Today in Sports – Spurs become 1st former ABA team to win NBA Championship, Tim Duncan named MVP

June 25

1921 — Jock Hutchinson is the first American to win the British Open, a nine-stroke victory over Roger Wethered in a playoff.

1926 — Bobby Jones becomes the first amateur in 29 years to win the British Open. Jones finishes with a 291 total for a two-stroke over Al Watrous at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in Lytham St Annes, England.

1932 — Gene Sarazen wins the U.S. Open by shooting a 286, the lowest in 20 years.

1935 — Future world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis moves to 20-0 with 6th round KO of former champion Primo Carnera of Italy at Yankee Stadium, NYC.

1948 — Joe Louis knocks out Jersey Joe Walcott in the 11th round in New York to defend his world heavyweight title. Louis announces his retirement after the fight.

1952 — Jim Turnesa wins the PGA Championship with a 1-up victory over Chick Harbert in the final round.

1966 — Buckpasser sets a world record in the 1-mile Arlington Classic in 1:32 3-5 and becomes the first 3-year-old to win more than $1 million.

1969 — Pancho Gonzalez, 41, wins the longest tennis match in Wimbledon history by beating Charles Pasarell in a 112-game match, 22-24, 1-6, 16-14, 6-3, 11-9. The match is played over two days and lasts 5 hours, 12 minutes.

1978 — In Buenos Aires, Argentina wins the World Cup beating Netherlands 3-1 after extra time.

1981 — Sugar Ray Leonard wins the WBA junior middleweight title with a ninth-round knockout of Ayub Kalule in Houston.

1988 — MLB player Cal Ripken Jr. plays in his 1,000th consecutive game.

1988 — UEFA European Championship Final, Olympiastadion, Munich, Germany: Ruud Gullet & Marco van Basten score as the Netherlands beats Soviet Union, 2-0.

1991 — Nine-time champion Martina Navratilova survives a first-round scare from Elna Reinach to win her record 100th singles match at Wimbledon.

1994 — FIFA World Cup: 1,500th goal in Cup’d history scored by Caceres of Argentina.

1997 — NBA Draft: Wake Forest power forward Tim Duncan first pick by San Antonio Spurs.

1997 — NHL approves franchises in Nashville, Atlanta, Columbus, and Minnesota-St Paul.

1999 — San Antonio wins its first NBA championship, defeating the New York Knicks 78-77 in Game 5 of the Finals. The Spurs, keyed by finals MVP Tim Duncan’s 31 points, becomes the first former ABA team to win the championship.

2006 — Asafa Powell matches Wallace Spearmon’s world best in the 200 meters, winning the Jamaican national championships in 19.90 seconds.

2006 — Bernard Lagat becomes the first runner in the history of the U.S. track and field championships to sweep the 1,500 and 5,000 meters, after winning the shorter race.

2008 — NBA Draft: Oklahoma power forward Blake Griffin first pick by Los Angeles Clippers.

2013 — UCLA wins its first national championship in baseball with an 8-0 win over Mississippi State.

2014 — John Norwood’s home run in the top of the eighth inning gives Vanderbilt the lead, and the Commodores beat Virginia 3-2 for their first national championship.

2015 — NBA Draft: Kentucky center Karl-Anthony Towns first pick by Minnesota Timberwolves.

2017 — Jordan Spieth needs an extra hole and an amazing final shot to finish off a wire-to-wire victory in the Travelers Championship. The two-time major champion holes out from 60 feet for birdie from a greenside bunker on the first hole of a playoff with Daniel Berger at TPC River Highlands. The 23-year-old Texan joins Tiger Woods as the only PGA Tour players with 10 victories in the era since World War II.

2019 — NHL Draft: Barrie Colts (OHL) defenseman Aaron Ekblad first pick by Florida Panthers.

2020 — Liverpool FC clinches first EPL soccer title in 30 years with 7 games to spare as Chelsea beats second-placed Manchester City, 2-1 at Stamford Bridge.

2021 — Philadelphia Philles pitcher Aaron Nola ties Tom Seaver’s 51-Year old MLB record of ten consecutive strike outs in a 2-1 loss to the Mew York Mets.

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