Wednesday night, on the international stage in the NBA Finals that will last a lifetime, Bryant scored 8 of his 28 points in overtime to lead the Lakers to a 120-118 Game 4 victory over the Pacers, despite O'Neal having fouled out.

This time around it was O'Neal, so often aggravated by Bryant's youthful zeal to take over the offense in the past, who was the first to lob the accolades to his 21-year-old running mate who sat out Game 3 and most of Game 2 with a sprained left ankle.

"When I fouled out, Kobe just winked at me and said, 'Don't worry about it. I got it,'" O'Neal said. "That's what being a great 1-2 punch is all about. When something happens, you go to your left hand."

The right hand -- O'Neal -- had 36 points and 21 rebounds, while the left hand, Bryant, had 28 points and a dicey ankle that was afterward "beating real loud." Nonetheless, Bryant conceded coach Phil Jackson was right holding him out of Game 3 Sunday, just so he could play his dream game on Wednesday.

"When Shaq went out, I thought the game became a lot more interesting than it was a few seconds ago," Bryant said. "This is the game I've been dreaming about every day. I dreamed a lot about hitting the game-winning shot. Then with 2.3 seconds left and us having the ball with a chance to win it, as I was going out to the top of the key I was thinking, 'Damn, this might actually happen.' Then the ball went away from me."

It went into overtime, which was just enough time for O'Neal to foul out, Bryant to take over, and the Pacers to fall just short on a 3-point attempt by Reggie Miller at the buzzer. It also showed just how far Bryant has come since his rookie year three years ago against the Utah Jazz firing up airballs down the stretch of a series that was there to be won.

This time around, he's in his dream Finals against the Pacers, who were led by Miller's 35 points. Indiana held the lead all the way until the 8-minute mark of the third quarter when Glen Rice sank a 3-pointer for the Lakers. From that point on, the lead changed hands an extraordinary 17 times until the final decision.

Miller was spectacular throughout the game, even overcoming his scoreless fourth quarters of the previous three games to take over down the stretch until his final bomb at the buzzer of overtime caromed high off the rim and over the backboard, along with the Pacers' chances of pulling this series out.

"This was very tough," Miller said. "When you are up five with five and some change left in the fourth quarter at home, I felt we were in a great rhythm. But we've got to give them credit. Kobe hit the big shots when Shaq went out."

Rik Smits, after scoring just 22 points in the first three games combined, poured in 24 points and had O'Neal in foul trouble from the opening period. Smits got the Pacers off to a great start, scoring 8 points in the first four minutes of the game, and his teammates fed from his first hot streak of the series by hitting 8 of their first 10 shots. By the end of the first quarter, the lead had ballooned to 10, as neither O'Neal nor Bryant could get anything going.

Not only did they struggle on offense, but their frustration leaked over to the defensive end, as both O'Neal and Bryant were tagged with their third fouls before intermission. Still, O'Neal managed 13 points in the half and Robert Horry chipped in with 10 points off the bench to pull the Lakers within 54-51.

The Pacers had the appearance of controlling the game, but only because of the Lakers' foul trouble. And once Bryant was tagged with his fourth foul a minute into the third period, he began to take over the game, scoring 10 in the period, along with O'Neal scoring 7 and grabbing 9 rebounds despite earning his fourth foul as well.

Suddenly the Lakers held a 3-point lead going into the final 12 minutes and it was time for the Pacers to figure out just how badly they wanted to get back into this series. The response came from Miller, who recorded his first fourth-quarter field goal of the series with 9:50 left. A minute later, Travis Best grabbed an offensive rebound and found Miller, who responded with a 3-pointer, and suddenly, the Pacers were off on a 12-2 run to regain control of the game.

This was what the partisan crowd was waiting for, to see Miller take control of a close game in the fourth quarter against the Lakers. This was the only way Indiana could be taken seriously, and now it had happened. After making just 3-of-15 from 3-point range during the first three games of the series, Miller sank 6-of-9 Wednesday night.

It wasn't enough.

Kobe Bryant lives his dream in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.(AP)

Nor was O'Neal fouling out enough.

Bryant scored on long-range jumpers, double-clutch drives down the lane and an offensive rebound following a miss from Brian Shaw. It was the kind of game that was mixed with dreams and nightmares, depending on your allegiance.

No doubt, Bryant is beaming while he's dreaming. As for Miller and the Pacers, you can only imagine.

"Right now, we're definitely behind the 8-ball down 3-1," Miller said. "But we've got a little bit of a pulse left in the heart, so we've got to go after them Friday."

Yep, they'll be back going after Shaq, Kobe and the electric open floor play of Horry. And even if they do pull Game 5 out, don't believe for a moment they can win three games in a row.

Not when the dreams of Kobe Bryant are coming true.