The 15 Biggest Last-Minute Scores Since 2010

If there's one thing that makes sports so great, it's the unscripted drama that comes with the games we love to watch.

While we're bombarded with "reality" TV shows and celebrity feuds that are formed on Twitter, there's nothing quite like sports in terms of what it does to people, causing them to go through every known emotion in a matter of minutes.

And if there's one thing that really gets the blood boiling—in both a good and bad way—it's a last-minute score.

For that reason, I'm breaking down the 15 biggest backbreaking scores in the final 60 seconds. I really hope none of these happen to be any of your teams.

Nelson Cruz Walks It off (2011)

Anytime the bases are loaded in a baseball game, everyone in the stadium and watching on TV is either hoping or praying one thing doesn't happen: a grand slam.

But in a situation in which the Texas Rangers needed just one run to walk away with a win and 2-0 series lead in the 2011 American League Championship Series, just a walk would be good enough, right?

Not if your name is former Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz.

Hacking away at the three pitches he saw, Cruz connected on the third, delivering a round-tripper that ended with him getting mobbed at home plate by his teammates and put Cruz in the record books as, at the time, one of just 42 walk-off homers in MLB postseason history.

More importantly, though, it gave the Rangers the momentum in a series that ended with them in the Fall Classic—although their magic ended there.

Chris Kreider Finds the Net (2015)

When a team is in a do-or-die situation and fighting for their playoff lives, every little play can make a difference.

So when New York Rangers' forward Chris Kreider scored not one, but two goals to give his Rangers a first-period lead in Game 6 of this year's postseason matchup with the Washington Capitals, he became a hero for the Big Apple from the jump.

With Kreider's goals coming in the first 40 seconds and last 0.3 seconds of the first frame, it proved that he has a way with good timing.

Damian Lillard Delivers a Series-Clincher (2014)

Say what you will about the NBA's regular season, but when it's playoff time, there is nothing that beats the product on the hardwood—just look at the recent three-day window when three buzz-beaters occurred.

And one of the coolest last-second scores came in last year's NBA playoffs, when Portland Trail Blazers superstar Damian Lillard stuck a dagger straight into the chest of the Houston Rockets, not only sending them home as the loser of the game but closing out the series in the same stroke.

Lillard is one bad dude, and his gutsy shot with 0.9 seconds left showed the kid has ice in his veins.

Aaron Harrison Breaks the Badgers (2014)

Prior to announcing his intentions to leave for the NBA after this past college hoops season, I'm not sure there was a college basketball player in the country who scared opposing coaches more late in games than Kentucky Wildcats' Aaron Harrison.

That's because Harrison—who came in with high acclaim as a top recruit—buried three-straight game-winners during the 2014 NCAA tourney for his Wildcats, helping them march all the way to the national title game as a No. 8 seed.

None was bigger than the triple Aaron hit against the Wisconsin Badgers in the Final Four, though, giving the Cats a lead that they were able to hold onto in the waning seconds to defeat the No. 2-seeded Badgers, adding to Harrison's legacy as a clutch performer.

Croatian Team Celebrates a Bit Too Prematurely (2010)

There's a good chance all of us have seen this video before.

Occurring during a championship game back in 2010, Croatian hoops team Cibona thought that it had just won on a last-second trey that sent their entire team into a frenzy.

While one buzzer-beater is good, though, two proved to be even better—at least for opposing team Partizan. With 0.6 seconds left on the clock, Partizan's Dusan Kecman tossed up a 70-foot prayer that dropped through the rim to earn his team the title—and taught a lesson to Cibona players and coaches to never cheer too early.

High School Football Team Learns a Lesson (2013)

No matter how a team loses a game, one thing is certain: It's never easy to cope with. Losing the way that Skyview High School did, though, well, that's almost just unfair.

In one of the wildest endings to any sporting event I've ever seen, Skyview believed they had won their matchup with Columbia River High School when they blocked a last-second field-goal attempt, causing the entire team and coaching staff to jump up and down.

Unfortunately, Columbia River coaches were well aware that the play was still live, with a player scooping up the football and running into the end zone for the winning points.

Talk about a change in emotions.

Joel Ward Stuns Madison Square Garden (2015)

A hockey period is 20 minutes long. For those who didn't know that before, after watching the Washington Capitals-New York Rangers series that just concluded, you're well aware now.

In addition to the aforementioned Chris Kreider goals that kept the Rangers from elimination, this Game 1 gem by Capitals player Joel Ward got the series off to a dramatic start. Ward's game-winner came with just 1.3 seconds left, stunning the Madison Square Garden crowd and setting Twitter on fire.

Although it's rare to see a buzzer-beater in the NHL, when they happen, they're a reminder that teams should never ease up until all 20 minutes of a period are played.

Tony Parker Stuns South Beach (2013)

While nearly all of these last-minute scores are of the game-winning variety, San Antonio Spurs' All-Star point guard Tony Parker's was more in the dagger category.

With his Spurs leading the Miami Heat on Miami's home floor against the Big Three of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Game 1 of the 2013 NBA Finals, Parker, presumably, did everything wrong while looking to ice a game.

Pounding the ball into the ground and shifting from one side of the court to the other, the pint-sized guard fell but somehow composed himself enough to bank in a shot-clock beating bucket, giving his team a four-point lead as the Heat inbounded the ball with 5.2 second left.

Making it a two possession game, Parker's shot may not have stunned South Beach and the Heat with a prayer that was answered, but it proved to be the start of one of the most entertaining NBA Finals in recent memory—as another shot got a little bit more attention several games after this one.

New Rochelle's Prayer Is Answered (2013)

Ask people on the street who Khalil Edney is, and you might be hard-pressed to find anyone who recognizes the kid's name.

For those whose memories need refreshing, he's the former high school hoops player who nailed one of the most unbelievably stunning buzzer-beaters ever, earning his New Rochelle High School a New York State I-AA Championship in the process.

With his team trailing by two with under three seconds left and the opposing team, Mt. Vernon High School, in possession of the ball, all seemed lost.

But when Mt. Vernon lazily tossed the ball in the air to waste time, Edney grabbed it, heaving a desperation trey from beyond half court that dropped in with 0.1 left for the victory.

Absolutely stunning.

Travis Ishikawa Wins the Pennant for the Giants (2014)

I'm sure that most people reading this article are familiar with one of the most famous broadcasting calls in sports history, when commentator Russ Hodges yelled "the Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!" back in 1951 following Bobby Thomson's walk-off homer against the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Well, current San Francisco Giants player Travis Ishikawa proved in 2014 that history has a way of repeating itself.

Facing the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Championship Series, the utility player belted a walk-off, three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning to send his team to the Fall Classic in dramatic fashion—which they would go on to win for their third title in five years.

Landon Donovan Buries Algeria (2010)

This one's for Sam's Army.

With the United States men's national team tied in their final group-stage match against Algeria during the 2010 World Cup, the Red, White and Blue knew that a draw would send them home disappointed.

Needing to score in order to advance to the knockout stage, former U.S. captain Landon Donovan did the unthinkable, burying a goal in stoppage time to send the team to victory in one of the defining moments of both Donovan's and the national team's history.

This is why we watch soccer.

Canadian Women Grab Gold (2014)

As we've seen a number of times in various sporting events, the outcome often comes down to just a matter of inches.

That was the case during the gold-medal game in women's hockey at the 2014 Olympics between Team USA and Team Canada, in which the Canadians dodged a serious bullet thanks to a goal-post save that kept their hopes of winning intact.

After narrowing their deficit to one goal and pulling their goalie late in the third period, a sliding puck that nicked their post gave Canada new life and the Canadians grabbed a tying goal with 55 seconds left.

Heading into overtime, Canada ended up getting their gold medal from beneath Team USA's nose, stunning the Red, White and Blue in a harsh way.

Ray Allen's Trey Ties It Up (2013)

Over the entire 17-year dynasty of the San Antonio Spurs, there's just one moment for which anyone can criticize the team for failing to close a team out.

That would be in 2013, when, against the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, the Spurs seemed to unravel at the wrong time, turning the ball over and missing free-throws in the final minute to allow the Heat to stick around.

And when Kawhi Leonard made just one of two from the charity stripe to keep the game at one possession, the NBA's all-time three-point leader, Ray Allen, did the rest, providing one of the most dramatic and clutch shots in league history.

Even as security tape lined the courtside seats and boxes full of championship swag was sitting near their bench, the Spurs failed to walk away as champs, ultimately losing in overtime—and the series in Game 7—thanks, in part, to Allen's incredible trey.

Auburn Claims Iron Bowl with Once-in-a-Lifetime Return (2013)

When it comes to rivalries in college sports, one would be hard-pressed to find anything more intense than the one between Auburn Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide—especially in the past five years.

Two of college football's giants, when the No. 1 Tide came into Jordan-Hare Stadium in 2013, they had visions of a third straight national title in their heads—but their bitter, in-state rivals weren't going to let it happen.

Attempting a last-second field goal for the the win in a tied game, Bama kicker Adam Griffith fell short, allowing the Tigers' Chris Davis to attempt a return that could only win the game if he took it to the house—otherwise, it meant overtime.

Davis weaved to the left and tip-toed on the sideline, never breaking stride and taking it to the house for a 109-yard touchdown return, sending the place into a frenzy and writing an unthinkable chapter in this rivalry's storied history.

Chicago Blackhawks Double Dip for a Stanley Cup Title (2013)

For every athlete who has ever done it, they'll tell you how there's nothing quite like winning a championship.

And because it's so difficult to do, the Chicago Blackhawks' victory against the Boston Bruins in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final gets the nod as the biggest last-minute score of the past five years.

That's because the team didn't just net one but two goals in the final 17 seconds of Game 6 to take the lead and closeout the Bruins to hoist Lord Stanley's cup.

While others on this list contributed to a winning a title, the Hawks' double dip directly led to one, making these two goals absolutely epic.