Washington Generals - Beating The Harlem Globetrotters

Beating The Harlem Globetrotters

The Reds defeated the Globetrotters 100-99 on January 5, 1971 in Martin, Tennessee. It ended a 2,495-game winning streak. Klotz credits the overtime win to a guard named Eddie Mahar, who was team captain. Harlem's captain, Curly Neal, did not play in this game.

While the Globetrotters were entertaining the crowd that day, they lost track of the game and the score. They found themselves down 12 points with two minutes left to go. Forced to play normal basketball, the Globetrotters rallied but could not recover.

The Reds secured their victory when Klotz hit the winning basket with seconds left. Then Meadowlark Lemon missed a shot that would have given the game back to Globetrotters. The timekeeper tried to stop the clock and couldn't. When the final buzzer sounded, the crowd was dumbfounded and disappointed. Klotz described the fans' reaction: "They looked at us like we killed Santa Claus."

Some children in the stands cried after the loss. The Reds celebrated by dousing themselves with orange soda instead of champagne. Lemon was furious, saying "You lost, I didn't lose," but still visited the opposing team’s locker room to congratulate the Reds.

Reds player Roy Kieval later said Globetrotters owner Abe Saperstein threatened his team over the event. As this was theater basketball, it is uncertain how much, if any, of the upset story was an angle created to promote Globetrotters games. Both teams claimed that all their exhibitions were real, competitive contests.