Author: Luke Reimer

Today in sports history (1974), Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s home run record. Ruth finished his career with 714 home runs in 1935. His home run record stood for 39 years. Many did not want this record to be broken, given how beloved he had become. With many not wanting the record to be broken, many thought that it would not be broken. One man had different plans though. When Aaron took over for Bobby Thompson in 1954, nobody knew what was to come. Aaron bashed his 715th home run as a part of the Atlanta Braves. Though Hank Aaron’s competition was…

Today in sports history (2008), the Kansas Jayhawks beat the Memphis Tigers in the 2008 NCAA Championship. College basketball fans all around the world were treated to one of the best championships of all time. The 2008 Final Four featured all one seeds, leading the championship to be a one vs. one. This was the second championship game in a row that featured two one seeds battling it out. The story for the Memphis Tigers all year was the play of Derrick Rose. Chris Douglas-Roberts was also instrumental in getting the Tigers to the championship game of the NCAA Tournament. On the…

Today in sports history (1984), Los Angeles Lakers center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar broke the NBA all-time points leader record. Abdul-Jabbar scored his 31,420th point against the Utah Jazz. The previous record-holder, Wilt Chamberlain, was one of Abdul-Jabbar’s biggest rivals in the NBA. Kareem went on to play through the 1989 season. Between the time that he broke Chamberlain’s NBA record to the time that he retired, Abdul-Jabbar scored an additional 6,967 points. He is currently still the NBA all-time points leader, with 38,387 points. With Kareem holding the record for 38 years many have tried, but have not been able to pass him.…

Today in sports history (1983), the North Carolina State Wolfpack took down the Houston Cougars in the College Basketball Championship Game in one of the biggest upsets in NCAA history. Houston was led by Hakeem Olajuwon and was favored by 7.5 points. NBA Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler was also a prominent star for Houston. On the Wolfpack’s side, they were led by Thurl Bailey and Dereck Whittenburg. NC State came into this game as a six seed. On their path to the championship, they defeated #3 UNLV by one point and #1 Virginia by one point. Houston had a little bit…

Today in sports history (1990), the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels destroyed the Duke Blue Devils in the 1990 NCAA Championship. UNLV was led by Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon, Greg Anthony and Anderson Hunt. Duke was led by Bobby Hurley, Christian Laettner, Grant Hill and Phil Henderson. Jerry Tarkanian led the Rebels to his only championship win. Duke was led by no other than Coach K. This game famously ended with UNLV giving Duke the largest loss in NCAA Tournament history, 103-73. This championship win for UNLV also marked the last time that a team from outside a power-five won the National Championship. UNLV…

Today in sports history (1973), Ken Norton defeated Muhammad Ali in a split decision. Many inside and outside the sport believe that Ali is the greatest of all time. In fact, Ali finished his career with a 56-5 record, winning 37 of those fights by knockout. Joe Frazier was probably Ali’s biggest rival. Louis defeated Ali once. Norton was also a big rival of Ali’s. Looking to prove himself as one of the best boxers in the sport, Norton gave Ali everything he could handle, even winning their fight against each other. This was important because, before the fight, Norton was unsure of…

Today in sports history (1981), the Indiana Hoosiers beat the North Carolina Tar Heels in the 1981 NCAA Tournament championship. At the time of this game, there were talks about canceling it. This was due in part to the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. With Reagan surviving his injuries, the NCAA played the game as scheduled. The game only featured a seven-minute delay. Much like the championship game after, this game featured two of the greatest coaches in college basketball history, Dean Smith and Bob Knight. NBA legend Isiah Thomas was the star player for Knight’s squad, where he averaged 16…

Today in sports history (1982), the North Carolina Tar Heels took down the Georgetown Hoyas in the 1982 NCAA Tournament Championship Game. Two of the biggest coaches in college basketball history matched up in this game — John Thompson for Georgetown and Dean Smith for North Carolina. The Hoyas were led by All-American Eric Floyd and seven-foot freshman Patrick Ewing. North Carolina was led by All-American James Worthy and freshman Michael Jordan. The Hoyas came into the championship as the six seed, while North Carolina came in as the one seed. North Carolina was favored by 1.5 points in this game. North…

Today in sports history (1990), Michael Jordan scored 69 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Jordan, who is one of, if not the greatest basketball player of all time was known for his competitive edge. After the 1997 NBA Finals, Jordan gave the background on his career-high. Early in the first quarter, Jordan got fouled hard by Cavaliers’ Hot Rod Williams. This caused the home Cleveland fans to start cheering at Jordan’s injury. This, I guess, was another example of Jordan taking something personally. Michael Jordan proceeded to score 69 points to stick it to Cavs’ fans. “I think the game I had…

Today in sports history (1939), the Oregon Webfoots beat the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first NCAA Tournament championship game ever. Patten Gymnasium in Evansville, Illinois hosted the championship game. Slim Wintermute, Lauren Gale, John H. Dick, Bobby Anet and Wally Johansen filled out the starting lineup for Oregon. Jimmy Hull, John Schick, Dick Baker, Dick Boughner and Bob Lynch led the way for the Buckeyes. This game was famously noted as being the first organized NCAA Tournament championship game. Unlike today’s tournament, the 1939 tournament featured only eight teams, as opposed to 68. Oregon took down Oklahoma to make the championship,…