Dec. 20
1921 — Baseball Commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis casts the deciding vote to return to best-of-seven World Series from the best-of-nine format. The American League votes to return to best-of-seven World Series, while National League votes for the best-of-nine format. The a best-of-nine series was used in 1903 and 1919 through 1921.
1966 — The NBA grants a franchise to Seattle, expanding the league to 11 teams for the 1967-68 season.
1973 — Henri Richard of the Montreal Canadiens scores his 1,000th point, getting an assist in a 2-2 tie with the Buffalo Sabres.
1980 — NBC experiments by not providing commentators for the national broadcast of the game between New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. The Jets win 24-17.
1981 — Winnipeg’s Doug Smail scores a goal five seconds into the game to set a NHL record for fastest goal from the start of a game. The Jets beat the St. Louis Blues 5-4.
1983 — Montreal’s Guy Lafleur scores his 500th goal as the Canadiens beat the New Jersey Devils 6-0. Lafleur scores the milestone goal at 8:34 of the third, beating Glenn Resch with a rising 30-footer.
1985 — North Carolina sets an NCAA record with 18 blocked shots in an 87-55 rout of Stanford.
1998 — Green Bay’s Brett Favre becomes the first NFL player to throw for more than 30 touchdowns in five different seasons. Favre connects three times with Antonio Freeman in the first half of a 30-22 win over Tennessee to break a tie with Dan Marino.
2003 — St. John’s provides a perfect ending for coach John Gagliardi’s record-breaking season, snapping Mount Union’s NCAA-record 55-game winning streak with a 24-6 victory in the Division III championship game.
2005 — Kobe Bryant scores a career-high 62 points and the Los Angeles Lakers beat Dallas 112-90. Bryant scores a franchise-record 30 points in the third quarter and sits out the fourth after outscoring the Mavericks 62-61 over the three quarters.
2006 — Bode Miller wins the super-giant slalom in Hinterstoder, Austria, 90 minutes after Lindsey Kildow and Julia Mancuso finish 1-2 in a downhill at Val d’Isere, France. Those successes give the U.S. team five wins and an unprecedented nine podium results over six days. It’s the most impressive streak for the American team since 1983.
2009 — Ben Roethlisberger completes 29 of 46 passes with three TDs and 503 yards, becoming the first Pittsburgh quarterback to throw for 500 yards in a game during a 37-36 win over Green Bay. He hits rookie Mike Wallace for a 19-yard touchdown on the final play.
2009 — Cleveland’s Jerome Harrison scores his third touchdown with 44 seconds left for the winning points and rushes for a team-record 286 yards in a 41-34 win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Joshua Cribbs of the Browns has two kickoff returns for touchdowns.
2014 — No. 1 Kentucky scores the game’s first 24 points in an 83-44 victory over UCLA. The Wildcats lead 41-7 at the intermission. It’s the lowest point total in a half for UCLA and the fewest by a Kentucky opponent since December 1943.
2015 — New England improve to 12-2 with a 33-16 win over Tennessee, and becomes the second team in NFL history with at least 12 regular-season wins in six consecutive seasons.
2017 — Fletcher Magee scores 27 points to help Wofford stun No. 5 North Carolina 79-75, snapping the reigning national champion’s 23-game home winning streak.
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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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Dec. 22
1894 — The United States Golf Association is founded, becoming the governing body for the game in the country.
1915 — The Federal League folds. Owners of the American and National Leagues buy out half of the owners (Pittsburgh, Newark, Buffalo, and Brooklyn) of the Federal League teams. Phil Ball, owner of the St. Louis Terriers, is allowed to buy the St. Louis Browns of the AL, and Charles Weeghman, owner of the Chicago Whales, buys out the Chicago Cubs of the NL.
1924 — Babe Dye of the Toronto St. Patricks scores five goals in a 10-2 victory over the Boston Bruins.
1946 — The Cleveland Browns beat the New York Yankees 14-9 in the first AAFC championship game.
1969 — Pete Maravich sets an NCAA record by hitting 30 of 31 foul shots, and scores 46 points to lead LSU to a 98-89 victory over Georgia.
1974 — Boston’s Phil Esposito scores two goals, including his 500th goal, to lead the Bruins to a 5-4 win over the Detroit Red Wings at Boston Garden.
1990 — Paul Coffey becomes the second NHL defenseman to record 1000 points. Coffey reaches the milestone with an assist on Kevin Stevens’ goal in second-period of a 4-3 win against the New York Islanders.
1996 — Brett Hull becomes the 24th player in NHL history to score 500 goals, with a hat trick in the St. Louis Blues’ 7-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings. Brett and his father, Bobby Hull, are the first father-son tandem to each score 500 goals.
2003 — Brett Favre passes for 399 yards and four touchdowns a day after his father dies, moving into second place in NFL history for career TD passes while leading the Green Bay Packers to a 41-7 victory over the Oakland Raiders. Favre passes Fran Tarkenton on the NFL’s career list with his 343rd career TD throw.
2005 — Reggie Campbell of Navy ties the NCAA bowl record with five touchdowns and had 290 all-purpose yards, leading the Midshipmen to a 51-30 win over Colorado State in the Poinsettia Bowl.
2006 — Peter Bondra scores his 500th NHL goal early in the third period to snap a 1-all tie and lead Chicago past Toronto 3-1.
2007 — Eathyn Manumaleuna blocks a field goal as time expires to give BYU a 17-16 victory over UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl.
2009 — Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh becomes the first defensive player voted The Associated Press College Football Player of the Year, winning the award after his dominant performance against Texas in the Big 12 title game.
2013 — Peyton Manning finishes 32 for 51 for 400 yards and four touchdown passes to set the single season touchdown mark in Denver’s 37-13 win over Houston. Manning, with 51 touchdown passes, passes Tom Brady (50 in 2007) for the most in a single season in NFL history.
2013 — Tom Brady leads the Patriots to a 41-7 win at Baltimore as New England clinches the AFC East. It’s the 11th division title for Brady, the most by a starting quarterback in NFL history.
2016 — Matt Linehan throws for 381 yards and four touchdowns and runs for a another score to help Idaho beat Colorado State 61-50 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. It’s the third-highest scoring game in bowl history. Idaho (9-4) matches its highest victory total since moving to FBS in 1996.
2020 – Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi scores his 644th goal for FC Barcelona during 3-0 win over Real Valladolid to break Pele’s record for most goals for one club; Pele, 643 goals for Santos 1956-74
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Dec. 23
1933 — Montreal’s Howie Morenz scores his 251st goal to become the NHL’s career goal-scoring leader. Morenz’s goal caps the Canadiens’ 3-0 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.
1951 — Norm Van Brocklin’s 73-yard touchdown pass to Tom Fears in the fourth quarter gives the Los Angeles Rams a 24-17 victory over the Cleveland Browns for the NFL title.
1962 — Tommy Brooker kicks a 25-yard field goal 17:54 into overtime, giving the Dallas Texans a 20-17 victory over Houston for the AFL title.
1972 — The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Oakland Raiders 13-7 on Franco Harris’ “Immaculate Reception,” in an AFC Divisional playoff game. On 4th-and-10 on their own 40-yard line with 22 seconds remaining and no time outs. Terry Bradshaw, under pressure, throws a pass over the middle to Oakland’s 35-yard line which is deflected by Oakland’s Jack Tatum. Running back Franco Harris catches the deflection at the Raiders’ 43-yard line and runs down the left sideline for a touchdown.
1978 — Bryan Trottier has five goals and three assists to lead the New York Islanders to a 9-4 victory over the Rangers. Trottier sets an NHL record with three goals and three assists in the second period.
1982 — Chaminade, an NAIA school, beats top-ranked Virginia and 7-foot-4 center Ralph Sampson, 77-72, for one of the biggest upsets in college basketball history. The game is played at Honolulu’s International Center in front of 3,383 fans.
1996 — Barry Sanders of the Detroit Lions rushes for 175 yards in a 24-14 loss to San Francisco to finish with 1,553 yards for the season. It’s Sanders’ third straight season with at least 1,500 yards rushing, a first in the NFL.
2007 — The New England Patriots set an NFL record with their 15th win, the best start in league history, with a 28-7 victory over the Miami Dolphins 28-7.
2007 — Chris Johnson sets an NCAA bowl record with 408 all-purpose yards, and Ben Hartman kicks a 34-yard field goal as time expires to give East Carolina a 41-38 victory over No. 24 Boise State in the Hawaii Bowl.
2008 — The Boston Celtics set a franchise record with their 19th consecutive victory, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 110-91. The Celtics improve to 27-2 — the best start for a two-loss team in NBA history. The 19-game winning streak breaks the Celtics record set in 1981-82.
2012 — New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees passes for 446 yards and three touchdowns in the Saints’ 34-31 overtime win at Dallas. Brees, with 4,781 passing yards, becomes the first player in NFL history to record at least 4,500 yards in three consecutive seasons.
2013 — Andrew Luck throws for 205 yards to break a single-season rookie record, and his touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne late in the fourth quarter puts Indianapolis in the playoffs with a 20-13 win over Kansas City. Luck, with 4,183 yards, surpasses Cam Newton’s year-old record of 4,051 yards passing by a rookie in the second quarter.
2022 — Washington Capitals center Alex Ovechkin scores two goals to move past Gordie Howe on most NHL career goals list in 4-1 win over visiting Winnipeg Jets.
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