2. Penny pips the Champions, 1995
After the Houston Rockets swept the Orlando Magic in the 1995 NBA Finals, the Magic got an opportunity for revenge later that year in the first Christmas Finals rematch, something that has become a tradition.
In what turned out to be quite a memorable game, Anfernee Hardaway broke Houston’s hearts by scoring the game-winning bucket with just more than 3 seconds left on the clock.
He finished with a heroic 22 points and 10 assists, while Shaquille O’Neil added 22 points and 18 rebounds.
Hardaway recovered from a poor shooting night and delivered a perfect Christmas gift to coach Brian Hill. From L.C. Johnson of the Orlando Sentinel’s recap of the game:
"”That’s about as good as a Christmas present as I can think of, to be honest with you,” Magic coach Brian Hill said. ”It was a good win for us. I was very happy with the way we played in the fourth quarter.” Hill might not have felt that way if not for Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon shooting an air ball with 25 seconds to play. ”I had excellent position,” Olajuwon said of his ill-fated jump hook. ”The ball slipped out of my hands. That is painful because you know you have it.”"
The team went on to win 60 games that year, before being swept by Michael Jordan‘s Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Next: A Kryptonian Clash