Belt game 1,211 · April 8, 1961 · playoffs
St. Louis Hawks take the belt
St. Louis Hawks beat Boston Celtics 124–120 at home to start reign 554 of the NBA belt, the 59th for the franchise.
Boston Celtics had held it since March 23, 1961, with 4 defenses over 16 days.
St. Louis Hawks held it for 1 day and 0 defenses, then lost it to Boston Celtics on April 9, 1961.
554Reign number
59Team's reign
0Defenses
1Days held
Box score
Boston Celtics
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill Russell | 48 | 24 | 23 | 9 | — | — | 10-18 | — | 4-13 |
| Tom Heinsohn | 26 | 24 | 6 | 2 | — | — | 10-20 | — | 4-7 |
| Bob Cousy | 39 | 21 | 5 | 8 | — | — | 7-18 | — | 7-9 |
| Bill Sharman | 30 | 18 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 8-16 | — | 2-2 |
| Frank Ramsey | 32 | 12 | 7 | 3 | — | — | 4-12 | — | 4-4 |
| Gene Conley | 6 | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2-2 | — | 1-3 |
| Sam Jones | 19 | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 2-6 | — | 0-0 |
| Thomas Sanders | 20 | 4 | 8 | 1 | — | — | 2-9 | — | 0-0 |
| Jim Loscutoff | 11 | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 2-5 | — | 0-0 |
| K.C. Jones | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1-2 | — | 2-3 |
St. Louis Hawks
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG | 3P | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Pettit | 48 | 31 | 24 | 3 | — | — | 9-24 | — | 13-14 |
| Cliff Hagan | 38 | 26 | 10 | 3 | — | — | 9-15 | — | 8-8 |
| Woody Sauldsberry | 38 | 20 | 13 | 2 | — | — | 9-24 | — | 2-2 |
| Clyde Lovellette | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 6-13 | — | 4-5 |
| Lenny Wilkens | 31 | 11 | 6 | 1 | — | — | 2-11 | — | 7-8 |
| Si Green | 29 | 10 | 7 | 7 | — | — | 5-15 | — | 0-1 |
| Al Ferrari | 17 | 9 | 2 | 3 | — | — | 3-4 | — | 3-4 |
| Johnny McCarthy | 19 | 1 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 0-3 | — | 1-1 |
Player box scores: Historical NBA Data and Player Box Scores by Eoin Moore (CC0).