March 17
1897 鈥� Bob Fitzsimmons knocks out Jim Corbett in the 14th round to win the world heavyweight title in Carson City, Nev. It鈥檚 the first boxing match photographed by a motion picture camera.
1908 鈥� Tommy Burns knocks out Jene Roche in 80 seconds at the Royal Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, to retain the world heavyweight title.
1939 鈥� Villanova wins first game of the men鈥檚 NCAA basketball tournament, defeating Brown 42-30 in Philadelphia. Ohio State beats Wake Forest 64-52 in the second game of the doubleheader.
1940 鈥� For the first time in NHL history, one line 鈥� The Kraut Line of Milt Schmidt, Woody Dumart and Bobby Bauer 鈥� finish 1-2-3 in NHL scoring when the Boston Bruins score five goals in the third period to defeat the Montreal Canadiens 7-2.
1955 鈥� Canadien fans riot in the streets of Montreal protesting NHL President Clarence Campbell鈥檚 suspension of Maurice 鈥淩ocket鈥� Richard the previous day. The Canadiens forfeit the game to the Detroit after a smoke bomb goes off in the Forum and crowds spill into the streets, setting fires, smashing windows and looting.
1961 鈥� Manhattan District Attorney Frank S. Hogan arrests two professional gamblers, Aaron Wagman and Joseph Hacken, and implicates Hank Gunter and Art Hicks of Seton Hall in a collegiate point shaving scandal.
1993 鈥� Dallas snaps a 19-game losing streak with a 102-96 win over visiting Orlando. The Mavericks were one game away from tying the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers for the longest single-season losing streak in NBA history.
2001 鈥� Connecticut cruises to a 101-29 win over Long Island University in the first round of the East Regional, the best defensive effort in the history of the women鈥檚 NCAA tournament. Connecticut鈥檚 72-point victory also ties the second-biggest margin in tournament history.
2006 鈥� Jermaine Wallace hits a fadeaway 3-pointer with a split-second left, and little Northwestern State pulls off a shocker with a furious rally, beating No. 3 seed Iowa 64-63 in the first round of the men鈥檚 NCAA tournament.
2012 鈥� Lindsey Vonn sets a women鈥檚 record for the most World Cup points in a season after finishing eighth in a slalom won by Austria鈥檚 Michaela Kirchgasser at Schladming, Austria. Vonn reaches 1,980 points to beat the mark of 1,970 set by Janica Kostelic of Croatia in 2006.
2016 鈥� Little Rock advances with an out-of-nowhere comeback that leads to an 85-83 double-overtime victory over Purdue in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
2018 鈥� The UConn Huskies open their NCAA Women鈥檚 Tournament with a record-setting 140-52 rout of Saint Francis (Pa.). The tournament鈥檚 top seed sets a record for points in a tournament game and all-time NCAA records for points in a period (55 in the first) and a half (94 in the first).
2020 鈥� French Open becomes first Grand Slam tennis tournament to be postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic.
_____
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
