Worst Championship Games

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Apr 6, 2011

Worst Championship Games

UConn 53, Butler 41

The game wasn't a blowout, but it was still painful to watch. Butler scored 22 points in the first half. And led. The Bulldogs shot 18.8 percent from the field for the game, including 3-for-31 on two-point field goals. UConn scored the fewest points by the title game winner since Kentucky had 46 in 1949. Here are some other notable championship game/championship series stinkers.

Florida 41, Ohio St. 14

Ohio State entered as the undefeated No. 1 team in the nation and Ted Ginn Jr. took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown. But it didn't take long for Urban Meyer's dual quarterback system to take charge. Chris Leak threw for 213 yards and Tim Tebow tossed one touchdown and ran for another as the Gators grabbed a 20-point halftime lead.

USC 55, Oklahoma 19

Oklahoma jumped out to 7-0 lead, but nothing went right from there. Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and a slew of other future first-round picks led to USC to a 38-10 halftime lead and a national championship. How good were the Trojans? Eleven players would be selected on the first day of the next two drafts.

Baylor 84, Michigan St. 62

Michigan State was the victim of its own success. The Spartans had come from 16 points behind to beat Tennessee in the semifinals, so even when the Bears had a 20-point lead, they didn't stop pressing. Sophia Young scored 26 points for Baylor, and Kim Mulkey-Robertson became to first woman to win titles as both a player and coach.

Red Sox sweep Cardinals

After the Red Sox came back from a 3-0 deficit to stun the Yankees in the American League Championship Series, experts wondered if they had enough left in the tank to lift the Curse of the Bambino. They left no doubt in a sweep of the Cardinals. Manny Ramirez hit .412 during the World Series to earn MVP honors and three of Boston's four starters didn't give up an earned run.

Devils 3, Ducks 0

New Jersey rode Martin Brodeur's shutout to its third Stanley Cup title in nine seasons. Michael Rupp scored his first postseason goal and former Duck Jeff Friesen scored twice as the Devils controlled the puck and the game. Despite the loss, Anaheim goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere earned the Conn Smythe trophy as playoff MVP.

Miami 37, Nebraska 14

Despite losing 62-36 to Colorado in its last game, Nebraska is chosen to play in the national title game. Eric Crouch and the Huskers didn't belong on the same field as the Hurricanes, who rolled out to a 34-0 halftime lead. Six Miami players were future first-round picks, including wide receiver Andre Johnson and safety Ed Reed.

Lakers Sweep Nets

Shaq, Kobe and the Lakers did something Michael Jordan's Bulls did twice: three-peat as champions. But they also did something Jordan's Bulls never did: sweep an NBA Finals. O'Neal set an NBA record with 145 points in the four-game series as the Lakers blew past the Nets. New Jersey did keep the score within six points in three of the games, but it didn't manage to pull out a victory.

Baltimore 34, NY Giants 7

A record fell, but not the kind fans enjoy: both New York's Brad Maynard (11) and Baltimore's Kyle Richardson (10) surpassed the previous record of nine punts in a Super Bowl. The style wasn't surprising. Baltimore's defense had allowed the fewest points in league history during the regular season, and that dominance continued. Ray Lewis & Co. intercepted four passes, and New York's only points came on a kickoff returned for a touchdown.

France 3, Brazil 0

Brazil had the highest-scoring offense heading into the World Cup final. But host France had Zinedine Zidane and an impressive defense. Zidane scored twice, Emmanuel Petit added another late score and the French defense kept Ronaldo and the high-powered offense off the scoreboard. It was Brazil's worst World Cup loss ever.

Rockets Sweep Magic

If a sweep of the Magic wasn't enough, the Rockets can take pride in making Shaq cry. O'Neal said later that he cried for only the fourth time in his life after the 4-0 series win gave Houston its second straight title. Not bad for a team that entered the postseason as a No. 6 seed. Hakeem Olajuwon averaged 32 points per game in his hyped matchup with O'Neal.

Dallas 52, Buffalo 17

Buffalo lost its third straight Super Bowl in miserable fashion: Dallas scored 35 points off nine Bills' turnovers. Dallas also scored the final three touchdowns of the game after Buffalo closed to within 14 points during the third quarter. At least the Dallas offense gave fans something to watch. Troy Aikman tossed four touchdowns, and Emmitt Smith rushed for 108 yards.

United States 117, Croatia 85

Possibly the greatest team ever assembled, the Dream Team actually got its toughest challenge of the Olympics against Croatia in the gold medal game. But the 32-point victory was still anything but compelling TV from a competition standpoint. Still, fans of could enjoy lineups with Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Patrick Ewing and other playing together.

UNLV 103, Duke 73

The game was billed as a matchup of polar opposites -- East vs. West, Gritty vs. Glitzy -- and the teams' performances couldn't have been farther apart. With punishing defense, the Runnin' Rebels simply outclassed the Blue Devils. In the biggest blowout in championship game history, UNLV's Larry Johnson led the Rebels with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

San Francisco 55, Denver 10

The 49ers needed a game-winning drive to take the previous season's Super Bowl from Cincinnati. In 1990, they needed less than a half to put it out of reach. Joe Montana led San Francisco to touchdowns on four first-half possessions and a 27-3 lead at halftime. But the Niners didn't stop scoring, finishing with a record 55 points. Montana threw five touchdown passes, and Jerry Rice caught seven passes for 148 yards.

Washington 42, Denver 10

Denver held a 10-0 lead early but had no answer once Washington got rolling. The Redskins scored 35 points on five possessions in less than six minutes of game time during the second quarter. Quarterback Doug Williams tossed four of those scores, including 80- and 50-yard bombs to Ricky Sanders.

Chicago 46, New England 10

New England was called team of destiny. Chicago was the team of destruction. The Monsters of the Midway scored 24 points off turnovers and with a 37-3 lead in the third quarter, even let defensive tackle William "Refrigerator" Perry get in on the action. Perry lined up at fullback and scored, as Chicago backed up its tough talk in the Super Bowl Shuffle video.

Royals 11, Cardinals 0

The Cardinals looked to be running away with the "Show-Me Series" as they took a 3-1 lead. But the Royals took the next two games to force game seven, which became a meltdown within a meltdown. The Royals jumped on St. Louis starting pitcher John Tudor for five early runs, Cardinals' manager Whitey Herzog and reliever Joaquin Andujar were ejected and Kansas City won its first World Series.

John McEnroe beats Jimmy Connors (6-1, 6-1, 6-2)

Connors took a five-set final from McEnroe at Wimbledon in 1982, but McEnroe exacted revenge in powerful fashion. He needed only 80 minutes to rout Connors for his third title in four years. McEnroe had 10 aces, no double faults and only four unforced errors -- a record low in Grand Slam play.

76ers Sweep Lakers

Moses Malone predicted his 76ers would sweep every series in the 1983 playoffs. He was close. The 76ers went 12-1 in the postseason, but did sweep the Lakers in the finals. Julius Erving and Malone each averaged more than 20 points per game in bringing the title to Philadelphia.

Billie Jean King beats Evonne Goolagong Cawley (6-0, 6-1)

Both players rolled through the tournament. King lost only one set, while Cawley dropped just two on the way to the title match. But the final was one-sided, and King took her sixth and final Wimbledon championship. King retired from singles play after the victory, but she decided to return after Wimbledon the following season.

UCLA 87, Memphis State 66

The Bruins finished their second consecutive undefeated season in dominating fashion. The result shouldn't have been a surprise: Memphis State hadn't won an NCAA tournament game before 1973, while UCLA had won six-straight national titles. Bill Walton played a nearly flawless game, scoring 44 points on 21-for-22 shooting.

Canadians 4, Black Hawks 0

A competitive series in which the home team won every game, the Canadians dominated all facets of the finale in taking the title. Montreal's Jean Beliveau scored eight goals and had eight assists in the postseason to earn the inaugural Conn Smythe trophy. Gump Worsley also recorded two shutouts in the goal for Montreal.

Celtics Sweep Lakers

Red Auerbach said the 1958-59 Celtics might be the greatest team in league history, and it's easy to see why. The Celtics completed the first finals sweep in league history. All five Boston starters -- Bill Russell, Bill Sharman, Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn and Frank Ramsey -- went to the Hall of Fame. And so did two backups -- KC Jones and Sam Jones. What would you add to the list? Send comments to siwriters@simail.com

Worst Championship Games