Dec. 21
1891 — Dr. James Naismith introduces the first game of basketball. Based on 13 rules created by Naismith, the game is tested by 18 students at the School for Christian Workers in Springfield, Massachusetts. Using a soccer ball, two peach baskets and two teams of nine players each, the objective is to throw a round ball into a round basket attached to a balcony 10 feet above the floor.
1941 — The Chicago Bears win the NFL championship with a 37-9 rout of the New York Giants.
1975 — The Buffalo Sabres score eight goals in the third period of a 14-2 victory over the Washington Capitals. Rick Martin scores four goals and Fred Stanfield gets three for Buffalo. The Sabres, who lead 6-2 after two periods, outshoot the Capitals 22-3 in the final period.
1981 — Doug Schloerner’s 15-foot jump shot with 1 second remaining in the seventh overtime gives Cincinnati a 75-73 victory over Bradley. The seven overtimes set an NCAA record.
1991 — Buffalo’s Alexander Mogilny matches an NHL record by scoring five seconds into the game as the Sabres beat Toronto 4-1.
1997 — Barry Sanders of the Detroit Lions becomes the third player to rush for 2,000 yards in a season when he gains 184 in a 13-10 win over the New York Jets. Sanders finishes with 2,053 yards, second to Eric Dickerson’s 2,105 in 1984.
2001 — Dwayne DeRosario scores six minutes into overtime as the San Jose Earthquakes beat the Los Angeles Galaxy 2-1 to win their first MLS Cup.
2008 — Detroit becomes the first 0-15 team when it’s routed 42-7 by the New Orleans Saints. The Lions also break NFL records by being outscored by a combined 176 points at home and by an average of 22 points.
2008 — Cleveland’s Jamal Lewis becomes the 24th player in NFL history to rush for 10,000 career yards in the Browns’ 14-0 loss to Cincinnati.
2008 — San Francisco’s Isaac Bruce becomes the fifth player to reach 1,000 catches on a 3-yard touchdown grab in the 49ers’ 17-16 win at St. Louis.
2009 — Martin Brodeur surpasses Terry Sawchuk’s 40-year-old NHL record with his 104th career shutout, leading New Jersey to a 4-0 victory over Pittsburgh.
2010 — The No. 1-ranked Connecticut women’s basketball team tops the 88-game winning streak by John Wooden’s UCLA men’s team from 1971-74, beating No. 22 Florida State 93-62. Maya Moore has a double-double with a career-high 41 points and 10 rebounds and Bria Hartley adds 21 points for the Huskies, who hold the record for the longest winning streak in all of college basketball history.
2013 — Jared Roberts makes a 41-yard field goal as time expires and Colorado State overcomes a 22-point deficit to beat Washington State 48-45 in the New Mexico Bowl.
2014 — Houston wide receiver Andre Johnson has six receptions for 65 yards in the Texans’ 25-13 win against Baltimore to become the 10th player in NFL history to reach 1,000 career catches.
2015 — Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini are each banned for eight years by the FIFA ethics committee in a stunning removal of world soccer’s most powerful leaders. FIFA President Blatter and his one-time protege Platini are kicked out of the sport for conflict of interest and disloyalty to FIFA in a $2 million payment deal that is also the subject of a criminal investigation in Switzerland.
2018 – Tennis Australia announces a 10-point tie break to be implemented in Australian Open when deciding set reaches 6-6; takes place of 2-game advantage final sets.
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