This Day in Sports History: March 14
Sports in March include crucial stretches of the NBA and NHL seasons, MLB Spring Training/Opening Day, March Madness, NASCAR, Formula 1, UFC Fight Nights, and some PGA Tour Events. Over…
Sports in March include crucial stretches of the NBA and NHL seasons, MLB Spring Training/Opening Day, March Madness, NASCAR, Formula 1, UFC Fight Nights, and some PGA Tour Events. Over the years, Mar. 14 has witnessed many notable moments and stories involving sporting legends. Here are some of them.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
Great moments in sports history from March 14 included:
- 1874:Â English FA Cup Final, Kennington Oval, London. Oxford University beats the Royal Engineers, 2-0.
- 1899:Â Stanley Cup, Montreal Arena, Westmount, Quebec. The Montreal Shamrocks beat Queens University, 6-2, to clinch a trophy for the CAHL.
- 1936:Â Wales beats Ireland 3-0 in Cardiff to clinch the Home Nations Rugby Championship, with a 2-1-0 record.
- 1954:Â The Milwaukee Braves' future home run king, Hank Aaron, hits a homer in his debut exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox.
- 1960:Â Philadelphia center Wilt Chamberlain sets an NBA playoff record of 53 points, in the Warriors' 132-112 win over the Syracuse Nationals, at the Philadelphia Civic Center.
- 1961:Â Former New York Yankees general manager George Weiss becomes the first President of the New York Mets, after an MLB expansion franchise was formed.
- 1962:Â The Red Wings' forward Gordie Howe becomes the second player in NHL history to score 500 career goals, in Detroit's 3-2 loss to the New York Rangers.
- 1971:Â Ken Rosewall of Australia beats the American defending champion Arthur Ashe, 6-1, 7-5, and 6-3. Rosewall was the first man to win an Open era Grand Slam singles title, without dropping a set.
- 1976:Â Jockey Bill Shoemaker wins his 7,000th race.
- 1981: The St. Joseph's Hawks shocked the tournament by upsetting top-seeded DePaul 49-48.Â
- 1987:Â New York Met Darryl Strawberry charges Red Sox pitcher Al Nipper during a spring training exhibition game. This caused a bench-clearing brawl.
- 1991:Â The Men's Figure Skating Championship in Munich is won by Kurt Browning of Canada.
- 1993:Â In the 14th, Big East Men's Basketball Tournament, Seton Hall beats Syracuse, 103-70.
- 1993:Â In the 40th ACC Men's Basketball Tournament, Georgia Tech beats #1 North Carolina, 77-75.
- 1998: The women's Harvard basketball team became the first No. 16 seed in tournament history (men or women) to defeat a No. 1 seed, upsetting Stanford 71-67.
- 2004:Â In the 51st ACC Men's Basketball Tournament, Maryland beats #5 Duke, 95-87.
- 2008: Lindsey Vonn secured the overall World Cup skiing title, completing the first American sweep of both men's and women's titles in 25 years.
- 2009: Dwyane Wade scored 50 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and recorded nine assists in a triple-overtime thriller for the Miami Heat against the Utah Jazz.
- 2022:Â Australian Cameron Smith wins 3.6 million at the PGA Players Championship, and it was the biggest individual event purse in golf history.
Three athletes who stood out on March 14 were Hank Aaron, Gordie Howe, and Dwyane Wade.
Aaron was known as "Hammerin' Hank." He was a model of consistency, holding Major League records for RBI (2,297) and total bases (6,856). Howe was a 23-time All-Star, winning six MVP awards and four Stanley Cups, retiring with records of 801 goals and 1,850 points. Wade defined an era of basketball with his explosive speed, "Flash" nickname, and clutch performances.
