Photo of the Day

Babe Ruth Soars to 60 Home Runs in 1927 September 30, 1927 Yankee Stadium Attendance 10,000 With one out in the eight inning, Babe Ruth swung and the crack of the bat was unmistakable. A hard liner trying to hook foul found the right field bleacher 10 feet fair for his 60th homerun, a milestone thought to be impossible. Tom Zachary pitching for the Washington Senators threw a wicked curve ball that will ensure his infamy in baseball’s history books. Babe made his triumphant, almost regal tour of the paths, touching each bag firmly and carefully. Hats were tossed in the air, papers were torn up, and the late season crowd celebrated the moment. The hit was a game winner in a 4 – 2 win. Pitching great Walter Johnson closed out his illustrious career the same game with a ninth inning pinch hitting appearance.

Three of the top teams in the country, NC State, Maryland, and North Carolina, all of whom were loaded with future NBA stars, competed in the tournament. While top ranked NC State, led by David Thompson breezed to the final, Maryland, led by John Lucas, Len Elmore, and Tom McMillen defeated North Carolina, led by Bobby Jones, Walter Davis, and Mitch Kupchak in the semifinals by a score of 105-85. That led to one of the great conference finals in NCAA history, in which NC State beat Maryland 103-100 in overtime. The significance of that championship game was that Maryland, considered to be one of the top teams in the nation, did not get to play in the NCAA Tournament, which back then only admitted one team per conference. In large part due to Maryland’s exclusion from the tournament that year, the field was expanded the following year to 32 teams to allow for some at large bids. After defeating Maryland in the memorable 1974 ACC final, NC State went on to win the national championship.