April 12

From Hoopedia

• 1900 - Hall of Fame Original Celtics player Joe Lapchick, who coached St. John's to four National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championships, is born in New York, New York.

• 1930 - Branch McCracken, Bud Foster and Charley "Feed" Murphy lead the Oshkosh All-Stars to a 30-23 win over the Chicago Majestic to claim the Midwest pro championship.

• 1954 - The Minneapolis Lakers become the first team to win three NBA championships in a row by defeating Syracuse 87-80 in Game 7. It is the Lakers' fifth championship in six years.

• 1958 - Bob Pettit pours in 50 points and the St. Louis Hawks beat the Boston Celtics, 110-109, to win the NBA Finals four games to two. Pettit set a Finals scoring record that would stand until Elgin Baylor broke it in 1962. This championship remains the only one claimed by the Hawks franchise.

• 1985 - The New York Knicks win the first-ever Draft Lottery, enabling them to select Patrick Ewing (right) with the first pick in the NBA Draft.