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1938

The Temple Owls are champion of the inaugural NCAA National Invitational Tournament (NIT), defeating Colorado 60-36 in the Final at Madison Square Garden in New York. Temple’s Don Shields is named tournament MVP

1946

George Mikan signs his first pro contract, with the Chicago American Gears of the National Basketball League. Though the league had a salary cap of $7,000 per player, Mikan was given an additional $5,000 for taking a secondary, no-show job in the company’s legal department.

1960

Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell face off in a playoff game for the first time, with the rookie Chamberlain tallying 42 points and 29 rebounds. But thanks to 19 points and 30 rebounds from Russell, the Celtics win game one of the Eastern Conference Finals 111-105 over the Warriors.

Johnny McCarthy becomes the first player ever to record a triple-double in their NBA playoffs debut, finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists for the St. Louis Hawks in a 112-99 victory over the Minneapolis Lakers. Only Magic Johnson, LeBron James, and Nikola Jokic have matched the feat since.

1963

The Chicago Zephyrs play their final home game in Chicago, a 126-117 loss to the Cincinnati Royals. In the ensuing offseason, the Zephyrs re-locate from Chicago to Baltimore and change their name to the Bullets.

1971

Hal Greer takes the floor for the 76ers in a game against the Hawks, becoming the first NBA player with 1,000 career games played. He would eventually set an all-time mark of 1,122 and hold the record for six years until it was broken by John Havlicek.

1986

Cleveland State becomes the first team seeded #14 or below to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament by upsetting #6 seed St. Joseph’s in the second round. The Vikings’ Cinderella run would end one round later, with a Regional Semifinals loss to David Robinson and Navy.

1989

Blake Griffin is born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. His father owned a gym in the city, where Blake and older brother Taylor honed their basketball skills.

1991

Reggie Bullock is born in Baltimore, Maryland. The family relocated to North Carolina during his childhood and he led Kinston High School to three state titles.

1992

Tim Hardaway, Jr. is born in Orinda, California. At the time of his birth, his father Tim, Sr. was wrapping up his third season with the Warriors.

1994

Joel Embiid is born in Yaounde, Cameroon. He was discovered as a teenager by fellow Yaounde native Luc Mbah a Moute, and relocated to Florida to play high school basketball.

2011

Two of the biggest upsets in NCAA Tournament history happen on the same day, with #15 seed Norfolk State shocking #2 seed Missouri, followed that evening by #15 seed Lehigh taking down #2 seed Duke. It was the first tournament win in program history for both schools, and they became just the fifth and sixth #15 seeds to win a first round game. For Norfolk State, it was also the second biggest upset in tournament history based on betting line, as the Spartans were a 21.5 point underdog.

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