This Day in Sports History - 2/7/1970

LSU Guard Pete Maravich sets an NCAA record for most points scored against a Division I opponent, but the Tigers lose 106 - 104 to Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Pistol Pete pumps in 69 with 26 field goals and 17 free throws. Both Pete and his father Press, who is LSU's Head Coach, are assessed with technical fouls during the game. Pete pursues a spectator as he leaves the floor at the end of the game, and several of his teammates become involved in a fight with fans. Pete's 69-point flurry will stand as the record until Kevin Bradshaw of US International nets 72 against Loyola-Marymount in 1991.

This Day in Sports History - 1/21/2004

The Minnesota Wild set an NHL record by scoring two goals three seconds apart during a 4 - 2 triumph over the Chicago Blackhawks at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. The previous record is five seconds, shared by four teams. With 15.5 seconds remaining, C Jim Dowd puts in a long rebound of his own slapshot to break a 2 - 2 deadlock. Three seconds later, RW Richard Park takes the puck off the faceoff and flicks it into the empty net. The defeat is part of a 19-game franchise record winless streak for the Blackhawks away from home, in which the club dropped 18 in regulation and one in overtime.

This Day in Sports History - 1/17/2003

In the highly anticipated first meeting between seven-foot-six Rockets rookie Center Yao Ming and seven-foot-one Lakers Center Shaquille O'Neal, the Rockets prevail 108 - 104 in overtime at the Compaq Center in Houston. Yao blocks Shaq's first three shots and alters Kobe Bryant's shot at the end of regulation. O'Neal finished with 31 points, 13 rebounds, and four assists. Yao manages 10 points, 10 rebounds, and six blocks. Houston Guard Steve Francis leads all scorers with 44 points, the most he will collect in a single game during his nine-year NBA career.

This Day in Sports History - 1/15/1994

San Francisco 49ers RB Ricky Watters scores an NFL postseason record five touchdowns during a 44 - 3 thrashing of the New York Giants in a divisional playoff game at Candlestick Park. Watters crosses the goal on a run of one yard in the first quarter, jaunts of one and two yards in the second quarter, and six yards and two yards in the third. He is the first to score more than 3 TDs in a playoff game. During the rout of the Giants, Watters gains a total of 118 yards on 24 carries and grabs five passes for another 46 yards.

This Day in Sports History - 1/12/1975

The Pittsburgh Steelers capture their first NFL Championship in franchise history, downing the Minnesota Vikings, 16 - 6, in Super Bowl IX at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. The Steel Curtain defense dominates throughout and creates a 2 - 0 halftime lead on a safety when DE Dwight White sacks QB Fran Tarkenton in the end zone.

This Day in Sports History - 1/7/2003

Kobe Bryant breaks the NBA record for most three-pointers in a game, sinking 12 of them during the Lakers' 119 - 96 drubbing of the Seattle Sonics at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The record had been 11 by Dennis Scott of the Orlando Magic in 1996. On March 28, Bryant will tie an NBA mark for most three-pointers in a half with eight. He will have a total of nine three-pointers in that contest, and 55 overall, as the Lakers cruise to a 108 - 94 triumph over the Washington Wizards in Los Angeles.

This Day in Sports History - 1/3/1993

In one of the greatest comebacks in NFL History, the Buffalo Bills rally from a 32-point deficit to defeat the Houston Oilers, 41 - 38, at Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, New York. The Bills are down 35 - 3 early in the third period. Buffalo scores five touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters for a 38 - 35 lead. RB Kenneth Davis crosses the goal line on a one-yard run, and QB sub Frank Reich fires four TD tosses; one to WR Don Beebe and three to WR Andre Reed. With 12 seconds left, the Oilers tie the contest, 38 - 38, on a kick from Al Del Greco, but the Bills prevail on Steve Christie's 32-yard field goal 3:06 into OT.

This Day in Sports History - 1/2/1984

Miami (Florida) edges Nebraska, 31 - 30, in a thrilling Orange Bowl. Trailing 17 - 0, the Cornhuskers record their first TD in the second quarter on a trick play known as the "fumblerooskie." RG Dean Steinkuhler picks up the center's intentional fumble, and runs 19 yards for the score. With 48 seconds left in the game, Nebraska RB Jeff Smith races 24 yards for a TD on a 4th-and-8 play to make the score 31 - 30. Coach Tom Osborne is worried a tie will cost his team a National Championship. (College Football will have no overtime until the 1995 bowl season.) So he calls for a two-point conversion, which fails, and Miami takes the National Title.

This Day in Sports History - 12/31/1972

Roberto Clemente dies when the chartered DC-& on which he is traveling crashes into the Atlantic Ocean one mile from San Juan, Puerto Rico. He is 38. The plane is carrying relief supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua. During his stellar 18-year career, all with the Pirates, Clemente batted .317 and collected exactly 3,000 hits. He won four betting titles, led the NL in hits twice, was named to 12 All-Star teams, and won 12 Gold Gloves. He was also the NL MVP in 1966 and the World Series MVP in 1971. He will be elected posthumously to the Hall of Fame in 1973.

This Day in Sports History - 12/30/1962

Under coach Vince Lombardi, the Green Bay Packers win the NFL Championship for the second straight year by defeating the New York Giants, 16 - 7, at Yankee Stadium on a day in which the temperature in New York is 13 degrees F with wind gusts of 40 mph. The Packers capped the 1961 season by devouring the Giants, 37 - 0, in the Championship tilt in Green Bay.

This Day in Sports History - 12/17/1972

Falcons RB Dave Hampton loses a chance at a 1,000-yard rushing season during a 17 - 14 loss to Kansas City at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Hampton comes into the game, the last of the regular season, needing 70 yards to reach the coveted figure. A run early in the fourth period puts Hampton at exactly the 1,000-yard mark, and the game is stopped to present him with the football. But Hampton loses six yards on the next play when tackled on a pitch-out. Hampton gains only one more yard to finish the season at 995. He will fall just short again with a 997-yard season in 1973. He finally attains the 1,000-yard figure with 1,002 yards rushing in 1975 with 61 yards in the final game of the season.

This Day in Sports History - 12/9/1984

Los Angeles Rams RB Eric Dickerson rushes for 215 yards during a 27 - 16 triumph over the Houston Oilers at Anaheim Stadium, to give him 2,007 yards on the season. This record breaks the previous single-season mark of 2,003 set by O.J. Simpson with the Buffalo Bills in 1973. Dickerson will finish the season with 2,105 yards, a mark which still stands at the close of the 2010 NFL campaign.

This Day in Sports History - 11/29/1971

In a swap of pitchers, the San Francisco Giants trade Gaylord Perry to the Cleveland Indians for Sam McDowell. It appears to be an even exchange. Perry is 33 and has a 133-109 career record. Despite pitching for some terrible teams in Cleveland, the 29 year old McDowell is 122-109 and has led the American League in strikeouts four times. Perry will be 24-16 in 1972, and from that season until the end of his career in 1983, he performs for seven teams with 181 more victories. Perry ends up with a record of 314-265 and a berth in the Hall of Fame. After the trade on this day, McDowell is 25-35 with three clubs and will exit the majors in 1975. He will later admit that alcoholism led to his downfall.

This Day in Sports History - 11/24/1963

In a decision NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle will later come to regret, the league plays a full slate of seven games just two days after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. None of the contests are telecast, because all of the networks are covering the assassination and the murder of accused assassin Lee Harvey Oswald, which takes place this morning.

This Day in Sports History - 11/17/1990

University of Houston QB David Klingler sets an NCAA record with 11 touchdown passes during an 84 - 21 rout of Eastern Washington at the Astrodome. By the end of the season, Klingler will throw for 54 touchdowns to establish another college football standard. It will stand until 2006 when University of Hawaii QB Colt Brennan completes 58 TD passes.

This Day in Sports History - 10/31/1999

The Cleveland Browns claim their first victory as an expansion team with a dramatic 21 - 16 win over the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome. Browns owner Art Modell moved the Browns to Baltimore following the 1996 season. Cleveland was granted an expansion team to begin play in 1999 and retained the previous team's nickname, colors, and records. The Browns start the '99 season 0-7 and seem headed for an eighth loss when Doug Brien kicks a 46-yard FG to give the Saints a 16 - 14 advantage. The Browns hold the ball on their own 44 with time for just one more play. QB Tim Couch launches a Hail Mary into the air, and WR Kevin Johnson catches it in the corner of the end zone for the game-winning score. The Browns will finish 1999 with a 2 - 14 record. The other win is achieved on a FG as time expires, to down the Steelers, 16 - 15, at Three River Stadium in Pittsburgh on November 14.

This Day in Sports History - 10/26/2002

In Game 6 of the World Series, the Anaheim Angels come from behind to defeat the San Francisco Giants, 6 - 5, in Anaheim. The Giants, who haven't won a World Series since moving to San Francisco in 1958, come into the game with a 3 - 2 lead in the Series. Russ Ortiz shuts out the Angels for six innings and holds a 5 - 0 lead before giving up two singles in the seventh. In the eighth, Tim Worrell surrenders a leadoff homer to Darrin Erstad, and the score is 5 - 4. After a pair of singles, Rob Nen comes in from the bullpen, and Troy Glaus belts a two-run double to put the Angels ahead. Troy Percival records the save with a perfect ninth. In Game 7, the Giants go down 4 - 1, and the Angels have their first world championship in franchise history.

This Day in Sports History - 10/23/2000

The Jets shock the Dolphins 40 - 37 in overtime on a Monday night at the Meadowlands. Heading into the fourth quarter, Miami is ahead 30 - 7 before the Jets mount an amazing comeback to tie the score. Vinny Testaverde fires three TD passes, John Hall boots a field goal, and a two-point conversion fails. But it takes only 22 seconds for the Dolphins to strike on a 47-yard kickoff return and a 46-yard TD pass from Jay Fiedler to wide receiver Leslie Shepherd for a 37 - 30 lead. The Jets knot the contest again with 42 seconds remaining in regulation on Testaverde's fourth TD pass of the fourth quarter, a three yard toss to tackle Jumbo Elliott, who bobbles the ball but holds on for the only reception of his career. The game is won 6:47 into OT on a 40-yard field goal by Hall.

This Day in Sports History - 10/18/2009

With snow falling on Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, the New England Patriots thrash the Tennessee Titans 59 - 0. It is the largest margin of victory in the NFL since 1976. The Patriots score 10 points in the first quarter, then pile on with 35 in the second. The 45 - 0 lead gives New England the largest halftime lead in NFL history. Tom Brady breaks the NFL record for touchdown passes in a quarter with five. In all, Brady has six TD tosses, along with 29 completions in 34 attempts and 380 yards. The loss drops the Titans to 0 - 6 in the 2009 season, but the club recovers to win their next five games and eight of their last 10 to finish at 8 - 8. The Patriots are 10 - 6 during the regular season in 2009 and lose in the first round of the playoffs.

This Day in Sports History - 10/14/2002

Before a national television audience on Monday night, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Terrell Owens demonstrated a novel way to celebrate a touchdown during a 28 - 21 win over the Seahawks in Seattle. With the Seahawks leading 21 - 20 and 7:46 remaining, Owens scores on a 37-yard touchdown pass, pulls a Sharpie from his sock, autographs a football, and hands it to a fan.