Sports took us through emotional highs and lows in 2016.
The year was filled with curses being broken, legendary careers coming to an end and tragic losses of athletes gone way too soon. We saw the Cubs win the World Series, LeBron James cement his legacy and Dee Gordon hit a home run that will be remembered for a long time.
Here’s a look back at some of the biggest defining sports moments of the year.
LeBron’s Block
From Matthews to Chamberlain, the best rookie debuts in history
Cleveland’s 52 years of losing came to an end thanks to a thunderous block by LeBron James against one of the best teams in NBA history.
With under two minutes left in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, James chased down Warriors forward Andre Iguodala and swatted away a lay-up attempt to keep the game tied.
Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving would go on to hit the game-winning three point shot with 53 seconds left to help make Cleveland NBA champions.
The Cavaliers won 93-89, but many believe if James didn’t block Iguodala’s attempt, the Warriors would’ve gone on to win their second straight title.
Cubs fans remember ‘Mr. Cub,’ those who didn’t get to witness win
Von Miller’s Strip-Six
The old NFL cliché is that defense wins championships. This idea once again rang true in 2016.
The Broncos had one of the NFL’s best defenses all season — and it paid off with a Super Bowl 50 win for the franchise’s third title.
Linebacker Von Miller made the game’s most memorable play, dimming the Panthers’ hopes for a win in just the first quarter. Miller sprinted past an offensive lineman, hit Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and forced a fumble.
Follow the Daily News Sports on Facebook. “Like” us here.
His teammates would recover the ball in the end zone for a touchdown, making the score 10-0 with 6:27 left in the quarter.
Denver would win the big game by a score of 24-10.
Ben Zobrist’s Game 7 double
“Next year” finally arrived for the Cubs in 2016.
The team won its first World Series since 1908 after coming back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Indians.
But if it weren’t for some clutch hitting by Ben Zobrist in the top of 10th inning, Chicago doesn’t get to celebrate.
Zobrist drilled a double to score one of the game-winning runs and bring joy to Cubs fans around the world.
Zobrist would also later be named the World Series MVP for his key role in ending the team’s 108-year curse.
Michael Phelps wins last gold medal
Michael Phelps put an exclamation point on his Olympic career in 2016.
Phelps, already one of the all-time greats heading into the Rio games, took home five more gold medals and a silver medal. This brings his career medal total to 28 overall, including 23 gold, three silver and two bronze.
In his final Olympic race, Phelps won gold in the 4×100-meter medley relay alongside teammates Ryan Murphy, Cody Miller and Nathan Adrian.
Phelps said goodbye to his Olympic career as a champion — the same way he started it.
Kris Jenkins’ buzzer-beater
March Madness has created some of the most memorable game-winning shots in the history of college basketball.
The 2016 NCAA Tournament Championship game between Villanova and North Carolina gave us a moment that’s right up there with Christian Laettner’s buzzer-beater for Duke in 1992.
North Carolina tied the game at 74 with 4.7 seconds left in the game after guard Marcus Paige drilled an off-balance three-point shot.
It looked like the game was headed to overtime, but then Villanova’s Kris Jenkins sank a long distance three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Wildcats their first title since 1985.
Dee Gordon home run after Jose Fernandez death
The death of Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez rocked the Miami community and shocked the baseball world this year.
Just a day after he died, his teammates paid the ultimate tribute to their fallen ace in one of the year’s most powerful and emotional sports moments.
Dee Gordon, the first Marlins hitter of the game, smacked a lead-off home run against Bartolo Colon to give the Marlins an early 1-0 lead. The hit was his first home run of the season and he trotted the bases with tears in his eyes.
When he got back to the dugout he was swarmed by his teammates, and started hysterically crying. He told reporters after the game that they should all start believing in God after that moment because never in his life had he hit a ball that far.
The Marlins went on to win the emotional game against the Mets, 7-3, in front of a home crowd.
Auston Matthews’ four-goal debut
The No. 1 pick in the 2016 NHL draft, Auston Matthews had a debut for the ages in October.
In the Maple Leafs’ season opener, Matthews immediately showed the talent that earned him the top spot in the draft. The center scored his first career goal a few minutes into the first period, but he wasn’t finished just yet.
Matthews would add three more goals against the Senators before the night was through, becoming the first No. 1 pick to score a hat trick in his debut. He was also only the fifth player to record four goals in their first game.
The Maple Leafs still lost the game despite Matthews’ performance, but they could now have the centerpiece to their organization for years to come.
