Βy Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
January 23 now gains another significance in NBA history. On the anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s second-best scoring game of 81 points, two big men achieved something unprecedented in 45 years.
Eighteen years after Bryant’s historic performance, Philadelphia 76ers‘ Joel Embiid scored 70 points, and Minnesota Timberwolves‘ Karl-Anthony Towns scored 62 points.
The Cameroonian center achieved this feat in a 133-123 win over the San Antonio Spurs, setting a 76ers’ record. Embiid’s career night tied the 12th-biggest scoring effort in NBA history and broke Wilt Chamberlain’s 76ers record of 68 points (scored while playing for the Philadelphia Warriors).
“To be in the same conversation, that’s pretty cool,” said Embiid.
Embiid became the ninth player to have a 70-point game, with Chamberlain achieving this feat six times. Everyone else on the list—Baylor, Thompson, David Robinson, Bryant, Devin Booker, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, and now Embiid—has done it once.
Philadelhia’s center accomplished this remarkable performance against Victor Wembanyama, overshadowing his 33-point performance for the Spurs. Embiid had 34 points at halftime.
On the other hand, Towns scored two more points than his previous career best and the Timberwolves‘ record in a 128-125 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. He had 44 points after two quarters.
It was only the second time since 1993 that a player scored at least 62 points in a loss; Booker had 70 in a Phoenix loss at Boston in 2017. Towns is also the first player ever with 10 2-pointers, 10 3-pointers, and 10 free throws in a game.
“We’ve got to find a way to win,” Towns didn’t see any silver lining even after scoring 62. “It’s about winning the game.”
All in all, January 23, 2024, marked the fourth day in NBA history where two players scored at least 60 points. The others were:
- April 9, 1978: David Thompson had 73 for Denver, and George Gervin had 63 for San Antonio as they dueled on the season’s final day for the scoring title
- Jan. 17, 1962: Jerry West scored 63 for the Lakers, and Wilt Chamberlain scored 62 for the Philadelphia Warriors
- Dec. 8, 1961: Chamberlain had 78 for the Warriors, and Elgin Baylor had 63 for the Lakers in a triple-overtime game against each other