Sports Fact of the Day 11/20-29/09

11/20/2004:

Winky Wright (48-3, 25 KOs) retains his super welterweight title with a 12-round majority decision over Sugar Shane Mosley (39-4, 35 KOs) at the Mandalay Bay Arena in Las Vegas. It's the same result as last March, when Wright's superior size, speed and quickness proved too much for Mosley. Wright's southpaw style and withering barrage of right jabs continually keep Mosley from gaining a toehold during the bout. Moreover, Wright is a natural 154-pounder, while Mosley had to bulk up from his previous career stops at the lightweight (135 lbs.) and welterweight (147 lbs.) classifications to challenge at this higher weight.

Birthdays:

Don January b. 1929

Louis Dampler b. 1944

Joey Galloway b. 1971

J.D. Drew b. 1975

Carlos Boozer b. 1981

Packers Fact:

Linebacker Ray Nitschke (1958-1972) was a three-time all-pro, but he earned just one Pro Bowl nod. It came in the 1964 season, and he returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown in the game.

11/21/1942:

The War Eagles of Auburn swoop down upon the undefeated Georgia Bulldogs at Columbus and upset them, 27-13. Thanks to some nifty reconnaissance by assistant coach (and later head coach) Shug Jordan. Auburn is tipped off to Georgia's running plays by subtle indicators, especially those of All-American Charlie Trippi. As a result, Auburn running backs Jim Reynolds and Monk Gafford help to compile an astounding 355-37 edge in rushing yardage for the underdog Auburn squad. Georgia's star fullback, Frankie Sinkwich, is unable to reverse Auburn's momentum and fumbles in his own end zone, handing Auburn the clinching touchdown. The loss ends Georgia's national championship aspirations; that honor will go to Ohio State.

Birthdays:

Stan Musial b. 1920

Earl Monroe b. 1944

Troy Aikman b. 1966

Ken Griffey Jr. b. 1969

Michael Strahan b. 1971

Packers Fact:

The Packers won the famous "Ice Bowl" against the Dallas Cowboys in 1967 (on New Year's Eve). Bart Starr's quarterback sneak in the final seconds gave Green Bay a 21-17 victory.

11/22/1950
Putting the game into a deep freeze to offset the dominance of seven-foot center George Mikan, the Fort Wayne Pistons get a basket by rookie Larry Foust with six seconds to go and beat the Minneapolis Lakers by the ridiculously low score of 19-18. The loss snaps a 29-game home-court winning streak for the Lakers and only eight field goals are made in the entire game, four by each team. Paying customers to the still fledgling NBA were clearly not interested in buying tickets to watch players just stand around all night, so it's amazing that the modern-day 24-second clock will not be introduced until the 1954-55 season, eliminating such suffocating stall tactics like those employed by the Pistons tonight.

Birthdays:

Lew Burdette b. 1926

Yvan Cournoyer b. 1943

Billie Jean King b. 1943

Greg Luzinski b. 1950

Boris Becker b. 1967

11/23/2005:

Connecticut staves off Gonzaga, 64-63, to win the Maui Invitational in Lahaina, Hawaii. Denham Brown's basket with one second left gives the Huskies the tourney title over a talented field of opponents featuring four of the nation's top 12 teams. UConn's depth proves decisive as the Zags are outscored 27-10 off the bench. Gonzaga All-American Adam Morrison earns MVP honors, thanks in part to his 41-point outburst in the semis against Michigan State.

Birthdays:

Lew Hoad b. 1934

Luis Tiant b. 1940

Vin Baker b. 1971

Saku Koivu b. 1974

Jonathan Papelbon b. 1980

Packers Fact:

In a 15-year NFL career that began in 1953, center Jim Ringo played in the Pro Bowl for both the West (with Green Bay) and East (Philadelphia) squads.

11/24/1955:

The Miami (Ohio) Redskins complete a perfect 9-0-0 season with a 14-0 shutout of Cincinnati in Ara Parseghian's last game as their head coach. The Redskins score both of their touchdowns in the fourth quarter, one on a 24-yard pass from Tom Dimitroff to Pres Bliss and the second on a short run by Tirrel Burton. They win the "Victory Bell," emblematic of this long-standing rivalry, despite committing six turnovers in the game played at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati. Coach Parseghian, a Miami graduate, will be moving on to Northwester for 8 years, and after that, 11 noteworthy seasons at Notre Dame.

Birthdays:

Ducky Medwick b. 1911

Yale Lary b. 1930

Oscar Robertson b. 1938

Dave Bing b. 1943

Keith Primeau b. 1971

Packers Fact:

The Packers won just one playoff game in the 1980s. It was against the St. Louis Cardinals. Green Bay won a first-round game in 1982-41-16.

11/25/1950:

The Toronto Argonauts defeat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, 13-0, in the Grey Cup at Varsity Stadium in Toronto. The game is played in a steady downpour, which mels an accumulation of snow that fell yesterday. The grass playing surface of Varsity Stadium, already beat up from a full season of usage, is turned into one big quagmire. Over 27,000 fans turn out to watch the Argos win their fourth Canadian Football League championshiph in six years in a game quickly dubbed "the Mud Bowl" for its laughably unplayable conditions.

Birthdays:

Joe DiMaggio b. 1914

Bernie Kosar b. 1963

Cris Carter b. 1965

Anthony Peeler b. 1969

Donovan McNabb b. 1976

Packers Fact:

The Packers acquired veteran safety Eugene Robinson from the Seahawks in exchange for defensive end Matt LaBounty before the 1996 season. Robinson went on to intercept 6 passes for Green Bay's Super Bowl championship team that year.

11/26/2005:
The New York Rangers defeat the Washington Capitals, 3-2, using a shottout, a newly instituted tiebreaking procedure designed to reach an outcome in three rounds of penalty shot-style attempts by each team but requires 15 rounds tonight, a new NHL record. Rangers defenseman Marik Malik beats Caps goalie Olaf Kolzig with a deke and a flip shot to the top portion of the net to end the marathon. Washington had a chance to win in the conventional overtime session after questioning the curvature of Rangers star Jaromir Jagr's stick and being upheld; however, the Caps failed to do anything with their two-minute, four-on-three manpower advantage.

Birthdays:
Lefty Gomez b. 1909
Harry Carson b. 1953
Chuck Finley b. 1962
Mario Elie b. 1963
Shawn Kemp b. 1969

Packers Fact:
Lynn Dickey passed for 4 touchdowns in the Packers' 41-16 rout of the Cardinals in a first-round playoff game in 1982.

Trying to fit New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's all-American-boy image into a modern context in an era of instant news, all-talk radio and demanding fans, Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy remarked: "Tom Brady is Ozzie Nelson in an Ozzy Osbourne world."

Birthdays:
Chick Hearn b. 1916
Mike Scioscia b.1958
Ivan Rodriguez b. 1971
Nick Van Exel b. 1971
Jimmy Rollins b. 1978

Packers Fact:
Quarterback Tobin Rote, who began his pro career in Green Bay in 1950, went on to play in the Canadian Football League and the American Football League before retiring at age 38 in 1966.

11/28/1995:
Marcus Camby scores 32 points, grabs 9 rebounds and blocks 5 shots to lead fifth-ranked UMass to a 92-82 upset of top-ranked Kentucky at Auburn Hills, Michigan. After blowing a 19-point first-half lead, UMass runs off an 11-1 spurt to start the second half and the Minutemen maintain their edge by actively defending the three-point arc, not letting Kentucky shoot from long range. Dana Dingle has 19 points for UMass, and Donta Bright adds 17. These two clubs will meet again this season in the NCAA tournament Final Four and Kentucky will win the rematch, 81-74, en route to winning the national title.

Birthdays:
Paul Warfield b. 1942
Walt Weiss b. 1963
John Burkett b. 1964
Matt Williams b. 1965
Robb Nen b. 1969

Packers Fact:
In 12 NFL seasons from 1961 to 1972, cornerback Herb Adderly (he was with Green Bay from 1961 to 1969) returned 7 interceptions for touchdowns. At the time of his retirement, that was a league record. Rod Woodson holds the mark now with 12 scoring runbacks.

11/29/1971:
The Cincinnati Reds adquire second baseman Joe Morgan from the Houston Astros, along with starting pitcher Jack Billingham, infielders Denis Menke, center fielder Cesar Geronimo and reserve Ed Armbrister. Morgan will change the face of the Reds with his speed, on-base percentage and winning attitude. Over the next six years, he'll have over 100 runs scored, draw over 100 walks, average 60 steals per season and win the 1975 and'76 National League MVP awards.

Birthdays:
Minnie Minoso b. 1922
Neal Broten b. 1959
Howard Johnson b. 1960
Mariano Rivera b. 1969
Jamal Mashburn b. 1972