Hershey Arena - Site of Wilt Chamberlain's 100-Point Game in 1962
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
The Hershey Sports Arena, where Wilt Chamberlain set the single-game scoring record in the National Basketball Association by scoring 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors in a 169–147 win over the New York Knicks on March 2, 1962. The record, which still stands today, is considered one of greatest individual feats in basketball history.
Images
Wilt Chamberlain following his historic 100-point game.
State historical marker
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Philadelphia Warriors star center Wilt Chamberlain was arguably the most dominant offensive player the game of basketball had ever seen. Standing 7'1" and weighing 275 lbs., Chamberlain set new records for scoring and rebounding.1 Earlier in the 1961-62 season, his third in the NBA, he had set a new single game scoring record when he scored 78 points on December 8, 1961 in a game against the Los Angeles Lakers.
According to the Associated Press, the crowd of 4,124 shrieked, "Give it to Wilt, give it to Wilt," as Chamberlain scored basket after basket. "I wasn't even thinking of hitting 100," he said, "but after putting in nine straight free throws I was thinking about a foul-shooting record. It was my greatest game."2 In addition to setting the single game scoring record, Chamberlain would also establish new records for field goals (36), free throws (28 of 32), most points for a quarter (31), and most points for a half (59) on this historic evening.
It was been widely reported that this record setting affair received little fanfare at the time. The game was held in Hershey, PA, located about 90 miles west of Philadelphia, one of several out of town "home" games the Warriors had scheduled that year to grow their regional fan base.3 Local Philadelphia papers did not devote an inordinate amount of attention to the this extraordinary game, and no footage exists of the contest. Despite this, like Joe DiMaggio's record 56-game hitting streak, the legend of this incredible achievement becomes more impressive, and more widely celebrated with the passage of time. The closest an NBA-player has come to eclipsing Chamberlain's mark came nearly 44-years later when Kobe Bryant, another former Philadelphia high school phenom like Wilt before him, scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006.4
According to the Associated Press, the crowd of 4,124 shrieked, "Give it to Wilt, give it to Wilt," as Chamberlain scored basket after basket. "I wasn't even thinking of hitting 100," he said, "but after putting in nine straight free throws I was thinking about a foul-shooting record. It was my greatest game."2 In addition to setting the single game scoring record, Chamberlain would also establish new records for field goals (36), free throws (28 of 32), most points for a quarter (31), and most points for a half (59) on this historic evening.
It was been widely reported that this record setting affair received little fanfare at the time. The game was held in Hershey, PA, located about 90 miles west of Philadelphia, one of several out of town "home" games the Warriors had scheduled that year to grow their regional fan base.3 Local Philadelphia papers did not devote an inordinate amount of attention to the this extraordinary game, and no footage exists of the contest. Despite this, like Joe DiMaggio's record 56-game hitting streak, the legend of this incredible achievement becomes more impressive, and more widely celebrated with the passage of time. The closest an NBA-player has come to eclipsing Chamberlain's mark came nearly 44-years later when Kobe Bryant, another former Philadelphia high school phenom like Wilt before him, scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006.4
Sources
1. http://basketballreference.com
2. http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/sports/year_in_sports/03.02.html
3. http://explorepahistory.com/hmarker.php?markerId=1-A-306
4. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=260122013