Flashback Friday: Lakers Visit Cal Poly to Benefit Memorial Fund
11/6/2020 9:00:00 AM | General, Men's Basketball
Each Friday from September through November, Cal Poly will revisit memorable games, meets or matches from Mustang history through our Flashback Friday series presented by Pacific Eye.
Following the 1960 Cal Poly football team plane crash, a memorial fund was set up for families of the victims as well as survivors of the tragedy.
Among those who contributed to the fund were the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers, who visited Cal Poly for two preseason games in San Luis Obispo during each of the years to follow.
The first exhibition was held on Oct. 2, 1961, as the defending league champion Boston Celtics edged their soon-to-be storied rivals, 121-116 in the benefit.
Only seven months later, the two franchises would square off in one of the most epic NBA Finals ever, with Boston winning a 4-3 series with a 110-107 overtime victory in Game 7.
Tickets for the 8 p.m. tipoff were set at $3 apiece, resulting in a sold-out crowd at then-Mustang Gym (today known as Mott Athletics Center, in honor of Dr. Robert Mott, who had arranged the ASB-sponsored game with Lakers general manager Louis Mohs).
Sam Jones netted 26 points for Boston, while Bill Russell added 21 in the win. Jerry West and Elgin Baylor scored 31 and 25 apiece to lead the Lakers. Bobby Sims also had a strong first half for Los Angeles, helping the Lakers get out to a double-digit lead prior to the break, before Boston rallied.
The morning after the game, both teams were hosted for breakfast at Cal Poly prior to their departures.
The Lakers would return to San Luis Obispo the next year, but this time to face the San Francisco Warriors, on Oct. 11, 1962. About 2,000 fans attended, with tickets priced at $1.50 for students and $3-4 for general reserved seating, sold around the county at various sporting good stores.
Again with an 8 p.m. tipoff, the Lakers topped the Warriors 110-96, led by a 46-point effort from Baylor, outdueling a 41-point game from Wilt Chamberlain.
Al Attles also scored 14 points for San Francisco (in its debut season in California, after relocating to the Bay Area from Philadelphia), but West added 25 in the victory.
The game's third quarter saw six ties, but Baylor scored four quick buckets early in the fourth to push the Lakers to an 89-76 lead en route to the win.
With much of the proceeds going toward the Cal Poly Memorial Fund to aid relatives of those killed and the survivors of the 1960 crash, the games generated an estimated total of about $4,500 for charity at the time combined (equating to almost $40,000 today, adjusted for inflation).
ÂGallery: (11-6-2020) Lakers Visit Cal Poly for Memorial Fund
Baylor, Chamberlain, Jones, Russell and West were all named to the NBA's 50 Greatest Players of All Time list for the league's 50th anniversary celebrated in 1997.
The Celtics won a record eight straight titles from 1959-66, included among Russell's unprecedented 11 rings overall, while Baylor and West led the Lakers to seven NBA Finals spanning the decade. In 1971-72, Chamberlain joined L.A. for a record-setting season, including a still-unmatched 33-game winning streak, en route to the world championship.
Â
Â
Following the 1960 Cal Poly football team plane crash, a memorial fund was set up for families of the victims as well as survivors of the tragedy.
Among those who contributed to the fund were the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers, who visited Cal Poly for two preseason games in San Luis Obispo during each of the years to follow.
The first exhibition was held on Oct. 2, 1961, as the defending league champion Boston Celtics edged their soon-to-be storied rivals, 121-116 in the benefit.
Only seven months later, the two franchises would square off in one of the most epic NBA Finals ever, with Boston winning a 4-3 series with a 110-107 overtime victory in Game 7.
Tickets for the 8 p.m. tipoff were set at $3 apiece, resulting in a sold-out crowd at then-Mustang Gym (today known as Mott Athletics Center, in honor of Dr. Robert Mott, who had arranged the ASB-sponsored game with Lakers general manager Louis Mohs).
Sam Jones netted 26 points for Boston, while Bill Russell added 21 in the win. Jerry West and Elgin Baylor scored 31 and 25 apiece to lead the Lakers. Bobby Sims also had a strong first half for Los Angeles, helping the Lakers get out to a double-digit lead prior to the break, before Boston rallied.
The morning after the game, both teams were hosted for breakfast at Cal Poly prior to their departures.
The Lakers would return to San Luis Obispo the next year, but this time to face the San Francisco Warriors, on Oct. 11, 1962. About 2,000 fans attended, with tickets priced at $1.50 for students and $3-4 for general reserved seating, sold around the county at various sporting good stores.
Again with an 8 p.m. tipoff, the Lakers topped the Warriors 110-96, led by a 46-point effort from Baylor, outdueling a 41-point game from Wilt Chamberlain.
Al Attles also scored 14 points for San Francisco (in its debut season in California, after relocating to the Bay Area from Philadelphia), but West added 25 in the victory.
The game's third quarter saw six ties, but Baylor scored four quick buckets early in the fourth to push the Lakers to an 89-76 lead en route to the win.
With much of the proceeds going toward the Cal Poly Memorial Fund to aid relatives of those killed and the survivors of the 1960 crash, the games generated an estimated total of about $4,500 for charity at the time combined (equating to almost $40,000 today, adjusted for inflation).
Â
Baylor, Chamberlain, Jones, Russell and West were all named to the NBA's 50 Greatest Players of All Time list for the league's 50th anniversary celebrated in 1997.
The Celtics won a record eight straight titles from 1959-66, included among Russell's unprecedented 11 rings overall, while Baylor and West led the Lakers to seven NBA Finals spanning the decade. In 1971-72, Chamberlain joined L.A. for a record-setting season, including a still-unmatched 33-game winning streak, en route to the world championship.
Â
Photos & graphic compiled courtesy of Kennedy Library/Telegram-Tribune/Mustang Daily Archives
@CPMustangs • #RideHigh
@CPMustangs • #RideHigh
Sunday, June 07
Friday, June 05
Monday, June 01
Sunday, May 31
