1. Tigers: 8 Padres: 4 (October 14, 1984): There’re Greeaat! World Series Game 5. The Tigers flexed their muscles and dispatched the Padres. Kirk Gibson hit 2 homers. After the second blast off Goose Gossage, he paraded around the bases in celebratory fashion---he roared as the crowd chanted “Goosebusters.”
2. Michigan: 23 Huskies: 6 (January 1, 1981): Bo’s first bowl win. Bo finally wins a bowl game. No heart attacks, no phantom touchdowns, and no bizarre incidents.
3. Detroit: 105 Lakers: 97 (June 13, 1989): How sweep it is! NBA Finals Game 4. The Pistons polished off a sweep of the two-time defending champs. The game was close, but Bill Laimbeer finished off LA with a jumper with 28 seconds remaining. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar finished his career with a basket. The crowd and the Pistons gave him a standing ovation as he left the game.
4. Lakers: 103 Pistons: 102 (June 19, 1988): Championship denied. NBA Finals Game 6. Isiah Thomas twisted his ankle and still managed to score 25 in the 3rd quarter. Detroit led the series 3-2 going into Game 6. They led 102-99 with a minute left. Byron Scott cut the lead to one with 52 seconds to go. The Pistons failed to score on their next possession. Piston defense stifled LA and forced a desperation shot by Kareen Abdul-Jabbar. Then, the NBA took over. Bill Laimbeer got whistled for a foul. It was clear he did not come near Kareem and instant replay proved it. Kareen hit the foul shots and forced Game 7. The Pistons really won 3 titles in a row despite what the history books state.
5. Detroit Tigers: 1 Toronto Blue Jays: 0 (October 4, 1987): Comeback complete. The Tigers finished off an amazing comeback behind Frank Tanana’s 6 hit shutout. Larry Herndon homered for the game’s only run. The Tigers went 5-2 down the stretch while Toronto did not win in the final week.
6. Tigers: 4 White Sox: 0 (April 7, 1984): He has his no-hitter! Jack Morris throws a no-hitter on national TV. It was part of Detroit’s 35-5 start and Chet Lemon homered.
7. Hawkeyes: 12 Wolverines: 10 (October 19, 1985): #1 vs. #2. #1 Iowa took on #2 Michigan and escaped. Through five games, Michigan’s defense surrendered 21 points while Iowa was averaging 44 points a game behind Chuck Long. Neither offense did well and Michigan held a 10-9 lead early in the 4th quarter. Long drove down the field with 5:27 to go and Iowa kicked a field goal with seconds remaining. This was one of the best college games of the decade.
8. Wolverines: 26 Buckeyes: 24 (November 22, 1986): The guarantee. Jim Harbaugh guaranteed a victory. Ohio State blew a 14-3 lead as Jamie Morris racked up 210 yards. OSU missed a game winning field goal with 1:06 remaining. Chris Spielman had 29 tackles in the loss.
9. Red Wings: 3 Maple Leafs: 0 (May 3, 1987): Bro-phy! Bro-phy! The Wings fell behind 3-1 in the playoffs to Toronto. They won the next two games, 3-0 and 4-2. In Game 7, they shut out the Leafs 3-0. During the series, Leafs coach John Brophy accused the Wings of choking. In the third period, the JLA crowd shouted “Bro-phy! Bro-phy!” taunting the Leaf coach.
10. Michigan: 80 Seton Hall: 79 (OT) (April 3, 1989): Goodbye Bill, Hello Steve. Michigan wins the NCAA Tournament. Michigan coach Bill Frieder decided to move on to Arizona State, so athletic director, Bo Schembechler, fired him and elevated assistant coach Steve Fisher to head coach. Fisher started his career 6-0 as he swept through the tournament. Glen Rice was the tournament’s outstanding player as he averaged 29 points a game.
