This series is powered by EA Sports Active 2: The complete at-home digital trainer
Sports are all about the unforgettable, heart pumping moments that stick with us as fans. Having a few shekels on the game certainly makes things more ingrained in our minds, but there are some moments that get you going no matter what. With that in mind, I’d like to write about some of the best heart pumping moments I grew up with in the 90s. No fitness trainer can get your heart pumping like EA Sports Active 2, and not many sports moments got my heart pumping like the following.
**Submit your favorite heart pumping moment from the 90s in the comments and five people will be chosen to win a copy of EA Sports Active 2.**
5. Reggie Miller Scores 8 points in 11 seconds vs. Knicks
Reggie Miller’s history with the Knicks was well documented on an ESPN 30 for 30 program last year. Miller used to go back and forth with Spike Lee, whose trash talk seemed to bring the best out of 31. This 1995 clip took place when the NBA involved hated rivalries, and when one single player could be utterly despised by an entire city. Reggie Miller improbably scored 8 points in 11 seconds to steal Game 1 of the 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals from the Knicks. Keep in mind the Pacers were knocked out of the playoffs the previous two years by New York. Take a look at this clip that makes me misty as I reminisce about some of my favorite times growing up:
No game is over until it’s truly over.
4. Mike Tyson Bites Evander Holyfield’s Ear Off
I was almost going to go with the Tyson-Douglas fight here, but that took place in Tokyo and nobody saw it. Now the fight with Holyfield on the other hand, everybody saw. I remember exactly where I was when I saw this fight. In fact, I’m confident YouTube was created so we could re-live moments like this whenever we damn well please.
3. Christian Laettner’s shot to beat Kentucky
Christian Laettner was a senior at Duke in 1992 when he capped off an impressive career with one of the most memorable shots of all time. His Blue Devils were down 103-102 in the East Regional Finals against Kentucky and needed to throw it the length of the floor for a shot. Grant Hill threw it in to Laettner who caught the pass at the free throw line, faked one way and … well, you know how it went:
2. John Elway’s helicopter in Super Bowl XXXII
John Elway had reached the Super Bowl three previous times in his career. Going 0-3 in the big game, including a record-worst 55-10 shellacking by the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX, critics said Elway “couldn’t win the big one.” With one play late in the third quarter, John Elway shoved it up his critics’ butt by showing everybody how badly he wanted to win. This is called giving it up:
That led to a Terrell Davis touchdown that made it 24-17 Broncos, and they went on to win 31-24. Denver won the following year proving that Elway in fact was a winner and one of the best quarterbacks of all time. He walked away from the game on top.
1. Michael Jordan’s last shot with the Bulls aka the pushoff on Byron Russell
It was Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals, Bulls against the Jazz. A record 72 million people were watching to see if Michael Jordan could close out Utah and win his 6th NBA title. The Bulls were down by a point in the final 16 seconds of the game. Jordan stole the ball then went one-on-one against Byron Russell, pushing off to hit one of the most memorable shots of his career:
