Happy Chandler: Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 1982

Born: July 14, 1898

1901: Mother abandoned family

1918: WWI ended before he was called to service

1920: Played semi-pro ball

1921: Graduated from Transylvania University

1924: Graduated University of Kentucky

1925-30: Lawyer, coach, and scout

1928: Commissioner on circuit court

1929-31: Kentucky Senate

1931-35: Lt. Governor of Kentucky

1935-39: Governor of Kentucky

1939-45: U.S. Senator

1945-51: Baseball Commissioner

1946: Imposed 5 year ban on players jumping to Mexico

1946: Averted first player's strike

1947: Supported Jackie Robinson and end of the color barrier

1947: Negotiated baseball's first major media deal

1951: Wakefield dispute

1951-5: Writer, lawyer

1955-59: Governor of Kentucky

1957: Elected to Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame

1960: Ran for president

1962: Ran for governor again

1965-6: Commissioner of Continental Football League

1967: Ran for governor

1971: Ran for governor

1982: Elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

1989: Published autobiography

1991: Died


Accomplishments:
Supported desegregation

Stopped players jumping to Mexico

Averted players' strike

Negotiated baseball's first major media deal

The Greatest NCAA Basketball Games by Decade

I only went back to the sixties for this.

1960s: Texas Western: 72 Kentucky: 65 (1966): Texas Western fielded an all black starting five and knocked off #1 Kentucky led by a guy named Adolph. It was the first time a major college program started five black players in a NCAA Championship Game. Texas Western was also the first team to start five blacks in any game earlier that year.

1970s: MSU: 75 Indiana State: 64 (1979): Before Magic and Bird, NBA games were shown on tape delay at midnight and there was no March Madness or Bracketology. Then came the 1979 Championship Game and the Laker-Celtic matchups of the 80s…

1980s: NC State: 54 Houston: 52 (1983): NC State had to run the table in the ACC Tournament to make the dance. In the Championship Game, they played the high flying Phi Slama Jama Houston Cougars. The game ended with Lorenzo Charles’ dunk off an air ball thrown up by Dereck Whittenburg.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KH1Jt2XATgE

1990s: Duke: 104 Kentucky: 103 (1992) Elite 8: In the greatest basketball game of all time, Duke trailed Kentucky 103-102 when Christian Laettner threw up a prayer in overtime. With 2.1 seconds remaining, Grant Hill threw the ball the length of the court, Laettner caught it, pivoted, dribbled, and tossed up his shot. Duke wins.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY-iq58_oz4

2000s: George Mason: 86 Uconn: 84 (2006) Elite 8: In an improbable upset, the Patriots stun the Huskies in overtime to make the Final Four. George Mason was an 11 seed. This was not only one of the great upsets, but also a portend of the trend of mid-majors beating the big boys in major collegiate sports.