In 1962, the Los Angeles Lakers scored 51 fourth-quarter points against the Detroit Pistons in the Western Division Finals. (Today, we would call this the Western Conference Finals.)
Those 51 points set the NBA record for most points a quarter; a record that stood unopposed for 55 years.
Unfortunately — both for the sake of the Laker’s historical record and for fans of basketball in Brooklyn — that all changed tonight.
The Philadelphia 76ers evened up the series against Brooklyn and did so in historical fashion by hanging 51 record-tying third-quarter points on Brooklyn’s defense. Things got so bad that Kenny Atkinson waved the white flag early in the fourth, pulling his starters with ten full minutes to play in the game.