The Current | Vol. 31 Issue 28

March 30, 2021 | nsucurrent.nova.edu 8 Sports This Week in Sports History March 30, 2020 – International Olympic Committee (IOC) postpones 2020 Olympics Due to the pandemic, the 2020 Olympics were postponed until 2021. The Olympics have only been postponed once in WW2.The IOC rescheduled the international games for 2021 with dates of July 23 to Aug 8. Though they will take place in 2021, the event will still be known as the 2020 Olympics. March 31, 1993 – Michael Jordan assigned to Birmingham Barons In 1993, NBA legend Michael Jordan was assigned to the Birmingham Barons, the Chicago White Sox’ AA affiliate in Minor League Baseball, just four months after retiring from the NBA. Jordan, a three-time NBA MVP who was coming off a three-peat with the Chicago Bulls, wanted to play baseball as a tribute to his late father, who always wanted Michael to be on the diamond professionally. The NBA’s arguable GOAT played baseball for two years before returning to basketball. April 1, 2015 – Golden State’s 54-game home winning streak is snapped Coming out of nowhere, the Golden State Warriors ripped a 54-game home winning streak, the longest in NBA history. Starting on Jan. 31, 2015, the home win-streak ended on April 1, 2016 with a 3-point loss to the Boston Celtics. From 2014-2016, the team was 78-4 at Oracle Arena. Though their streak was broken, the Warriors finished the 2015-2016 season 73-9, the best in NBA history. April 2, 2019 – Russell Westbrook has NBA’s first 20-20-20 In 2019, Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook put up the second 20-point, 20-rebound and 20-assist game in NBA history whilehonoring thedeathof his friend, rapper Nipsey Hussle. “That’s for Nipsey,” yelled Westbrook as he pulled down his historic 20th rebound of the night with just 40 seconds remaining in the game. Westbrook is the second addition to the 20-20-20 club, with Wilt Chamberlain having 22 points, 21 assists and 25 rebounds on Feb. 2, 1968.assists and 25 rebounds on Feb. 2, 1968. April 3, 2006 – Steve Yzerman scores final NHL goal In 2006, NHL legend Steve Yzerman scored the final goal of his Hall of Fame career against the Calgary Flames. The Canadian hockey legend scored 692 goals in his 22- year playing career spanning from 1983 to 2006, playing all for the Detroit Red Wings. Yzerman left his mark in the league and in the record books. He has the 10th most goals scored (692), the seventh most points (1,755), the ninth most assists (1,063) and the 21st most games played (1,514) in NHL history. April 5, 1984 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar breaks Wilt Chamberlain’s record for career points In 1984, Los Angeles Lakers center Kareem Abdul- Jabbar broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record for career points, with the previous mark being 31,419 points. The 36-year-old center has a career average of 24.6 points per game in 1,560 games. Abdul-Jabbar increased the record to 38,387 throughout the end of his career and made a record that may never be broken. The closest current player is LeBron James, who is 3,198 points away. April 4, 1986 – Wayne Gretzky sets NHL record with 213th point In 1986, Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky set an NHL record with his 213th point of the season, a score that he would increase to 215 before the season’s end. The record still stands today, and nobody has even come close. In the 1985-1986 season, Gretzky had 52 goals and 163 assists, with the assists being a single-season NHL record that nobody has come close to since. 3.30 3.31 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 On March 12, the men’s baseball team took on the Florida Tech Panthers. After a long awaited season, the Sharks finally got the opportunity to play. The 19th ranked team took on the Panthers for a double header. Unfortunately, the Sharks fell to the Panthers in the first match up 4-3. The Sharks struggled gaining offensive power in the first game. Although they did get some players onto the bases, they just couldn’t get those points on the board. The Panthers were hitting off the freshman Shark pitcher, which made it hard for the team. The Panthers had an early lead, but finally, the Sharks got on the board for 1. Getting on the board is important. This prevents the game from being completely over. For the Sharks, this was disappointing, but yet, they are still hopeful for the season to come. The Sharks faced the Panthers again for a round two match up on March 13, and although it was hard fought, the Panthers slipped by the Sharks with a 2-1 loss. The Panthers put up a score of 1-0 first, and after three innings of the Sharks not scoring, they finally put themselves on the board. Both games were very close and the Sharks are still holding their heads up as they continue to play the season. As Joseph Duffy once said, “Losing isn’t always the end. Sometimes, it becomes the beginning.” In order for some teams to have success, they need to lose. This allows them to push harder. Although losing is a hard concept to overcome, the Sharks are hopeful. The schedule for the Sharks seems to be another difficult aspect of their season. Games continue to get postponed and this can be very frustrating for teams. Their second game of the season was against Palm Beach Atlantic on March 27 with home-field advantage for the Sharks. At this point, the Sharks have a record of 0-3. Heads are held high as they have time to practice and improve on key areas. With seven seniors on the roster, they are hoping to make their last season one to remember. No player wants to say goodbye to their last year. As seniors, they are fighting hard for their last season and the team is wishing for a better outcome for the rest of the year. Opening day for Sharks Baseball Abigail Johnson Contributing Writer With permission to print from NSU Athletics.