Historically Speaking: 3-19-09

Throwin' another one at you afternoon-style. I'll warn you that it's as boring as a game of Scrabble, but get after it, nonetheless.

* Today in 1954 the first professional boxing championship match televised in color took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Willie Tory was the knockout victim in round seven, a blow landed by Joey Giardello.

* There've been three NCAA Men's Basketball championships decided on a March 19: the first was in 1955 when the University of San Francisco defeated La Salle 77-63; in 1960 THE Ohio State University knocked off Cal, 75-55; and in 1966 Texas Western beat Kentucky by the score of 72-65.

* An NBA record for largest margin of victory in a playoff game was established in 1956 when the Minnesota Lakers throttled the St. Louis Hawks, 133-75 in game two of the Western Division Finals.

* In 1991 NFL owners decided to unaward the 1993 Super Bowl to the city of Phoenix due to the state of Arizona's refusal to recognize Martin Luther King Day.

* Four years later, Chicago Bull Michael Jordan made his post-retirement return to the team, draining 19 points in a loss to the Indiana Pacers. The contest was the most-watched regular-season game in NBA history, drawing some 35 million viewers.

And your Sports Illustrated quote of the day came from the mouth of...



...former Los Angeles Kings Coach Tom Webster, who in 1992 watched Rob Blake score an allegedly spectacular goal in a playoff win over the Edmonton Oilers. After the game, Webster said, "He looked like Bobby Orr out there. Some nights, however, he looks like iron ore."