Sports Fact of the Day 5/9-5/13/2008

May 9:
5/9/175:
Eighteen-year-old Bjorn Borg of Sweden outlasts 36-year-old Australian Rod Laver in five sets in the semifinals of the WCT championships at Moody Coliseum in Dallas. The scores are 7-6, 3-6, 5-7, 7-6, 6-2 as fans are treated to four hours of masterful shot-making and all-court play from Borg, clearly on the precipice of greatness and Laver, arguably the finest player of all time. Playing on a slow indoor carpet surface, serving speed was neutralized, resulting in brilliant baseline rallies. Thoroughly spent after surviving this grueling encounter, Borg will bow in the finals to Arthur Ashe.

Birthdays:
Pancho Gonzales b. 1928
Ralph Boston b. 1939
Howard "Butch" Komives b. 1941
Tony Gwynn b. 1960
Steve Yzerman b. 1965

1992:
Terry Norris, the WBC super welterweight champion, entered the ring against Meldrick Taylor with the word KNOCKOUT shaved on the back of his head. Norris used his hands as well as his head and successfully defended his title.

"Norris's brutally efficient defense of his title, a fourth-round knockout of WBA welterweight champion Meldrick Taylor, one of the most gifted boxers of his generation, certifies Norris as the leading candidate for the office of best fighter, pound for pound, in the world." -Richard O'Brien, May 18, 1992

Packers Fact:
Green Bay's 23-20 loss to the Rams in week 5 of 2006 marked the first time in his career that Brett Favre lost a game at Lambeau Field in which he did not throw an interception (44 games, including playoffs).

May 10:
5/10/1975:
The peerless filly Ruffian storms to an eight-length victory in the Acorn Stakes at Aqueduct racetrack in New York over Somethingregal and Gallant Trial. She'll earn universal acclaim in racing circles as she goes on to capture the two other legs of the Filly Triple Crown-the Mother Goose and American Oaks. Tragically, only two months from now, she'll break down in a match race with Foolish Pleasure at Belmont Park, injure herself further on the operating table and have to be destroyed.

Birthdays:
Pat Summerall b. 1930
Manuel Santana b. 1938
Jim Calhoun b. 1942
Phil & Steve Mahre b. 1957
Rony Seikaly b. 1965

1973:
The New York Knicks defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, 102-93, and won the NBA championship in five games.

"This year's finals were the closest and lowest scoring since 1956. The average margin of victory was five points and even in the fifth game, a veritable rout that New York won 102-93, the two teams were separated by only four points with 1:04 to play." -Peter Carry, May 21, 1973

Packers Fact:
Reggie McKenzie is the former NFL linebacker who servers as the Packers' director of pr personnel.

May 11:
5/11/1936:
Mel Ott cracks a three-run homer in the ninth inning at Baker Bowl to give the New York Giants a 13-12 victory over the Phillies. Master Melvin's timely wallop off Claude Passeau caps an eight-RBI day for the slightly built slugger and trumps a Philadelphia onslaught that produced five home runs, two by Dolph Camilli. Ott will lead the National League in homers in 1936 with 33, one of six times he will do so.

Birthdays:
Charlie Gehringer b. 1903
Rip Sewell b. 1907
Jack Twyman b. 1934
Milt Pappas b. 1939
Kerry Ligtenberg b. 1971

May 12:
5/12/1974:
After winning 11 NBA championships in 13 years (157-69), the Boston Celtics win their first one in five years with a 102-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Boston center Dave Cowens has 28 points and 14 rebounds, outplaying his taller and more celebrated rival, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In a strange seven-game series in which the road team wins five times, the Celtics clinch the title at the Milwaukee Arena.

Birthdays:
Yogi Berra b. 1925
Felipe Alou b. 1935
Johnny Bucyk b. 1935
George Karl b. 1951
Lou Whitaker b. 1957

1977:
The Los Angeles Rams signed the aging New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath to a free-agent contract.

"Hiring Namath is like having Farrah Fawcett-Majors on the payroll. People like that get noticed. ... That he should have departed one celebrity-swollen community for another is fitting for one who, while his once formidable skills decline, has become increasingly famous for being famous." -Ron Fimrite, August 15, 1977

Packers Fact:
The Packers' Mike McCarthy was one of the three first-year head coaches in the four-team NVC North in 2006 (the others were Minnesota's Brad Childress and Detroit's Rod Marinelli).

May 13:
5/13/2005:
Tiger Woods' remarkable streak of making the cut (to play the final two rounds of a tournament) is snapped at 142, a PGA Tour record, when he misses the cut line by one stroke at the Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas. Ironically, this tourney (which Woods won in 1997) is hosted by Byron Nelson, who ranks second all-time on the consecutive-cuts-made list with 113. It's only the third time Woods has missed the cut in 10 years as a professional. With the unusual occurrence of a weekend off, he flies home to Florida not to relax, but to work on his swing at a driving range.

Birthdays:
Dean Meminger b. 1948
Bobby Valentine b. 1950
Dennis Rodman b. 1961
Mike Bibby b. 1978
Barry Zito b. 1978

1995:
New Zealand won the America's Cup, 5-0, and handed the embarrassed United States team's skipper Dennis Conner his second Cup defeat in 12 years.

Conner is the only American skipper in 144 years to have lost the oldest trophy in sports, and now he has done it twice. At least in 1983, when Liberty was edged 4-3 by Australia II, Conner went down fighting. This time the man whose credo was once "no excuse to lose" went down fund-raising." -E.M. Swift, May 22, 1995

Packers Fact:

36-year-old Brett Favre led the NFL in pass attempts in 2005, becoming the fifth oldest player ever to do so. The oldest: Fran Tarkenton, who was 38 when he led the league in that category while playing for Minnesota in 1978.