Top 25 Games of the Year

SI Staff | Dec 26, 2007

Top 25 Games of the Year /

Top 25 Games of the Year

Sept 1, 2007

In the year of the positively shocking and not-to-be-believed, the Mountaineers ushered in the season of upsets, knocking off then-No. 5 Michigan in the Big House 34-32.

Nov. 4, 2007

The undefeated Colts and Patriots met in what was dubbed Super Bowl 41 1/2, and the game lived up to the hype. Tom Brady threw two of his three touchdown passes in a four-minute span in the fourth quarter as the Patriots came back from a 10-point deficit for a 24-20 win.

May 31, 2007

Channeling his inner-Michael Jordan, LeBron James scored a career playoff-high 48 points -- including his team's final 25 -- in a 109-107 double-overtime victory over Detroit in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. Two days later the Cavs' earned a berth in their first NBA Finals.

Jan. 1, 2007

Boise State's improbable 43-42 overtime victory over Oklahoma had everything, from a Statue of Liberty play on the game-winning, two-point conversion to a running back proposing to a cheerleader after the game.

Jan. 16, 2007

It was the game of the year in college basketball, and one of the best in the sport's history. It featured transcendent performances by Texas' freshman Kevin Durant (37 points) and OSU's Mario Boggan (37 points with 20 rebounds), who sank this 3-pointer with 3.2 seconds left in the third overtime to seal the 105-103 win.

Oct. 6, 2007

A 41-point underdog, the Cardinal shocked No. 2 USC 24-23. Sophomore quarterback Tavita Pritchard (pictured), made his first career start and hit Mark Bradford for a 10-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal with 49 seconds left to end the Trojans' 35-game home win streak.

Oct. 1, 2007

In an improbable run, the Rockies won 13 of their last 14 regular-season games to force a one-game playoff on Oct. 1 with the Padres. Down 8-6 in the 13th inning and facing baseball's alltime saves leader, Trevor Hoffman, Colorado scored three runs in the bottom of the inning to advance to the postseason for the first time since '95.

Jan. 21, 2007

Peyton Manning led Indianapolis from 18 points down in the second quarter, including a game-winning 80-yard drive late in the final quarter, for a 38-34 victory over New England in the AFC title game.

Oct. 13, 2007

A No. 1 hadn't fallen during the regular season since Kansas State beat Oklahoma on Dec. 6, 2003, but Kentucky changed all that with a 43-37 triple-overtime win. Steve Johnson caught the game-winning seven-yard touchdown pass, and the defense held on fourth-and-2, giving UK its first victory over a top-ranked team in 43 years.

Nov. 23, 2007

Arkansas running back Darren McFadden ran for 206 yards and three touchdowns and threw for another as LSU lost as a No. 1 for the second time, this one 50-48 in triple overtime.

Aug, 7, 2007

The end of Barry Bonds' agonizing home run watch mercifully came at 8:51 p.m. Pacific time at AT&T Park. Bonds swatted a pitch from Nationals lefthander Mike Bacsik over the outfield wall in right center, 435 feet away.

Oct. 6, 2007

LSU coach Les Miles' gambler reputation paid off with a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns, including Jacob Hester's two-yard score with 1:09 to play, giving LSU a 28-24 win over Florida.

Feb. 18, 2007

Kevin Harvick (29) went high, race leader Mark Martin went low, and we were treated to one of the greatest Daytona 500 finishes. Behind them, a pack of drivers crashed in a fiery, seven-car wreck.

Jan. 3, 2007

In the end, it came down to a never-ending shootout in the World Junior Hockey Championships semifinals between Canada and the U.S. The Americans were the better team on the day, but the Canadians won a 2-1 thriller as Jonathan Toews scored on the 13th penalty shot before Canadian goalie Carey Price saved Peter Mueller's shot .

Jan 14, 2007

In a career of cool moments, this was one of Tom Brady's coolest. The Pats quarterback shook off three interceptions, his career playoff high, to lead the Patriots to a 24-21 win. Memorably, after the game, Chargers back LaDanian Tomlinson yelled and pointed at some Patriots, upset that some players were dancing on the Chargers logo at midfield.

May 5, 2007

Street Sense, the 9-2 favorite, rallied from 19th place under a fierce ride by jockey Calvin Borel to draw away to a 2 1/4-length victory in the 133rd running of the Kentucky Derby.

April 7, 2007

The penultimate day of the regular season produced a wild 6-5 Toronto victory against Montreal that eliminated the Canadiens from the playoffs. Trailing by one entering the third period, the Maple Leafs got power-play goals from Bryan McCabe and Kyle Wellwood.

Sept. 15, 2007

A Bluegrass State shootout between strong-armed quarterbacks Brian Brohm and Andre Woodson didn't disappoint as the two combined for 641 yards and six touchdowns. Woodson's Wildcats took a 33-28 lead with 3:47 left, but the Cardinals mounted a 12-play, 83-yard scoring drive to go up 34-33 with 1:45 remaining. Woodson and Co. answered as he hit Steve Johnson for the game-winning 57-yard score with 28 seconds remaining for a 40-34 win.

July 8, 2007

Finally, Roger Federer overcame Rafael Nadal, winning his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title with a 7-6 (7), 4-6, 7-6 (3), 2-6, 6-2 performance that netted his 54th straight victory on grass.

March 30, 2007

There's nothing like a buzzer-beater but this was extra special: Raptors guard Morris Peterson nailed a 3-pointer from 31 feet to tie the score at 109 as the horn sounded to end regulation. That's when Chris Bosh took over, scoring eight of his 37 in overtime to lift Toronto a 123-118 victory. The craziest part? Peterson played only the final 4.4 seconds of regulation and the last 47 seconds of overtime.

Oct. 8, 2007

Tony Romo threw five interceptions -- two returned for touchdowns -- but the Bills still weren't able to put the game away. Dallas scored a touchdown with under a minute left to close the gap to 24-22, recovered an on-side kick and got into position for a 53-yard field goal attempt. Nick Folk split the uprights only to learn the Bills had called a timeout before the play. So Folk had to kick again. He nailed it one more time and Dallas won.

August 22, 2007

Texas become the first team in 110 years to score 30 runs in a game in a 30-3 rout over Baltimore at Oriole Park.

March, 20, 2007

It tied an NCAA record for the earliest exit by a defending national champion who qualified for the NCAA Tournament. Ole Miss scored 42 points off 29 Maryland turnovers as the Rebels stunned the second-seeded Maryland 89-78 in the second round of the Dayton Regional.

May 14, 2007

In the final, frantic minute of Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals, Suns guard Steve Nash was fouled hard by Robert Horry with 18 seconds to play, causing several Suns to leave the bench and earn a suspension. That the Spurs went on to win the series helped up the ante on an already fiercerivalry.

Feb, 9, 2007

The first game winning-basket of Dwight Howard's career makes for a nice poster. The Magic forward soared high above Spurs forward Tim Duncan, grabbed a long inbounds pass from Hedo Turkoglu with one hand, and dunked it with 0.2 seconds left. The flush gave Orlando a 106-104 victory. Howard finished with 30 points and blocked a shot by Spurs guard Tony Parker with 0.8 seconds left to set up the game-winning play.

Published Dec 26, 2007

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