January 1, 1927: The Palestra Opens

January 1, 1927: The Palestra opens on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, next-door to the school's football stadium, Franklin Field. It become known as "The Cathedral of College Basketball."

William N. Bates, a Penn professor, named the building after the ancient Greek term palaestra, meaning a rectangular enclosure attached to a gymnasium where athletes would compete in various sports in front of an audience. 

There is one level of seats, 8,725 of them. The seats do not have backs. Also, if you're in the back row, you could end up sitting next to a hot radiator. But it really does resemble a cathedral: There are stained-glass windows. And there are no luxury boxes: Ivy League bankers and lawyers have to sit next to kids from the street. This is what Philadelphia, the birthplace of the country, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, is all about.

Starting in 1955, the "Big Five" has been Penn, Temple University, La Salle University, St. Joseph's University and Villanova University. The Palestra became nationally famous for its Big 5 doubleheaders, with 4 out of the 5 teams playing. Temple used it as its home court from 1955 until the 1969 opening of McGonigle Hall, and St. Joe's used it in the 2008-09 season, while Alumni Fieldhouse/Hagan Arena was renovated.

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January 1, 1927 was a Saturday. In the Rose Bowl, in the stadium of the same name in the Los Angeles suburb of Pasadena, California, Stanford University and the University of Alabama played to a 7-7 tie. The schools were retroactively recognized as sharing the National Championship. It was the 1st sporting event broadcast on nationwide radio, on NBC.

It was a big day in the history of football for another reason, although that wouldn't be known for another 20 years: Doak Walker was born on this day.

There were 4 games played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 4-0 at the Chicago Coliseum.

* The Ottawa Senators beat the Montreal Canadiens, 2-1 at the Ottawa Auditorium.

* The Montreal Maroons beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 3-0 at the Mutual Street Arena in Toronto.

* And the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Detroit Cougars, 3-2 at the Border Cities Arena (now the Windsor Arena) in Windsor, Ontario.

And in English soccer, Arsenal lost to Welsh team Cardiff City, 3-2 at the Arsenal Stadium, nicknamed Highbury for its North London neighborhood. It was no fluke: Cardiff City would also defeat Arsenal in that season's FA Cup Final.