BOISE, Idaho — THIS DAY IN SPORTS…February 27, 1959, 65 years ago today:
Boston Celtic Bob Cousy destroys the previous NBA record of 21 assists in a game as he dishes out 28 in a 173-139 shellacking of the Minneapolis Lakers. The Celtics also set a mark for most points in a regulation regular season game, as Cousy scored 31 points and Tommy Heinsohn poured in 43. Boston’s performance that night is all the more amazing in light of the fact the Celtics played without star center Bill Russell. In the end, the victory was all about Cousy’s wizardry.
Cousy changed the game and is considered the NBA’s first great point guard. His name is synonymous with the Celtics, for whom he starred from 1950-63 after being drafted No. 3 overall out of Holy Cross. (Cousy came out of retirement for a seven-game stint with the Cincinnati Royals in 1969-70 at the age of 41.) The “Houdini of the Hardwood” jump-started the Celtics dynasty under coach Red Auerbach, helping Boston win six NBA championships and leading the league in assists for eight consecutive seasons. Cousy was NBA MVP in 1956-57.
Cousy got hooked on basketball in his early teens but struggled to make a dent and was, in fact, cut from his high school team. The turning point was actually a broken right hand suffered when he fell out of a tree at the age of 15. Cousy wanted to keep playing hoops, so he learned how to use his left hand, and by the time the broken hand healed, he was essentially an ambidextrous ball-handler. That was Cousy’s breakthrough. His legend has stood the test of time, as he was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. Cousy is still with us. He’s 95 and living in New York City.
Cousy’s standard would stand solo for four years—Guy Rodgers of the San Francisco Warriors tied it in 1963. The record was finally broken by Kevin Porter of the New Jersey Nets with 29 in 1978. The current mark for most assists in a game is 30, set by Scott Skiles of the Orlando Magic in 1990. Skiles went on to head coaching jobs with the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and the Magic. He is a small piece of Boise State history, as he was Michigan State’s true freshman point guard in 1982 when the Spartans played the first college basketball game in the history of what is now ExtraMile Arena, beating the Broncos 71-59.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)
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