"Leave it up to Kobe to outduel me on a night like this" - 2x NBA champion on Kobe Bryant outshining him by dropping 81 points on the night he scored 42 and hit game winner

Kobe Bryant dropped 81 points against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006. It was one of the greatest performances ever, with Bryant scoring the second-most points in NBA history. On the same night, two-time champion Ray Allen's 42-point game was overshadowed by Bryant's excellence.

The NBA's official YouTube account released a video of Allen reacting to the most memorable moments of his career. The first moment was his 42-point effort against the Phoenix Suns. He led the Seattle SuperSonics to a 152-149 double overtime win with a game-winning 3-point shot.

Allen and his teammates celebrated their win on the bus. However, one Sonics player revealed to them that Bryant had 61 points in the first three quarters. The Hall of Fame guard couldn't help but be amazed by Bryant's historic 81-point performance.

"That night I had 41 or 42, and I had a lot in the fourth quarter," Allen said. "We were sitting in the back of the bus, getting ready to go back to the hotel. The guys were like, 'Man, you were killing it out there tonight.' It was awesome."

"Then one of my teammates goes, 'Yo, Kobe Bryant has 61 points in three quarters.' I was like, 'What?!' I was like, 'Leave it to Kobe to outduel me on a night like this and that was night he had 81."

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Kobe Bryant's legendary 81-point display against the Raptors

Kobe Bryant had the second-greatest scoring performance in NBA history (Photo: NBA.com)

Kobe Bryant was at the height of his powers in 2006. He was the best player in the league on a very mediocre LA Lakers team. That night against the Toronto Raptors, the Lakers were down 63-49 at the half with Byrant scoring 26 points after the first two quarters.

The Lakers were even down by as many as 18 points early in the third quarter before the "Black Mamba" took over. Bryant scored 27 points in the third and 28 points in the final quarter. He finished the game with 81 points, six rebounds and two assists.

Bryant shot 28-for-46 from the field and went 7-for-13 from beyond the arc. He only missed two of his 20 free-throw attempts. At the end of the night, the Lakers defeated the Raptors 122-104.

After the game, the five-time champ had no clear explanation on how he managed to score 81 points. Bryant told reporters (h/t The Associated Press) that he was just in the groove in the second half and that the win was more important to him than the record-breaking night.

"It just happened, man. It really hasn't, like, set in for me," Bryant said. It's about the 'W.' That's why I turned it on. It turned into something special."

"To sit here and say I grasp what happened, that would be lying. Not even in my dreams."