Joel Embiid scores 70 and Karl-Anthony Towns tops 60. It was a night like few others in the NBA

Joel Embiid scored 70 in Philadelphia. Karl-Anthony Towns had 62 around the midpoint of the fourth quarter in Minnesota.

Mark it down: Jan. 22, 2024, was a day unlike almost any other in NBA history.

On the 18th anniversary of Kobe Bryant's 81-point game for the Los Angeles Lakers — the second-best scoring game in NBA history — Embiid and Towns put on a scoring show of their own with a pair of career-high, franchise-record efforts.

Embiid's 70 points set the 76ers' record in Philadelphia's 133-123 win over San Antonio. Towns scored his 62nd point — two more than his previous career best and Wolves record — on a layup with 5:27 left in Minnesota's game against Charlotte.