On this day in Boston Celtics history, legendary big man Bill Russell pulled down an NBA Finals record 40 rebounds in Game 2 of the 1960 NBA Finals, which Boston played against the (then) St. Louis (now, Atlanta) Hawks.
Despite the Louisiana native’s historic performance, the Celtics lost the game to the Hawks 113 – 103, but Boston would go on to win the series with outstanding play from Russell and point guard Bob Cousy. Earlier in that season, the USF product would set the regular-season record for rebounds as well, ripping down 51 against the Syracuse Nationals on February 5th.
That record would stand less than a year, as rival big man Wilt Chamberlain of the then-Philadelphia Warriors would grab 55 boards (and 34 points) in a loss to — of all teams — the Celtics on November 24th of the same year.
