Today we look back, way back, at Michael Jordan’s 61-point game on Chicago’s 150th birthday.
Hello and welcome to my new Throwback Thursday feature here on Crucial Baskets. Each Thursday I will dive into a NBA game from the past and, much like my TNT on Friday columns, will give my take on how the game unfolded. Why not start this series off with the best scoring performance to ever occur on this date: Michael Jordan’s 61 points in a 125-120 overtime win at the Detroit Pistons.
Today is Chicago’s 184th birthday, so I figured today would be a perfect day to cover this game. On this day 34 years ago the Greatest Player of All-Time figured the best present for his city’s sesquicentennial was a record-setting game on the road against a heated rival. I wrote about this game in a previous life, but I only watched a highlight video of MJ’s scoring for that post. For this article I’m taking a look at the entire game so I can get a full perspective of how Jordan got so hot and what the Pistons’ rebuttal was to His Airness taking off.
First and foremost, let’s talk about Mike’s night. His 61 was a franchise regular season record at the time, as he had scored 63 points in the playoffs the season before this. He would repeat this record again a month and 12 days later at home against the Atlanta Hawks, and eventually smash it was a 69-point performance at Cleveland in March 1990.
In this game, Jordan dropped 14 in the first quarter, 10 in the second, seven in the third, 26 in the fourth, and four in overtime. Those final two points in regulation were a game-tying pull-up baseline mid-range jumper that sent the game into OT tied at 111. His fourth quarter was a Bulls record at the time, but he would go on to break that with 30 points in the fourth at Denver in 1988. That record still stands.
It was so much fun watching Michael go. He went 22-of-39 from the field and 17-of-18 from the line. Jordan scored in a number of ways, but did so without attempting a three-point shot. He got a few baskets on post-ups, but for the most part he was a total menace off the dribble. He would terrorize Piston defenders by either finding his way to the basket or pulling up for a mid-range jumper. But no matter how he did it, his famous hang time was on full display. Jordan would basically float every time he jumped, and he gave Detroit fits as a result.
The Bulls needed every bit of those 61 points, too. Outside of MJ, there was little offensive firepower. It’s no coincidence that Chicago lost Michael’s lowest-scoring regulation quarter 33-23, but were able to claw back and get to overtime behind his big fourth. Backup Sedale Threatt was Chicago’s second-highest scorer, notching 19 points, including eight of them in the extra period. He also had a team-high six assists. He picked up the slack for starter John Paxson, who had an absymal 4-of-12 shooting night.
Up front, Dave Corzine chipped in 11 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and two blocks. Charles Oakley showed off his impressive skillset of strength down low, a little shooting touch, and a penchant for deep outlet passes. He ended up with seven points, a game-high 16 rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
Detroit, on the other hand, definitely had the advantage coming into the game. They were at home, were infamously the more physical team, and featured two All-Stars in Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer as well as potent scorer Adrian Dantley to form a dangerous Big Three.
In fact, Dantley led Detroit with 32 points while Isiah Thomas pitched in 31 points. Dantley feasted mostly in post-ups, but also hit his fair share of close-range pull-up shots and elbow jumpers. Thomas got off to a slow start, only scoring four points in the first half. However, he maintained a playmakers’ mindset throughout, allowing him to dish out a game-high 18 assists. Joe Dumars added 19 points to the cause. Laimbeer showed off his mid-range prowess en route to 18 points, including six in overtime. In fact, he started at power forward, with former MJ teammate Sidney Green tasked with jumping center at the beginning of the game.
The Pistons held control for large portions of the game. However, they just couldn’t keep up with Jordan’s 30 in the fourth quarter and overtime, and Threatt iced the game with his big overtime outburst. Dantley had 22 in the first half, a scoreless third quarter, and 10 in the fourth. Late in the fourth, MJ stole a post entry pass intended for Dantley, which certified the game for overtime. He was held scoreless in the extra five minutes. Thomas had two in overtime, but couldn’t knock down a straight-away three that could have sent the game into double overtime.
This win also broke the Bulls’ 8-game losing streak at the Pontiac Silverdome. Unfortunately, the Bulls would finish the season 9-16 for a 40-42 record. That earned them the eighth seed in the playoffs, and a first round reunion with the Boston Celtics. Like in 1986, the Bulls would be swept in three games again.
Detroit, meanwhile, entered the game 30-2 when leading after three quarters, so this was a rare lapse for the Pistons. They would finish the year 15-10 for a 52-30 record and the third seed. They would meet those same Celtics in the Conference Finals, falling short in a hard-fought seven-game series.
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