Melo scores 33 in the 3rd quarter

[EarthBall]

Carmelo scored 33 points in the 3rd quarter against the Wolves tonight to tie George Gervin's record.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=281210007

This was a record that I thought would never fall or be tied (of course records are meant to be broken...). The Ice Man scored 33 in the 2nd quarter (63 total) on April 9, 1978, the last day of the regular season just so he could eclipse David Thompson's scoring average (Thompson scored 73 pts earlier that day to try to win the title). Gervin even sat out the entire 4th quarter, having gotten the points he needed during the 3rd quarter. That's why I never thought it would be broken. It isn't every day that players go out of their way to score a lot of points just to win a scoring title (but then again David Robinson did that in 1994 and Shaq scored 60-something on his birthday). I'm just surprised and impressed that Carmelo did it during a close and competitive game.

Congrats Melo.

Now Gervin loses a little bit of his luster in my book. I never saw the guy play, but I've always associated him with that record (and the scoring titles he won). Unfortunately, when players lose their records, they aren't remembered as much. Look at the Ichiro-George Sistler hits record and Maris-McGwire HR record (I can't think of any for basketball). The casual fans of future generations won't be as familiar with the former record holders. Of course, great players like Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Ty Cobb are remembered even though their records fell. I just hope that doesn't happen with Gervin because, although he was very good, he wasn't a Jordan or Bird.