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SALT LAKE CITY — It’s been 45 years since the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association brought the first-ever professional sports championship to the Wasatch Front.
Zelmo “Big Z” Beaty, Merv “The Magician” Jackson and Austin “Red” Robbins were all important in leading the Stars to the 1971 ABA championship with a 131-121 game-seven win over the Kentucky Colonels, perhaps the greatest moment in Utah pro sports history.
Click the video above for a look back at the win, and a sneak peek of KSL Sports’ feature-length celebration of the Stars, which will air Saturday, June 4 at 6 p.m. MDT on KSL TV.
