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1925

NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player Arnie Ferrin is born in Salt Lake City, Utah.

1948

NCAA All-American Neal Walk is born in Cleveland, Ohio.

1952

Scott Wedman is born in Harper, Kansas. He grew up on a 100-acre farm, as his father was a farm equipment engineer.

Clyde Lovellette drops 25 points as the United States defeats Chile 103-55 in quarterfinals round play at the Helsinki Olympics.

1959

Two-time NBA champion Mike McGee is born in Tyler, Texas.

1979

NCAA Division II Player of the Year Ronald Murray is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

1980

Yugoslavia narrowly defeats Brazil 96-95 to close out the semifinal round of men’s basketball at the Olympics in Moscow. While Yugoslavia had already clinched a spot in the gold medal game, the loss eliminated Brazil from a spot in the bronze medal game. It ended what was arguably the best chance at an Olympics medal for Brazilian legend Oscar Schmidt, who finished the game with 22 points.

1982

The University of San Francisco officially abolishes its basketball program. The once powerhouse program, which had won back-to-back national titles in 1955 and 1956, was embroiled in a scandal in which All-American guard Quintin Dailey was found guilty of sexual assault and subsequently admitted to accepting illicit money from an alumnus booster. The program was reinstated three years later by the school.

1984

Group stage play begins in the Olympics at The Forum in Los Angeles, where the China men’s team makes its Olympics debut with a 97-49 loss to the United States. Alvin Robertson dominates for the U.S. with 18 points, six rebounds, and six steals, while Michael Jordan scores 14 points in his Olympic debut. The tournament is the first since 1948 to not feature the Soviet Union, whose delegation opted to boycott the Olympics as a response to the U.S. boycotting the 1980 games in Moscow.

1992

Larry Bird leads the way with 19 points, as the United States men’s team defeats Germany 111-68 in a preliminary round game at the Olympics in Barcelona. The Germans get 15 points from Detlef Schrempf of the Indiana Pacers, who was making his final appearance with the national team.

1996

The United States women’s team finishes group stage play at the Atlanta Olympics undefeated by virtue of a 105-64 victory over South Korea. Nikki McCray leads the Americans with 16 points and nine rebounds. Brazil defeats Italy 75-73 to also wrap up the group stage with a 5-0 record.

1998

The 13th FIBA World Championship gets underway, hosted by Greece for the first time. Due to the ongoing NBA lockout, the United States fields a roster of players from European clubs and secondary American leagues. On the opening day of competition, the U.S. defeats Brazil 83-59, Yugoslavia defeats Puerto Rico 80-66, and Lithuania makes its FIBA Worlds debut with a 97-56 victory over South Korea.

2007

The United States closes out a disappointing Pan American Games performance with a 77-74 victory over Panama in the fifth place game in Rio de Janeiro. Later in the day, the host Brazilians win their third consecutive gold medal with an 86-65 victory over Puerto Rico, while Uruguay defeats Argentina 99-93 for the bronze. The U.S. team was coached by Villanova’s Jay Wright and headlined by Indiana’s D.J. White and Georgetown’s Roy Hibbert.

2008

Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy is sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for conspiracy to engage in wire fraud, as part of his role in a gambling scandal.

2021

Cade Cunningham (Oklahoma State) is the #1 overall pick of the Pistons in the NBA Draft. Eventual Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes (Florida State) is drafted fourth overall by the Raptors.

2024

The United States women’s team start group stage play at the Paris Olympics with a 102-76 victory over Japan. A’ja Wilson leads the Americans with 24 points and 13 rebounds. It’s a rematch of the 2020 Olympic gold medal game, won by the U.S. in Tokyo.

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