HOT ROD HUNDLEY was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers on the night of March 2, 1962, when he heard Wilt Chamberlain had made history. Chamberlain had had big games before, to be sure, but this was different. The man had done something no one had ever done - or would do since. He had set what some say is the most insurmountable record in sports: 100 points in a game.
Now the Jazz play-by-play announcer, Hundley laughs when he thinks of that game. "The story goes that a guy in the bar asked him how many points he had that night. Wilt said, `A hundred.' " says Hundley. "The guy said, `Yeah, sure.' Nobody believed him."Since then, it has only become more difficult to imagine. A man would have to dominate a game completely to score 100 points. He would also have to have his teammates force-feeding him the ball with the express intention of reaching a record - which is what happened. Consequently, the record stands as it has for 35 years, as symmetrical and imposing as the Washington Monument. On a late-winter night, before 4,124 fans in Hershey, Penn., "The Dipper" as Hundley still calls him, went for triple-figures.
While records are made to be broken, Chamberlain's is one that may well stand for all time. Changes in the game and personnel make it highly unlikely anyone will ever reach that pinnacle again. The free throw lane has been widened, so players can't post up as close to the basket as they formerly did. Big, agile players are everywhere nowadays, but in 1962, 7-foot-1 players were a rarity. Chamberlain was the largest man in the league. He was not only tall, but he weighed 275. He flicked players off with his massive forearms and backed people under the rim. He began the historic game against 6-10 Darrell Imhoff, who was poorly equipped to handle most centers his own size, let alone the Big Dipper. But by halftime, Imhoff was in foul trouble and 6-7 Cleveland Buckner was soon guarding Chamberlain and looking for cover. Years later, when teased about giving up 100 points to Chamberlain, Imhoff pointed out that he was in foul trouble all night. "He only got 82 off me," he said.
Compared to today's top-scoring games, Chamberlain's is astounding. As dominating as the Lakers' Shaquille O'Neal is in the middle, he has never scored more than 53 points in a game. Chamberlain scored 50 or more points 118 times, including seven straight. So the 100-point record remains one of the most majestic, and unreachable, in sports. Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's home run record for a season, and Henry Aaron broke Ruth's all-time home-run record. Bob Beamon's long jump record stood for 23 years until Mike Powell broke it in 1991. Cal Ripken Jr. finally passed Lou Gehrig's consecutive games mark in baseball. And while Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak has never been surpassed, none less than the all-time hits leader, Pete Rose, has predicted that mark will eventually fall.
But nobody has even neared Chamberlain's mark. The four highest-scoring games ever? Those belong to Wilt (100), Wilt , Wilt (73, tied with David Thompson) and Wilt . Elgin Baylor got 71 in 1960, as did David Robinson in 1994. Pete Maravich's threw in 68 points against New York in 1977. In the highest-scoring game of his career, Karl Malone racked up 61 against Milwaukee in 1990. Although a phenomenal night, he would have had to score another 39 - a phenomenal game in itself - to reach Chamberlain's mark.
Scoring 40 or even 50 points was just another day at the office for Wilt. He scored 40 or more points 271 times, including 14 straight in 1960-61. The following year he scored over 30 points in 65 straight games. He scored over 20 points in 126 straight games. The man was as unrelenting as a collections agency. But even by those standards, this was different.
The most curious thing about Chamberlain's record-setting night wasn't that he scored at will, it was that he made 28 of 32 free throws. This from a player who shot only 51 percent from the line for his career; who turned free throw shooting into high adventure. But for some strange reason he was feeling the stroke that night. The Knicks, bent on avoiding being on the bad end of history, couldn't even foul Wilt for profit. The Dipper was rocking and rolling, even at the line.
So as the NBA celebrates its 50th Anniversary Season, it is worth noting what happened 35 years ago tomorrow. It was truly a game for the books. It is also worth noting that while many players continue to rake in unbelievable figures off the court, there is one figure none of them has ever attained. And probably never will.