Sport

Sports fans have a lot more time to sit and reminisce these days, which accounts for why there’s been so much talk on social media about games from the past. Television networks are indulging our nostalgia with a variety of old sports content, but thematically it hasn’t been tied to much other than the calendar (i.e., watching old NCAA Tournament games when the tournament would have been played or Masters archives last week).

As I worked through my own YouTube journey this weekend, I started making a list of events within my fairly recent memory I wanted to re-watch — games where the outcome turned on something small, but had a huge impact on how we remember an era.

Dirk Nowitzki scores with 3.6 seconds left to give the Dallas Mavericks a 95-93 win over the Miami Heat in Game 2 of the 2011 NBA Finals. (Photo: Mike Ehrmann, Getty Images)

2011 NBA Finals, Game 2: Miami Heat vs. Dallas Mavericks

Though the Heat were not a finished product in the first year of the Big Three, hardly anyone thought Dallas had a chance to win that series. Game 1 basically went according to plan, as Miami was able to grind out an eight-point win. In Game 2, Dwyane Wade hit a three with 7:15 remaining to put Miami up 15 points. At that moment in time, it was hard to see Dallas coming back to win that game, much less the series.

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Some would say that Wade, after hitting the shot, fired up the Mavericks by strutting in front of their bench for a few seconds too long. Or maybe it was just destiny. But either way, Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry made clutch shot after clutch shot down the stretch and the Heat were utterly clueless on offense as Dallas took the lead with a 20-2 run.

In fact, Miami didn’t even make another field goal until Mario Chalmers tied the game with a three with 24.5 seconds left. But Nowitzki backed down Chris Bosh, then side-stepped him for a left-handed layup for the game-winner to even the series.

The Heat never seemed quite the same after absorbing that shock, and Dallas took the series in six to give Nowitzki a title. Though Miami regrouped the following year, that team going 2-2 in NBA Finals rather than 3-1 is a pretty big what-if in basketball history. 

2017 College Football Playoff championship game: Alabama vs. Clemson

However you want to define the “dynasty” aspect of Nick Saban’s career, we may eventually look at his run as two separate eras. Alabama’s run of three titles in four years between 2009-12 produced some of the most dominant, fearsome college football ever played.

And while Alabama has remained great, it’s true that Saban has “only” won two championships in the last seven years — and that’s because Clemson broke the Alabama aura with a comeback from 10 points down entering the fourth quarter to win 35-31. And while everyone remembers Deshaun Watson finding Hunter Renfrow off the rub route in the corner of the end zone for the winning touchdown, lots of people have forgotten how thin the margin was during Clemson’s two-minute drive to even get in position to score.

After a leaping catch by Mike Williams got the Tigers inside the 40-yard line with 1:50 left, Clemson actually frittered away a bunch of time and only had 19 seconds left to go the last 26 yards or else risk a long field goal to send the game into overtime.

From there, everything had to go perfect for Clemson to win, and it did — a full-stretch fingertip grab by Jordan Leggett, a hold by Alabama’s Anthony Averett to stop Williams from breaking free and then the final play. If any of those things don’t go exactly right, Alabama likely has a three-peat and still a firm grip as the best program in the country. 

2009 PGA Championship: Y.E. Yang vs Tiger Woods

A few months before the world learned that Woods' marriage wasn’t the storybook it had seemed from the outside, he seemed on track for his 15th major at the PGA, entering the final round with a two-shot lead.

Woods had previously been invincible in that position at the majors, and it certainly didn’t seem like the little-known Yang was going to be the first to track him down. They arrived at Hazeltine’s 14th hole, a short par-4, tied for the lead, and still everyone expected Woods with all his experience to do what he’d always done in majors.

Instead, Yang chipped in from off the green to top Woods’ birdie and change the entire dynamic of that round. Woods was still just one shot down going into 18, but Yang hit about as perfect a shot as a golfer could hit, lofting a hybrid over a tree from just off the fairway and getting it to settle 12 feet from the cup.

Woods, who had a much easier second shot, barely missed his target and ended up just off the green. Woods couldn’t conjure up a miracle on his chip, and Yang buried the winning birdie putt, lifting his golf bag over his head like a barbell. Woods’ professional and personal life unraveled shortly thereafter, and he wouldn't win another major until last year’s Masters. Yang never won again on the PGA Tour and has missed the cut in 15 of the 25 majors he’s subsequently qualified for.  

2015 NCAA semifinals: Kentucky vs. Wisconsin

We may never see a team get as close to perfection as the Wildcats that year. Entering the Final Four 38-0, they were just two wins away from completing John Calipari’s career-long quest to go 40-0 and become the first to win a national title without losing a game since the 32-0 Indiana Hoosiers of 1976.

Years from now, historians will study Kentucky’s roster with two future NBA stars in Karl-Anthony Towns and Devin Booker as well as a few other future pros and wonder how they lost to a Wisconsin team led by Sam Dekker and Frank Kaminsky. But that doesn’t tell the whole story. Wisconsin was tough and smart and a really great college team that made consecutive Final Fours. 

Still, Kentucky should have won. After taking a 60-56 lead with 6:37 to play, Kentucky didn’t score another point until 56 seconds were remaining, while Wisconsin executed beautifully at the end in a 71-64 win. Though some Wildcats fans will forever remain sore about a Nigel Hayes putback with 2:40 left that tied the game at 60 but shouldn’t have counted because of a shot clock violation, Calipari left himself open to second-guessing by playing Andrew and Aaron Harrison down the stretch in the backcourt instead of Booker and Tyler Ulis.

If Kentucky finishes that game off, do the Wildcats win Calipari’s second national title and go down in history as the greatest team of all time? We’ll never know. Instead, Duke won Mike Krzyzewski’s fifth title to lift him above Adolph Rupp and into second all-time behind John Wooden’s 10. 

1999 French Open women’s final: Steffi Graf vs Martina Hingis

The backstory of this match was fascinating. Hingis, who took over as world No. 1 in 1997, was dominating the sport by her 18th birthday, putting her in position to become one of the all-time greats. Young and brash, Hingis had all but dismissed Graf as a threat a few months earlier, declaring, “Her time is past.”

Graf had spent more than a year battling injuries and, nearing 30, knew she was close to the end. In the French final, which Graf had surprised herself by reaching, Hingis led 6-2, 2-0 and appeared poised to roll to the title, which would have completed a career Grand Slam. But a disputed line call on the first point of the next game sent Hingis into an emotional spiral, to the point where she came over to the other side of the court to look at the ball mark and then demanded to talk to the tournament referee — behavior that even horrified John McEnroe, who was announcing the match for NBC.

The drawn-out tantrum turned the already pro-Graf crowd completely against Hingis, who later served for the title at 5-4 but played a very nervous game and was never the same. Graf won six straight games and eventually arrived at match point, where Hingis tried an underhand serve (it worked) and got booed by the French fans. Then she tried it again on another match point and argued with the chair umpire that the fans were distracting her. The whole scene was wild, but Graf eventually won her 22nd and final major title, retiring two months later. Hingis, notably, never won another Grand Slam.

Sports video of the day 

On the anniversary of Jack Nicklaus’ 1986 win, the official Masters recap video is worth a watch, if for no other reason than the high video quality, the narration and the Big 1980s Energy running throughout.

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This day in sports history: April 13

  • 1940: The New York Rangers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2, to win their third Stanley Cup. They wouldn’t win another one for 54 years.   
  • 1954: Hank Aaron made his major league debut for the Milwaukee Braves at age 20. He went 0-for-5 at the plate against the Cincinnati Reds. 
  • 1963: After starting his MLB career 0-for-11, Pete Rose got the first base hit of his career with a triple off Pirates pitcher Bob Friend. He would go on to become the all-time leader in hits with 4,256. 
  • 1972: The first players’ strike in Major League Baseball history ended after 12 days when the owners and players agreed on pension fund increases and the addition of a salary arbitration process to the collective bargaining agreement. The missed games from that season were never made up. 
  • 1986: Jack Nicklaus, who had not won a major championship in five years, shot a 30 on the back nine of Augusta National to win the Masters by one stroke over Tom Kite. Nicklaus, who capped his career with an 18th major, became the oldest Masters winner at age 46.
  • 1997: Tiger Woods won the Masters at age 21, becoming both the first minority and the youngest player to win the tournament. Woods finished 12 strokes ahead of Tom Kite, posting a tournament record 270 (18-under par). It would be the first of his 15 major championships. 
  • 2004: Barry Bonds hit his 661st career home run, passing his godfather Willie Mays. 
  • 2019: San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich won his record 1,413th regular season and playoff game, passing Lenny Wilkens. 

Sports on TV today

NFL

  • 4-7 p.m. ET: Rams at Chiefs, 2018 regular season. 105 total points! (NFL Network)
  • 8-11 p.m. ET: Packers at Vikings, 2009 regular season. Brett Favre’s first game against former team (ESPN)

College football

  • 11:30-2:30 p.m. ET: 2020 National Championship game, LSU vs. Clemson (SEC Network) 
  • 12-3 p.m. ET: Michigan State at Ohio State, 2019 (ESPNU)
  • 3-6 p.m. ET: Ohio State at Nebraska, 2019 (ESPNU)
  • 6-9 p.m. ET: Ohio State at Penn State, 2018 (ESPNU)
  • 8-11 p.m. ET: Penn State at Ohio State, 2017 (FS1)

NBA

  • 12-2 p.m. ET: Suns at Spurs, Game 1, 2008 Western Conference first round playoffs (NBA TV)

Baseball

  • 12-3 p.m. ET: Brewers at Cardinals, Game 2, 1982 World Series (MLB Network)
  • 3-6 p.m. ET: Brewers at Cardinals, Game 7, 1982 World Series (MLB Network)

Hockey

  • 5:30-7 p.m. ET: Blues at Bruins, Game 2, 2019 Stanley Cup Final (NBCSN)

Tennis

  • 6 a.m. -12 p.m. ET: 2008 Wimbledon men’s final, Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal (Tennis Channel)
  • 3-5 p.m. ET: 2015 Wimbledon women’s semifinal, Serena Williams vs. Maria Sharapova (Tennis Channel)
  • 5-8 p.m. ET: 2015 Wimbledon men’s singles semifinal, Roger Federer vs. Andy Murray (Tennis channel)

Games we’re missing

NBA

  • Miami Heat at Charlotte Hornets
  • Brooklyn Nets at Cleveland Cavaliers
  • Boston Celtics at Detroit Pistons
  • San Antonio Spurs at Indiana Pacers
  • Orlando Magic at Chicago Bulls
  • Phoenix Suns at Houston Rockets
  • Philadelphia 76ers at Memphis Grizzlies
  • Washington Wizards at New Orleans Pelicans
  • Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder
  • Dallas Mavericks at Denver Nuggets
  • Portland Trail Blazers at Golden State Warriors
  • Minnesota Timberwolves at Los Angeles Clippers

MLB

  • Minnesota Twins at Toronto Blue Jays
  • Atlanta Braves at New York Mets
  • Houston Astros at Tampa Bay Rays
  • Philadelphia Phillies at Milwaukee Brewers
  • New York Yankees at Texas Rangers
  • Chicago White Sox at Kansas City Royals
  • Boston Red Sox at Oakland Athletics 
  • Washington Nationals at Seattle Mariners 

Follow Dan Wolken on Twitter @DanWolken 

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