Kobe Bryant  scored 43 points to tie a franchise record for 40-point games in a season and keyed a decisive third-quarter burst as the Lakers posted a 104-88 victory over the Houston Rockets.

Lamar Odom netted 21 points and Smush Parker added 15 and 10 assists for Los Angeles, who entered Sunday holding the seventh spot in the Western Conference postseason race, 1 1/2 games ahead of eighth-place Sacramento (37-36) and just 2 1/2 behind sixth-place Memphis (41-32).

Yao finished with 33 points and 16 rebounds for the Rockets in defeat.