The greatest buzzer-beaters everybody forgot about because the team lost in overtime

Tuesday night, Kyle Lowry made perhaps the greatest shot of the NBA season. The Raptors were down three with three seconds left and had no timeouts, so they had to go the length of the floor. They inbounded the ball to Lowry, their slumping star, currently in the midst of one of the worst playoff performances of all-time. His bad postseason looked to continue, as he fumbled the ball and nearly stepped out of bounds, wasting about a second of the three he had to go. With even less time than previously expected, he got the ball to halfcourt and just hurled it up ... and it went in, forcing overtime.

And then the Raptors promptly got worked in overtime, getting doubled up on the scoreboard. The Heat were the better team all night, and that remained the case for five extra minutes. Lowry’s miracle shot was the outlier, as he remained oddly bad at basketball in the extra session. The buzzer-beater prompted widespread euphoria, and in a few minutes, it quickly vanished.

When a buzzer-beater wins a game, it wins the game. When a buzzer-beater merely forces overtime, it really only gives you a 50-50 shot at winning the game. And maybe it’s often less than a 50-50 shot. The team that was winning with a few seconds to go is often the team that played better during the majority of the game, forced into an extra session by a shot that might’ve been a bit lucky. And the team that just hit a buzzer-beater has often wasted a lot of its energy -- both physical and emotional -- mounting a comeback. Sure, you have “momentum,” but that may or may not be a thing.

There’s a long history of Tragic Buzzer-Beaters: Spectacular shots and plays to force overtime by teams that then lost in overtime. The other night we asked Twitter for some suggestions, and these are a few of the greatest ever. Please to the comments with more suggestions and videos!

In Game 3 of the NBA Finals, Dave DeBusschere of the Knicks hit a fallaway 15-footer to give New York a lead with three seconds to go. Wilt Chamberlain quickly inbounded to West, who had to hurl a heave from 60 feet ... and he drained it:

Unfortunately for The Logo, the three-point line hadn’t been invented yet, so this shot was only worth two points. In today’s NBA, this shot would’ve given the Lakers a win in regulation. In the NBA of 1970, it merely forced overtime, where the Knicks won by three. It turned out to be a pretty big deal -- New York won the series in a classic Game 7, and that’s why the Lakers only have 14 more NBA championships than the Knicks and not 16. (You can’t see me right now, but I’m crying into a Kristaps Porzingis T-shirt jersey.)

(Thanks to several folks who suggested this shot on Twitter.)

College basketball’s most famous rivalry should’ve been lopsided in 1995. UNC was a powerhouse, with Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse. Meanwhile, Duke was trash, with Mike Krzyzewski leaving the team after 12 games due to a bad back and “exhaustion.” Under interim Pete Gaudet, Duke would go 2-14 in conference play and set a school record for losses.

But somehow, that Duke team got that UNC team to overtime. The Tar Heels were up three with enormous Dutch blonde man Serge Zwikker at the line, and he missed a free throw. For some reason, up three with seconds remaining, UNC had zero players contesting the rebound, nobody but Zwikker on the same side of the court as the free throw, and three players standing within the three-point arc that Duke would never think about crossing because they were down three. The Blue Devils got a clean run across halfcourt, and Jeff Capel hoisted a runner from 40 feet:

The game went to double overtime and -- this might shock you -- Dick Vitale went NUTS.

It’s a minor miracle that trash Duke team was able to hold it together against a great UNC team 45 minutes ... but they couldn’t last another five. All their shots to send it to a third overtime missed, and UNC won.

Thanks to the multiple people who suggested this one, too.

The Nets had the upper hand in the decisive Game 5, and really should’ve eliminated the Pacers in regulation. Richard Jefferson -- the same Richard Jefferson who played in Wednesday night’s Cavs game, I swear, I swear, it’s the same person -- went to the line up three with four seconds remaining. If he hits one, an Indiana team with no timeouts is probably doomed. But he missed BOTH, so Indiana scrambled the ball across halfcourt, and tried to get it to the greatest shooter of all time, pre-Steph Curry edition. But Miller caught the ball 40 feet from the hoop with his back turned to the basket. He had to turn around and just throw the ball up -- and it banked home, just like he surely intended:

The Pacers found themselves trailing again in double overtime, but somehow, Miller found it in his stringy 37-year-old body to drive to the rim and posterize Aaron Williams to force double overtime.

But that’s where the Pacers’ luck ran out. They only managed two points in double OT while the Nets racked up 13. New Jersey made it all the way to the finals, where they’d get swept by the Lakers.

The game would eventually go three overtimes, but the Nets would dominate the third for a 127-120 win. Facing elimination, the Pistons held the Nets to 75 points in Game 6 and clamped down as nicely as they could in a 90-69 Game 7 blowout. Remember, no matter how bored you are of the NBA playoffs this year: There was only one game in this series where both teams scored more than 80 points, and that was in a triple overtime game.

The Pistons went on to win the NBA Finals for the first time since the Bad Boy era, but it wasn’t quite thanks to this shot.

Thanks to Detroit Bad Boys for suggesting this one on Twitter.

Down three against Michigan State with a trip to the Final Four on the line, Kentucky got the ball to sharpshooter Patrick Sparks. But he missed. Badly. Airballed it.

Luckily, he missed so badly that Kelenna Azubuike caught it under the basket. But being under the basket didn’t help, so he sprinted to the three-point line and rushed a turnaround fadeaway with four seconds left. But he also missed badly.

But the ball clanged so hard that it bounced all the way out to the three-point line, where Sparks was waiting. He awkwardly jumped directly into a Michigan State player and tossed the ball at the rim, where it bounced ... and bounced ... and bounced ... and fell.

Azubuike missed a potential game-winner in overtime, and Michigan State hit 11 free throws in double overtime to win by six. They got to go to the Final Four, and all Kentucky got was this game-winner.

Thanks to Doctor of Dunk for suggesting this on Twitter.

The Packers put together one of the most amazing drives in football history to force overtime against the Cardinals this year. Aaron Rodgers needed to throw a Hail Mary on fourth and 20 ... and it worked. Then, with time expiring, Rodgers needed to throw another Hail Mary ... and it worked again:

It’s the only passing touchdown to tie a game or take a lead in with the clock expiring in NFL playoff history. So, really, this is the only buzzer-beating touchdown in NFL playoffs that would fit the criteria.

But just three plays into overtime, Larry Fitzgerald beat the Packers virtually 1-on-11, scoring an 80-yard touchdown. The NFL playoffs are sudden death, so that was the game.

This wasn’t basketball, but it was such a silly finish that I felt it deserved remembering. Thanks to Leviticus Cornbread on Twitter for suggesting it.

Again, this isn’t a definitive list -- give us your suggestions in the comments!