineup to turn back San Antonio, 96-84.

Richard Jefferson had 19 points, Manu Ginobili had 17, and Tim Duncan added 14 points and eight rebounds, but San Antonio lost Tony Parker to a sprained ankle and couldn’t overcome a lethargic first half, playing one night after a loss at Utah.

At Oakland, California, Chris Kaman had 22 points and nine rebounds in 28 minutes as the Los Angeles Clippers ended a seven-game losing streak in the Oakland Arena, 118-90. AP

COMPETE RESULTS: Charlotte 103, Atlanta 83; Indiana 102, Washington 86; Orlando 110, Detroit 103; Philadelphia 97, New Jersey 94; Phoenix 110, Boston 103; Miami 96, Denver 88; Milwaukee 87, Minnesota 72; Toronto 107, New Orleans 90; Houston 105, Oklahoma City 94