The 20 most memorable Christmas Day games and matches

Back in the day, boxing on Christmas was a normal occurrence in the sports world. One of the best bouts on the day came when the heavily favored "Kid Chocolate," holder of the junior lightweight title and considered one of boxing's all-time greats, met upstart Frank Klick. However, Klick wasn't intimidated by the Cuban star. In front of a crowd reported to be around 4,000 spectators at the Arena in Philadelphia, Klick knocked out the "Kid" in the seventh round for one of sport's most notable upsets. 

For years, the NHL has gone dark for roughly the three days around Christmas Day. Back in 1941, though, the games on ice still went forward following the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor. On Christmas Day 1941, the Red Wings and Brooklyn Americans played a memorable contest that needed overtime to decide. After the Americans tied the game on a Buzz Boll goal at the 14:37 mark of the third period, Detroit won it 5:02 into the extra session through Sid Abel.

This remains the longest game in NFL history, in terms of game-clock time. The contest spanned 82 minutes and 40 seconds before the Dolphins prevailed in this AFC Divisional playoff matchup. Visiting Miami trailed 10-0 after one quarter, but scored 10 unanswered points in the second quarter. From there, it was a back-and-forth contest. After both teams failed to convert a field goal in the first overtime, Garo Yepremian redeemed himself with the 37-yard winner in the second extra session.

A healthy portion of NBA action on Christmas Day has become a tradition as rich as eggnog and multiple viewings of A Christmas Story . Perhaps the best individual Christmas Day performance in league history belongs to the great Bernard King, who, against the rival Nets, dropped 60 points in '84. King, who went 19-of-30 from the field and 22-of-26 from the free-throw line, scored 40 by halftime. However, most fans familiar with King's effort tend to forget the Knicks lost the game. Michael Ray Richardson had 36 points, while teammate Mike Gminski added 27 with 14 rebounds, as visiting New Jersey outscored New York 33-23 in the fourth quarter.

The Celtics won the 1985-86 NBA title, but on this Christmas Day during the regular season, it was New York that pulled out one of the most memorable victories in the history of this storied rivalry. Led by superstar rookie Patrick Ewing, who posted 32 points and 11 rebounds, the Knicks erased a 25-point home deficit, thanks to a 33-point fourth quarter. They then outlasted Boston through two overtimes to celebrate the holiday in grand fashion.

Sensing a theme? Yes, the Knicks were a Christmas tradition during the 1980s, and this installment against two of the league's all-time great players provided ample memories for NBA fans to enjoy. Prior to the game, second-year Bulls star Michael Jordan said about New York's own hero Patrick Ewing ... ''I'm going to dunk it in his face." Well, that never happened, but Jordan showed a national audience how he was about to become the game's best with a 30-point performance. However, Ewing got the better of the matchup on the scoreboard when he sank a 10-foot, game-winning jumper at the buzzer to cap his own 28-point, 17-rebound effort.

During the 1990s, it was the Bulls who became the marquee NBA attraction on Christmas. Even during this 1993-94 campaign, without a temporarily retired Michael Jordan. And, it was Jordan's former running mate Scottie Pippen, who recorded 28 points, eight rebounds, six assists, and four steals, and the often underrated Toni Kukoc, who tossed in a nifty, short left-hander with 2 seconds remaining in regulation, who came through. Downing the Shaquille O'Neal-Penny Hardaway-led Magic squad that would make the franchise's first-ever playoff appearance.

Arguably, Scottie Pippen's best all-around game during his Hall-of-Fame career. Still without Michael Jordan, the Bulls got a spirited Christmas Day effort from Pippen, who totaled 36 points, 16 rebounds, five steals, and two blocks -- those latter coming on back-to-back shots by Hubert Davis, who forced overtime with an improbable make, and Charles Smith at the end of overtime. Not to be outdone, Toni Kukoc scored 25 for Chicago. New York's Patrick Ewing was also exceptional while going for 30 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists, but also seven turnovers. 

In the second-to-last game of the 1994 regular season, the Dolphins rode the legs of Bernie Parmalee (three touchdown runs that totaled 8 yards) and got a pair of Pete Stoyanovich field goals to tame the Lions at home. In addition, Miami's defense held Detroit Hall-of-Fame running back Barry Sanders to 52 rushing yards, squashing his quest for 2,000, and helped legendary coach Don Shula notch an NFL-record 319th regular-season victory.

A middling college bowl game is generally an afterthought on Christmas Day. However, we did love the annual Blue-Gray All-Star Classic. This Las Vegas Bowl matchup from 2002 remains forgettable for most college football fans, but it was quite historic. In a losing effort, New Mexico's Katie Hnida became the first female to appear for a Division I-A college program in a bowl game, when the Bruins blocked her first-quarter extra-point attempt.

For years, the Hawai'i Bowl was a staple on Christmas Day. The hometown Rainbow Warriors usually made up one of the participants. And, this particular installment of the game was a memorable one -- for the good and bad. Between the lines, the teams combined for more than 1,150 total yards. Hawaii's Timmy Chang was 26-of-42 for 475 yards with five touchdown passes -- three of which went to Jason Rivers. Meanwhile, Jackie Battle rushed for 124 yards and three scores on 19 carries for Houston, which forced overtime in the waning seconds via Kevin Kolb's 81-yard TD pass to Vincent Marshall. Sadly, after the game ended, a fight broke out between the squads. 

In perhaps the most anticipated NBA Christmas Day game ever, Miami's Shaquille O'Neal squared off against Kobe Bryant in the first matchup between the two stars since the former left the Lakers. Together, Shaq and Kobe won three straight NBA titles with the Lakers, but their relationship at the time wasn't too rosy. So, it was no surprise both brought their "A" games for this contest. Bryant dropped 40 points on the visiting Heat, but also committed nine turnovers and missed a three at the buzzer. Meanwhile, O'Neal had 24 with 11 boards, and Miami also got 29 points and 10 assists from Dwyane Wade in the victory.

Though the Packers finished with just four wins in 2005 and the Bears were a playoff team, a Christmas Day rivalry game between these two storied franchises is undoubtedly special. And, it proved entertaining. Chicago built a 24-7 lead, only for the Packers to rally within a touchdown and potentially force overtime. However, Bears safety Chris Harris picked off Brett Favre to end the game, giving Chicago the NFC North title and first sweep of the Packers since 1991.

This was the first meeting between the storied rivals since Boston knocked off Los Angeles to win the 2008 NBA title. In the rematch, Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 27 points, on 13-of-23 shooting from the floor, nine rebounds, and five assists, and Pau Gasol scored seven of his 20 in the final three minutes, to help give coach Phil Jackson his 1,000th career NBA victory. L.A. also held the Celtics to 5-of-22 shooting from 3-point range.

Playing his first Christmas Day game as a member of the Heat, LeBron James was the gift that kept on giving for Miami fans and those of the NBA in general. James broke out for 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists to become the fourth NBA player, at the time, to record a triple-double on Christmas Day. Chris Bosh added 24 and pulled down 13 boards for the Heat, who held the Lakers to 40.5-percent shooting and no player with more than 17 points.

This also marked the first day of the 2011-12 season, which was limited to 66 games due to the lockout. The Bulls' trip to Los Angeles proved to be the highlight of the de facto Opening Day slate on Christmas 2011. Luol Deng had 21 points and played his usual stellar defense, highlighted by a late steal of a bad pass from Kobe Bryant (28 points), who had eight turnovers. That set up the eventual winning floater from Chicago star Derrick Rose, who finished with 22 points.  

For the first time since 2011, the NFL was in action on Christmas Day. And, the highlight of the two-game holiday slate was this battle between heated division rivals. Baltimore led 20-10 early in the fourth quarter, but the host Steelers weren't down and out. Back-to-back Le'Veon Bell touchdown runs gave Pittsburgh a 24-20 lead. The Ravens, though, went back ahead on Kyle Juszczyk's 10-yard scoring run. However, Antonio Brown, who caught a TD pass in each of the previous three games, hauled in a 4-yard pass from Ben Roethlisberger with 9 seconds remaining to give the Steelers the win and AFC North title. 

As seen, Christmas Day 2016 proved to be highly entertaining for sports fans. This was the highly anticipated rematch of the 2016 NBA Finals, when the Cavaliers beat Golden State to bring a title to Cleveland finally. Less than six months later, the Cavs trailed the Warriors by as many as 14, but fought back and won it when Kyrie Irving (25 points, 10 assists, seven steals, six rebounds) knocked down the eventual winner over Klay Thompson with 3.4 seconds remaining in regulation. The finish overshadowed Kevin Durant's 36-point, 15-rebound performance for the Warriors, who couldn't keep LeBron James from scoring 31 or grabbing 13 rebounds.

Yes, the margin of this final score does not tell the true tale of this Christmas Day matchup from 2020. Amid COVID-era football, the Saints' Alvin Kamara, sporting one red and one green cleat in the spirit of the holiday, proved to be a fantasy owner's dream while rushing for 155 yards and an NFL record-tying six touchdowns on the ground, on 22 carries. We've noted plenty of stellar individual NBA Christmas Day performances, but in terms of all sports on the holiday, Kamara's effort is among the greatest.

The Knicks dominated another Christmas Day contest, and thanks to Kemba Walker. With 0 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists, Walker became the first player in franchise history to record a triple-double on Christmas. He's also the seventh, and most recent, individual to accomplish such a feat during an NBA Christmas Day contest.