Notre Dame, Butler, Fever, Super Bowl among ISL’s best games of 2012

Cliff January 4, 2013 0

By CLIFF BRUNT
ISL Editor

Indy Sports Legends writers covered tons of games in 2012. Here, in my opinion, are the best 10 covered by members of the staff. All of the games were played in the state of Indiana. Some of the work was done for other publications, but nonetheless, the talent on the ISL staff witnessed the games. These are not all wins by teams from Indiana, and some might not even involve teams from the state. They range from high school games up to the Super Bowl. What was the best game you attended? Tweet me, comment below or e-mail us at cliff.brunt@indysportslegends.com.

10. Cardinal Ritter 42, Heritage Christian 41, Aug. 17, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.

Cardinal Ritter’s Jake Purichia scores one of his four rushing touchdowns against Bishop Chatard.

This was the season opener for both teams, and it came down to the final play. Jake Purichia gave Ritter the lead on a touchdown run with 36 seconds left, but Heritage Christian’s Anthony Warrum returned the kickoff 59 yards to the Ritter 32. Matt Hunt scored on a quarterback sneak with no time remaining. Hunt, the holder on the extra point, stood up on the fake and looked for Warrum, but Taylor Briggs intercepted the pass in the end zone to preserve the win. Cliff Brunt covered this game for the Indianapolis Star: Ritter 42, HC 41.

Here is a video highlight from WISH TV:

9. Pacers defeat Magic to win first-round playoff series, May 8, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis.

Even though the Pacers were expected to win the series because Dwight Howard was out, the victory finally gave Indiana fans something to cheer about after years of disappointment. Chris Goff looks back at this one: Indiana 105, Orlando 87.

8. Notre Dame 20, Purdue 17, Sept. 8, Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, Ind.

This was the first sign that something special might be brewing for the Fighting Irish. Tommy Rees replaced Everett Golson and led Notre Dame down the field to set up Kyle Brindza’s game-winning field goal in the closing seconds. Doug Griffiths covered this one for Indy Sports Legends: Notre Dame 20, Purdue 17.

7. Andrew Luck throws for rookie-record 433 yards as Colts defeat Miami, Nov. 4, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.

Luck was an established star at this point, but this performance was the one that spurred MVP talk, made the playoffs seem like a realistic goal and helped folks get over No. 18 for good. Cliff Brunt wrote a piece about Luck after the game: Colts 23, Dolphins 20.

6. Fever defeat Lynx in Game 4 to clinch WNBA title, Oct. 21, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis.

Fever8 — The Fever celebrate their WNBA championship.

Indiana was the underdog in the series and played the Finals without the injured Katie Douglas, the team’s second-leading scorer. The Fever still led 2-1 heading into Game 4. Indiana had dominated Game 3, and the defending champion Lynx weren’t expected to lay down. Indiana won the game 87-78 to win their first-ever WNBA title. Tamika Catchings was the Finals MVP. Here is Cliff Brunt’s AP story: Indiana 87, Minnesota 78.

5. Notre Dame beats Stanford in overtime, Oct. 13, Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, Ind.

Notre Dame’s memorable goal-line stand preserved a 20-13 win that moved the Fighting Irish to 6-0 on the season. Doug Griffiths covered this memorable game. Notre Dame 20, Stanford 13.

Here is video of the goal line stand, courtesy of DomerNation1.

4. Notre Dame comes back from the dead against Pitt, Nov. 3, Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, Ind.

Doug Griffiths covered another classic. Pitt led this game 20-6 in the fourth quarter before Notre Dame rallied. The Irish would have lost if Pitt made a short field goal in overtime, but it missed and Notre Dame won. Here’s the ISL story: Notre Dame 29, Pitt 26, OT

3. Super Bowl 46, Feb. 5, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis.

It’s rare when a Super Bowl comes down to the final play. It’s even better when you’ve watched football royalty go back and forth, as with New England’s Tom Brady and New York’s Eli Manning. New York’s Ahmad Bradshaw scored late (even though he wasn’t supposed to), giving the Giants a 21-17 lead and setting up an amazing finish. Brady’s Hail Mary fell just incomplete in the end zone as time expired, and New York survived. Colts fans, who adopted Eli and wore his No. 18 jersey in droves for the last time, went home happy because a Manning won and Brady lost. Cliff Brunt was part of the coverage team for The Associated Press that night, leading his notes with a story about New England running back Danny Woodhead: AP Super Bowl notes.

Here is video of Mario Manningham’s amazing catch that was a key play on the winning touchdown drive. Video by tony888carlos:

2. Lebron drops 40, 18 and 9 as Miami defeats Pacers, regains control of East playoff series — May 20, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis.

This game makes the list because we might never again see a performance as dominating as this one by LeBron James. Indiana led the series 2-1 after rolling the Heat 94-75 in Game 3, and the Pacers could have taken a 3-1 series lead with a win.

It was all set up beautifully for the Pacers. Chris Bosh was out. Gold Swagger was real. Pacers fans were really thinking championship. Then, LeBron comes up with this doozy in arguably the most important performance of his career. “The Decision” would have become “The Debacle” with a loss here. My opinion of James changed forever after this game, and it was a privilege to see it in person. It was the most impressive performance I’ve seen live or otherwise in my 38 years on Earth. My piece for ISL on James’ performance: Miami 101, Indiana 93.

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1. Butler defeats Indiana 88-86 in OT, Dec. 15, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis.

Indiana entered this game ranked No. 1 in the country. Butler was not ranked and was not given much of a chance. even though the Bulldogs already had beaten North Carolina. Indiana’s Yogi Ferrell made a 3-pointer to force overtime, then Butler walk-on Alex Barlow scored the game winner on a flip with 2.3 seconds left. Roosevelt Jones had the game of his life for Butler. Cliff Brunt covered the game for Sports XChange/Reuters: Butler 88, Indiana 86, OT.

Here is Ferrell’s game-tying three, courtesy of nerdsaregr8:

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