The Top 5 Most Momentum Swinging Plays in Sports

By Matt Brown

      

March welcomes a time for all sports fans to watch a multitude of basketball games won and lost by, essentially, the team with the most momentum in that given moment in time. That let me to thinking about the most momentum swinging plays in the sports world. Here is my top five.

5. The First Goal (Soccer and Hockey)

This is pretty self-explanatory. Scoring one goal, whether it be in soccer or hockey, gives everybody the confidence that they can score another one. And it makes the other team feel just a little bit more mortal than they did when it was 0-0.

4. The Solo Home Run (Baseball)

When a team is down in a Baseball game, Nothing says “I put the team on my back” like cranking a solo shot to left center to bring in run all on your lonesome. This will get the dugout clapping a little bit, and maybe all of the bats in the dugout heated up a little bit.

3. The Poster Dunk (NBA)

While in the regular season many argue that NBA players barely look at the scoreboard, posterizing dunks are momentum swingers. For those not familiar with the term posterization: It is the act of dunking over somebody so that when somebody goes to make a poster of the dunker, the victim defender is also featured on said poster. And any look at an NBA bench while a posterization takes place will tell anybody that it changes the momentum of the game.

2. The Penalty (Football, Soccer, Hockey)

This is sort of a no brainer. In Soccer and Hockey, literally because of penalties the other team has to play with one less player than you have to. Nothing swings momentum like having one more player than the other team. In Football, nothing kills momentum and gives to the other team like moving backward 15 yards over hitting the Quarterback in the face accidently.

1. The 3 Pointer (NCAA)

I recognize that this is very debatable but I will forever stand by it. College three bombs drastically change the momentum of a game with one swish of a basket. This is true in the NCAA tournament, but more so at regular season games. When a home team nails a three, the place explodes, and for that moment, its like the team on the floor just won the National Championship itself. When an away team hits a three, silence floats over the crowd like they are at a Broadway play. Nothing changes the mood, and momentum, in sports like the three pointer in college. Don’t believe me? Just watch.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqG7eSRAyfg