On this date, 50 years ago...

[Kevin Finnerty]

On March 2, 1962, at Hershey, Pennsylvania, the great Wilt Chamberlain, the most dominant player in team sports history, scored 100 points in a game against the New York Knicks.

I loved Big Wilt.

[dumbdumb]

And for those who only remember Wilt for his bad free throw shooting at the end of his career, you will notice his stats below at the free throw line that day. 90%-Not too shabby eh.

.........................................................................................................FGM..........FGA........FTM..........FTA.............Total

Wilt Chamberlain.................................................................................36.............63...........28.............32................100

And come on, who were the officials?

Officials: Willie Smith, Pete D'Ambrosio.

Who were you looking for, Earl Strom, Mendy Rudolph, or Richie Powers or current 72 year old NBA ref Dick Bavetta( he just had to break Jack Nies record who worked till he was 71 years old thru 2009)? Nope, Bavetta didn't start till '75.

[Kevin Finnerty]

Officials: The long overlooked participants in Wilt's 100 point game.

... When I was a little 12-year-old Forum rat, early in Wilt's run with the Lakers (which lasted a mere five years), and early in the Forum's life as a building, I got to talk with Wilt a lot and hear him talk a whole lot more. And two of his proudest, most often talked-about feats were never having fouled out of a game, and that night when he sank 28 of his 32 free throws. He scored 100 points, but he took more pride in highlighting that amazing free throw percentage that you illuminated.

So that was a great catch on the 28-for-32, DumbDumb, because Wilt absolutely loved to bring that up.

[mstaylor]

But everybody knows the best center ever is Shaq! All the talking heads keep saying Shaq is the best ever and I cringe everytime. I don't even have him on the TOP ten. All he ever did was be big and bully guys out of the way. If the basket was outside his arm reach he was sunk. Wilt could shoot from anywhere and he had no three point line.

A 100 point game with a 90% free throw rate is simply an incredible feat.

[dumbdumb]

I remember seeing a game on TV where Wilt was going to jam one home and I mean he was wound up for the jam. All of a sudden, a hand went up, above the rim to try and block the dunk. We are talking career ending injury for the defender trying to block the shot (picture that Theisman break we all saw in slow mo on TV in the old days). There was no way he could get his hand out of there in time once it had gone up. Wilt calmly twisted his wrist to put the ball on TOP of his massive hand and just dropped the ball into the basket. I am convinced to this day, Wilt saw this and intentionally saved this player's career. It was one of the most sportsmanship acts I have ever seen. It was well known Wilt had tremendous strenth and it took a true sportsman to do what he did. Not many would have done this, nor talented enough to see and react in time.

And on another note, I have heard it said that Babe Ruth enjoyed talking about his times as a pitcher much much more than his times as a hitter. Go figure.

[Umpire in Chief]

DD it right Wilt was a great sportsman. A feature the current NBA has no concept of.