Power Ranking the 20 Most Exciting Sports Events of 2011 (With Video)

There have been no shortage of fantastic events in the first half of 2011.

The first round of the NHL playoffs had 14 overtime games and saw four of the eight matchups go the full seven games.

This year's NBA playoffs were superb, as Dirk and the Mavs eventually overcame everyone's favorite team to hate, the Miami Heat.

And the Women's World Cup was phenomenal, with stunning upsets and remarkable finishes highlighting a wonderful tournament.

And that's only three of the many sports you'll find represented on this list.

Excited yet?

20. May 29, 2011: An Strange Day at the Track

On the same day this year in May, two separate drivers—J.R. Hildebrand and Dale Earnhardt, Jr.—had disaster strike on the very last lap, losing their respective races at the last possible moment.

Dan Wheldon and Kevin Harvick each swooped in and snatched the spoils of victory, as Hildebrand and Earnhardt could only rue their defeats.

Heartbreaking finishes for sure, though certainly exciting as well.

19. Grizzlies vs. Spurs, Game 5

The 1-seed Spurs were all but dead. Down 3-1 in the series against the 8-seed Grizzlies, the Spurs found themselves trailing by three late.

After a circus shot by Manu Ginobli, the Spurs trailed by one with only 2.3 seconds remaining. But Zack Randolph sunk two free throws, and the Spurs seemed sunk as well.

But Gary Neal made a ridiculous three-pointer to force overtime, where the Spurs sealed the win. It looked as though it would be a momentum shift toward the Spurs in the series, but the Grizzlies were not to be denied, ultimately winning the series in six games.

18. The Preakness

Coming off of a victory at the Kentucky Derby, all eyes were on Animal Kingdom at the Preakness Stakes. Could the horse complete the second leg of the Triple Derby?

After a horrendous start, Animal Kingdom made a valiant comeback, flying to the front of the pack until it was a race to the wire against Shackleford for a truly memorable finish.

Go to the 1:15 mark to skip right to the race.

17. Shogun vs. Jones

Mauricio "Shogun" Rua's UFC light heavyweight title was on the line when he challenged burgeoning superstar Jon Jones.

Jones dominated the fight, controlling the standup and punishing Shogun when he went to the mat, eventually winning by TKO in the third round.

On this night, it would appear that a star was born.

16. Sharks vs. Kings, Game 3

This first-round game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs was a wild affair.

Trailing 4-0 early in the second period, the Sharks made a furious comeback, scoring five goals in the second period to tie the game at five.

After scoring 10 goals between the two teams in the first two periods, the third period was scoreless, setting up an OT finish.

To the heartbreak of LA Kings fans everywhere, San Jose won the game in overtime and went on to take the series in six games.

15. Manchester United vs. Manchester City

There may have been better overall soccer matches this year, but I highly doubt there was a more remarkable and exciting moment than Rooney's ridiculous goal.

And it came against a rival in the 77th minute of a tied game.

It doesn't get much better than that.

14. Auburn vs. Oregon, BCS National Championship

In some ways, this game was a disappointment, as these two teams were expected to engage in an unprecedented offensive onslaught.

While that never materialized, what did was a well-contested, somewhat quirky and down-to-the-wire finish that saw Auburn sneak past Oregon on a game-ending field goal.

It many not have finished 45-42 as some people envisioned, but it was a battle until the very end.

13. Mavericks vs. Blazers, Game 3

It was the night that Brandon Roy went bonkers.

Trailing the Mavs 67-49 entering the fourth quarter, Roy led the Blazers on a truly memorable comeback, scoring 18 of the team's 35 points in the quarter and making one clutch bucket after another down the stretch as the Blazers took the game 84-82.

It would be the lass hurrah for the Blazers in this series, as the Mavs would win the next two games to close out the series en route to an NBA Championship.

But for one night, there was simply no stopping the magical performance of Brandon Roy.

12. Edgar vs. Maynard II

Somehow, this fight for the lightweight belt went a full five rounds and ended in a draw.

It probably should have been over in Round 1.

Gray Maynard pounded the champion, Frankie Edgar, in the first round, knocking Edgar to the mat on several occasions and sending the champ into full-blown survival mode.

But he somehow survived the round and came back strong, and the next four rounds saw the fighters engaged in a competitive, evenly matched bout. Even the judges were split on who won the fight, and the result was the ever-unsatisfying draw.

The highly anticipated Edgar vs. Maynard III is on the card for UFC 136 in October.

11. Final Day of the 2011 Masters

You can watch the video for the highlights of this exciting final day of golf, but what you need to know is this:

I think golf is about as exciting as watching paint dry, but I was totally engrossed during the final day of the Masters. It was a great day of golf.

Tiger made an early push, poor Rory McIlroy suffered an epic collapse and multiple golfers were in contention until the very end.

There you have it.

10. Verlander and Liriano Throw No-Hitters

To watch all 27 outs of Verlander's no-no, go here.

To watch all 27 outs of Liriano's no-no, go here. 

If I were power-ranking exciting moments in baseball, it would go in this order: stealing home, perfect game, no-hitter, walk-off home run, ridiculous defensive play, a play at the plate.

There are more, but those are definitely the top six in my book.

9. Pitt vs. Butler, Second Round

So I could only find video of this game that included this man's commentary of the final six minutes, but you can go to the 6:00 mark of the video to see the crazy finish.

In a nutshell, this evenly matched affair saw the game almost decided by a ridiculous foul by Butler's Shelvin Mack with only 2.2 seconds remaining, allowing Pitt to make one of two free throws and tie the game at 70-apiece.

But then something even more confounding occurred, as Pitt's Nasir Robinson fouled Butler's Matt Howard on the rebound attempt. Howard made the first and purposefully missed the second, and Butler stayed alive, eventually making it to the National Championship game where they lost to UConn.

As crazy of a final 10 seconds as you'll ever see in a basketball game.

8. Blackhawks vs. Canucks, Game 7

This was no ordinary Game 7. No, this Game 7 only occurred because the Blackhawks came storming back from a 3-0 deficit to force the decisive Game 7 against the favored Canucks.

The game itself was a gem as well, as both goalies stood on their heads for the majority of the night. Roberto Luongo was fantastic, blanking the Blackhawks until Jonathon Toews snuck a puck into the net with only 1:56 remaining in the third period, tying the game at one-apiece.

To overtime they went, where Alex Burrows stole the puck in Chicago's zone and unleashed a wicked slap shot to win the game and series for Vancouver.

7. Seahawks vs. Saints, Wild-Card Round

Whether you think the Seahawks played the game of their lives, or the Saints defense was simply as atrocious as they could have possibly been, this was an exciting game from start to finish.

And it was capped off by Marshawn Lynch's earth-trembling run through the entirety of the Saints defense.

6. Thunder vs. Mavericks, Game 1

It was on this night that it became apparent that Dirk was not going to settle for anything less than an NBA championship.

Dirk went ballistic, scoring 48 points on 12-of-15 shooting from the field while remarkably making all 24 free-throw attempts he had on the evening. The Thunder simply had no answer for the big German.

Well, on the defensive end, at least. The Thunder's own superstar Kevin Durant didn't disappoint on the night, scoring 40 points and keeping the Thunder in the game.

It was one of the finest displays of offensive basketball by the two teams I've ever watched. The Mavs seemed to execute the offense flawlessly, but the Thunder would take the ball down the court and execute their own offense to perfection, staying in a game most teams would have gotten blow-out in.

Truly a remarkable game to watch.

5. Packers vs. Steelers, Super Bowl XLV

I think it goes without saying that any Super Bowl that ends in a 31-25 score and is decided late in the fourth quarter is a pretty good game.

But when you have Ben Roethlisberger with the ball in his hands, trailing by five, with 2:07 remaining, the game is surely going to end as one of the greatest finishes in Super Bowl history, right?

Well, not quite. Roethlisberger wasn't able to lead the Steelers past their own 33-yard line, and the finish of this game was a bit anticlimactic.

Still, it was a good game throughout, especially as Pittsburgh mounted their comeback after trailing 21-3 with only 2:24 left in the second quarter.

4. Derek Jeter Reaches 3,000

This was exciting for two reasons: Firstly, it meant the media could stop covering Jeter's pursuit of 3,000 hits ad nauseum.

Secondly (and more importantly), Jeter reached 3,000 hits! I think it is fair to say that while most fans outside of New York City absolutely despise the Yankees, they nonetheless respect Jeter for how he plays the game.

I was happy to see him reach this milestone, and he is one of the players I will probably proudly tell my children I saw play in the future.

3. Thunder vs. Grizzlies, Game 3

This conference semifinal showdown was absurd.

Three overtime sessions. Clutch shooting down the stretch. Tit-for-tat scoring. An electric atmosphere at the arena.

What more can you ask for?

2. USA vs. Japan, World Cup Final

I will openly admit that everywhere else in the world, this video would be higher than the one I have as my top selection.

And I don't blame them—this was an unbelievable game from beginning to end. While it seemed the US squad failed to capitalize on their many opportunities, you have to hand it to a Japan squad that overcame two deficits.

You have to respect resiliency.

And when the moment of truth came during the penalty kicks, Japan came through, and the US squad faltered.

Congratulations to Japan.

1. USA vs. Brazil, World Cup Quarterfinals

As good as the game between Japan and the US was, there simply hasn't been a more exciting finish in sports this year than we got from Abby Wambach's header after the brilliant pass from Megan Rapinoe in stoppage time of the second overtime session against Brazil.

Playing a woman down for a large portion of the second half and through overtime, the US team looked finished after Marta scored a brilliant goal in overtime to give Brazil a 2-1 lead.

But the year's best moment was yet to come, and the US did what they couldn't against Japan—they made every penalty kick they had to win the match.

It was one hell of a run ladies, and we're damn proud of you.

Be sure to hit me up on Twitter (@TRappaRT) along with the entire B/R Swagger team (@BR_Swagger).