74th Anniversary of Lowest-Scoring Game in NBA History

On this day in 1950, the Fort Wayne Pistons and Minneapolis Lakers combined to muster just 37 points.

In 1950, the Minneapolis Lakers were the class of the freshly formed NBA, and nobody was more aware than Murray Mendenhall.

His Fort Wayne Pistons had been on the losing end of beatdowns from the likes of George Mikan and Vern Mikkelsen far too often.

So when they trundled into the Minneapolis Auditorium – whose court was four feet narrower than the league average – they had a unique gameplan.

As this was in the days before the shot clock, there was no limit to how long a team could hold the ball.

Mendenhall instructed his Pistons to stand there with possession until a Laker came out to hassle them.

When the dust settled, the strategy had worked. Fort Wayne escaped with a win – by the score of 19-18.

The furor from fans and ownership was almost immediate.

“The commissioner of the National Basketball Association just put his foot down and said you can’t do this,” said Stew Thornley, expert on all things Minnesota sports, especially basketball.

“Whether the rules allow it or not, you’re going to kill our sport.”

Many believe this game was the direct catalyst towards the institution of the 24 second shot clock, but it was actually that warning from commissioner Maurice Podoloff that kept teams from reaching those lows in the next few years. The shot clock would hit the court in 1954.

To this day, no game has come close to this drudgery. These teams combined for 37 points – the next-lowest combined game score is 83.