AP Sportlight

Published May 15, 2014 12:45PM (EDT)

May 16

1884 — African-American Isaac Murphy, considered one of the greatest race riders in American history, wins the first of his three Kentucky Derbies when he guides Buchanan to victory. The horse, trained by African-American William Bird, is the first maiden to win the Kentucky Derby. Only two other maiden horses have gone on to win the Run For The Roses — Sir Barton in 1919, and Brokers Tip in 1933.

1916 — Damrosch, ridden by Linus McAtee, takes the early lead, gives it up in the stretch, and comes back to beat Greenwood by 1½ lengths in the Preakness Stakes.

1925 — Flying Ebony, ridden by Earl Sande, becomes the fourth field horse to win the Kentucky Derby, a 1½-length victory over Captain Hal. The first network radio broadcast of the Kentucky Derby airs from WHAS in Louisville.

1964 — Northern Dancer, ridden by Bill Hartack, wins the Preakness Stakes by 2½ lengths over The Scoundrel.

1976 — The Montreal Canadiens win their 19th Stanley Cup with a 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, capping a four-game sweep.

1980 — The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 123-107 to win the NBA title in six games. Rookie guard Magic Johnson fills in at center for the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and comes up with 42 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists and is named the Finals MVP. The 42 points are the most scored by a rookie in an NBA Finals game.

1982 — The New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup for the third straight year, completing a four-game sweep of the Vancouver Canucks with a 3-1 victory.

1987 — Alysheba, ridden by Chris McCarron, wins the Preakness Stakes, finishing a half-length ahead of Bet Twice, who was also the Kentucky Derby runner-up.

1992 — America3, Bill Koch's high-tech racing machine, wins the America's Cup 4-1 in the best-of-seven final series with a 44-second victory over Italy's Il Moro di Venezia.

1996 — Steve Yzerman scores 1:15 into the second overtime as Detroit advances to the Western Conference finals with a 1-0 victory over the St. Louis Blues in Game 7. It's the second time in NHL history that a Game 7 is scoreless heading into overtime.

1998 — Kentucky Derby winner Real Quiet, ridden by Kent Desormeaux, wins the Preakness beating Victory Gallop by 2¼ lengths. Bob Baffert becomes the first person to train Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winners in successive years. In 1997, Baffert won the Derby and Preakness with Silver Charm.

1999 — The New York Knicks become the second eighth-seeded team in NBA playoff history to defeat a No. 1 seed in the playoffs when they beat the Miami Heat in five games.

2001 — Allen Iverson scores 52 points — including 29 in the first half — as Philadelphia routs Toronto 121-88 to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals. It's the second time anyone's had two 50-point games in a series since Michael Jordan did it against Cleveland in 1988.

2007 — The Atlanta Braves are sold by Time Warner Inc. to Liberty Media Corp. The deal, which Braves chairman Terry McGuirk values the franchise at $450 million, is unanimously approved by baseball owners at a special meeting called to beat a midnight change in tax laws.

2009 — Rachel Alexandra becomes the fifth filly to win the Preakness Stakes, and the first since Nellie Morse in 1924. Rachel Alexandra holds off the late rush of Kentucky Derby victor Mine That Bird to secure the win. Calvin Borel, who rode Mine That Bird in the Derby, switched to Rachel Alexandra and guided her to a sixth straight victory.

2010 — American sprinter Tyson Gay breaks a 44-year-old record for 200 meters run on a straight track at the Great City Games in Manchester, England. Gay finishes in 19.41 seconds into a slight headwind on a specially constructed track, shaving 0.09 off the mark Tommie Smith set in May 1966 at San Jose, Calif.


By Compiled By Paul Montella



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