The end of April provides fans with a fantastic mix of enjoyable sports moments, from crucial NBA playoff games to critical decisions in the NFL Draft and outstanding results in combat sports. April 24 has witnessed plenty of these events, with defining championship victories in various martial arts and remarkable individual performances in the NBA.
Unforgettable Games and Remarkable Records
- 1931: Lightweight champion and boxing legend Tony Canzoneri knocked out Jack Berg to become a three-division champion and the first boxer ever to hold two belts from different weight classes simultaneously.
- 1963: The Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers to win their fifth straight NBA Championship. Hall of Famer Bob Cousy retired after the victory, marking the end of an illustrious 13-year career.
- 1967: The Philadelphia 76ers won their second championship in NBA franchise history, beating the San Francisco Warriors in six games.
- 1994: San Antonio Spurs legend David Robinson scored 71 points in a game against the Los Angeles Clippers, securing the NBA scoring title over Shaquille O’Neal.
- 2004: With the first pick in the NFL Draft, the San Diego Chargers selected quarterback Eli Manning. He was traded to the New York Giants three draft picks later, starting a legendary career that included two Super Bowl victories for New York.
- 2015: Anthony Dirrell faced Badou Jack for the WBC Super Middleweight title in Chicago, Illinois. Jack won by majority decision, handing Dirrell his first career loss.
- 2021: UFC 261 featured three title fights. Valentina Shevchenko defended her flyweight title by knocking out Jéssica Andrade, while Rose Namajunas pulled off a remarkable upset by knocking out strawweight queen Weili Zhang to claim the championship. In the main event, welterweight champion Kamaru Usman knocked out Jorge Masvidal to secure his fourth straight title.
- 2023: In a Game 4 showdown between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Miami Heat, Heat forward Jimmy Butler scored 56 points in a 119-114 overtime victory. Miami was the eighth seed pitted against the first-seeded Bucks, and this win pushed the Heat to a 3-1 series lead.
Aside from a couple of monster pitching performances from Sandy Koufax and Nolan Ryan, there have been surprisingly few notable MLB moments on April 24. This day in sports history has hosted truly remarkable basketball performances and title-winning fights in boxing and the UFC. Jimmy Butler’s insane performance against the Milwaukee Bucks sparked a shocking playoff run from a perennial underdog and led to one of the only eighth-seed upsets in the history of the NBA.
