Dec. 5, 1947 – Joe Louis defeated Jersey Joe Walcott to retain his heavyweight title

After trouble finding another suitable opponent, on December 5, 1947, Joe Louis met Jersey Joe Walcott, a 33-year-old veteran with a 44–11–2 record. Walcott entered the fight as a 10-to-1 underdog. Nevertheless, Walcott knocked down Louis twice in the first four rounds. Most observers in Madison Square Garden felt Walcott dominated the 15-round fight. When Louis was declared the winner in a split decision, the crowd booed.

Louis was under no delusion about the state of his boxing skills, yet he was too embarrassed to quit after the Walcott fight. Determined to win and retire with his title intact, Louis signed on for a rematch. On June 25, 1948, about 42,000 people came to Yankee Stadium to see the aging champion, who weighed 213½, the heaviest of his career to date. Walcott knocked Louis down in the third round, but Louis survived to knock out Walcott in the eleventh.

Louis would not defend his title again before announcing his retirement from boxing on March 1, 1949. In his bouts with Conn and Walcott, it had become apparent that Louis was no longer the fighter he once had been. As he had done earlier in his career, however, Louis would continue to appear in numerous exhibition matches worldwide.

May 8, 1970 – New York Knicks win first NBA Championship by defeating the Lakers 4 games to 3

The New York Knicks managed only one winning season between 1955 and 1966. Desperate to improve, the team took Willis Reed in the second round of the 1964 draft. Reed hailed from Grambling State University, where he had amassed 2,280 career points and averaged 26.6 points and 21.3 rebounds per game during his senior year.

A natural center, Reed began his career with the Knicks playing power forward. Although he was named Rookie of the Year for 1965, the Knicks still floundered. A turnaround finally began during the 1967-68 season, when the Knicks hired coach William “Red” Holzman, a defensive tactician who demanded that his team begin to play as a unit. In 1968, the Knicks traded center Walt Bellamy and forward Howard Komives to the Detroit Pistons for forward Dave DeBusschere. DeBusschere, a former Chicago White Sox pitcher, was a talented athlete, and he played power forward, which allowed Reed to switch back to center. The 1969-70 Knicks team featured DeBusschere, forward Bill Bradley, big man Willis Reed and guard Walt “Clyde” Frazier, all future Hall of Famers. The team finished the regular season with a 60-22 record, including an 18-game winning streak, on their way to the Eastern Division title. Reed was voted the regular-season Most Valuable Player, as well as the All-Star Game MVP.

After disposing of the Baltimore Bullets and Milwaukee Bucks in seven- and five-game series, the Knicks met another talented squad in the 1970 NBA finals: the Los Angeles Lakers, led by 7-foot-1-inch center Wilt Chamberlain, guard Jerry West and forward Elgin Baylor. In the first four games of the series, Reed dominated, scoring 37, 29, 38 and 23 points, respectively, while averaging 15 rebounds.

A thigh injury suffered in Game 5 forced Reed to the bench for Game 6, which the Lakers dominated, winning 135-113. On May 8, with Reed’s status in limbo, Madison Square Garden filled up for Game 7. Reed limped onto the court a few minutes before tip-off, and made his first two shots. Though they were the only two baskets Reed would make in the game, they made an emotional impact on both the team and the Madison Square Garden fans, and set the Knicks on the road to victory. Walt Frazier took up the slack, scoring 36 points and making 19 assists in the Knicks’ 113-99 rout of the Lakers to win their first NBA title. In recognition of his dominance in the first five games, Reed was named Most Valuable Player of the series.

via history.com

Feb. 8, 1998 – Michael Jordan was named the NBA All-Star Game MVP

Jordan scored 23 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished a team-high eight assists on way to being named the the oldest All-Star Game MVP, winning the award nine days before his 35th birthday.

The 1998 NBA All-Star Game was the 48th edition of the North American National Basketball Association All-Star Game. The event was held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The East won the game 135–114. This game was the debut of Kobe Bryant as the youngest all-star in NBA history at 19 years of age and rookie Tim Duncan. Bryant had a team-high 18 points. Michael Jordan earned MVP honors, scoring 23 points, grabbing 6 rebounds, and dishing out 8 assists. The Game featured 4 all-stars from the Los Angeles Lakers. The Western Conference was coached by George Karl from the Seattle SuperSonics and the Eastern Conference was coached by Larry Bird of the Indiana Pacers. This marks the only All-Star game to feature both Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan in which Jordan was with the Chicago Bulls. Jordan came out of retirement in 2001 and played two more seasons (and selected to the All-Star team both years) for the Washington Wizards.

Jan. 9, 1958 – Oscar Robertson Scored 56 Points at Madison Square Garden

The New York Times reported in 2008 that Cincinnati basketball sophomore Oscar Robertson scored 56 points at Madison Square Garden against Seton Hall . The final score was Cincinnati 118 and Seton Hall 54. Robertson outscored the entire opposition.

Robertson was 22-for-32 and hit all 12 free throws. Keep in mind, this was before three-point shots and well before the NCAA instituted a shot clock. Robertson eventually was inducted into the National Basketball Hall of Fame for his vaunted college and NBA career.

below is a snippet from The New York Times:

“When the Big O First Played the Garden: 56 in ’58”
By OSCAR ROBERTSON
Published: March 9, 2008

When we took the court that night, we had an 8-2 record. A guard in high school, I was playing forward and averaging about 30 points and 16 rebounds a game. An injury had sidelined our 6-10 senior pivotman, Connie Dierking, so we were still adjusting at both ends of the court. We were a fast-breaking, high-scoring team, and given the opportunity, my teammates could put the ball in the basket as well.

Our game tipped off in front of what seemed like a mostly empty building. (I think the crowd was about 4,500.) I missed my first jumper, but on the next possession, I backed my defender down, then spun off him for a scooping layup. From that point, I was pretty much in a zone, hitting jump shot after jump shot, or posting up, or finishing fast breaks. The ball kept going in the basket for me, and our whole team was fast-breaking and scoring at will. I was taken out with two minutes left, and the final score was Cincinnati 118, Seton Hall 54.

I did not know how many points I had until I was cornered in the dressing room by the largest horde of reporters I had ever seen, all of whom wanted to ask about my record night. I had hit 22 of 32 field-goal attempts and 12 of 12 free throws.

I’m afraid I wasn’t a very exciting interview, giving mostly monosyllabic replies and identifying my first state high school championship as my biggest thrill to date. One writer stayed until after all the others had left, and introduced himself as Milton Gross of The New York Post.

“You know, if you’re a star, you have to learn how to talk to the media,” he said.

“But I don’t know them,” I replied.

He said he would be willing to give advice on dealing with the press — an offer I was happy to accept — and he became a trusted friend and confidant for the rest of my college and professional careers.

When I finally dressed and left the Garden, it was late; the streets were empty and glowing. A light snow was in the air. I was with my roommate, Chuck Machock. The team had long gone, so we walked back to the Paramount Hotel, talking about the game we had just played and everything that had happened afterward. I was not sure why, but I had a sense that my life would never again be the same after that night.