Anthony Davis scores 15 points and 8 blocks vs St. John’s on December 1, 2011.
Anthony Davis scores 15 points and 8 blocks vs St. John’s on December 1, 2011.
He’s Magic on the court, and Earvin at home — and he’s comfortable with that.
Before Magic Johnson became the headline act in Los Angeles, he spent two years at Michigan State where he led them to the elite 8 in 1978 and the national championship in 1979. In 1979 he faced future rival and hall of famer Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores. Johnson went on to be the number one pick in the NBA draft. Magic is considered one of the greatest point guards of all time. The instrumental is The Coolest by Lupe Fiasco. All song credit goes to him.
Visit www.nba.com for more highlights. Larry Bird and Magic Johnson talk about their first meeting in the 1979 NCAA Championship Game.
Magic Johnson makes his NBA debut and proves straight away why he is deserving to mentioned among the top basketball players in the NBA. Lloyd Free scores a game high 46 points for the San Diago Clippers. This also marks the introduction of the 3-point line.
Michigan State, coached by Jud Heathcote, won the national title with a 75-64 victory in the final game over Indiana State, coached by Bill Hodges. Magic Johnson of Michigan State was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. The final game marked the beginning of the rivalry between future Hall of Famers Johnson and Larry Bird. To this day, it remains the highest-rated game in the history of televised college basketball. Both Magic and Bird would enter the NBA in the fall of 1979, and the rivalry between them and their teams (respectively, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics) was a major factor in the league’s renaissance in the 1980s and 1990s. The game also led to the “modern era” of college basketball, as it introduced a nationwide audience to a sport that was once relegated to second-class status in the sports world. This was the first tournament in which all teams were seeded by the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee. The top six seeds in each regional received byes to the second round, while seeds 7-10 played in the first round.
Michigan State, coached by Jud Heathcote, won the national title with a 75-64 victory in the final game over Indiana State, coached by Bill Hodges. Magic Johnson of Michigan State was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. The final game marked the beginning of the rivalry between future Hall of Famers Johnson and Larry Bird. To this day, it remains the highest-rated game in the history of televised college basketball. Both Magic and Bird would enter the NBA in the fall of 1979, and the rivalry between them and their teams (respectively, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics) was a major factor in the league’s renaissance in the 1980s and 1990s. The game also led to the “modern era” of college basketball, as it introduced a nationwide audience to a sport that was once relegated to second-class status in the sports world. This was the first tournament in which all teams were seeded by the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee. The top six seeds in each regional received byes to the second round, while seeds 7-10 played in the first round.
WatchMojo.com’s video profile on the Top 10 NCAA College Basketball Career’s of All Time, here we look at Earvin Magic Johnson – Michigan State Spartans.
Rare vintage recap of the 1979 NCAA Championship game between Magic and Larry.