Our writers pick the greatest games they've ever seen

	Sports Illustrated declared the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team's win over Russia as the greatest sports moment of the 20th century. Heinz Kluetmeier
	Best Game I've Ever Seen RELATED: Click here to read all the essays REACT: What's the best game you've ever seen?

By Richard Deitsch

What makes a game one for the ages? Well, it depends on the eye of the beholder. SI's Alex Wolff has three criteria: Prominent protagonists, high stakes and a hero. Grant Wahl says the game must be significant, superbly played and filled with drama -- with compelling plots and subplots taking place on and off the field. For others, such as George Dohrmann, it is all about context. The greatest games are great, he says, because of how they fit into your life.

No doubt, you have your own criteria. Imagine if you had to boil the thousands of sporting events you've watched in person or on television into the best game of all. We asked Sports Illustrated writers to pick the greatest game they saw, regardless of whether they were there or not. The choices ranged from the seminal (Frank Deford wrote of the Colts' win over the Giants in the 1958 NFL Championship Game) to the sensational (Wolff on Duke-Kentucky in '92) to the personal (Tom Verducci's team of 10-year-olds that pulled off a miracle win at the 2006 Mid-Atlantic Regional semifinals of Cal Ripken Baseball.) For Wolff, Duke's 104-103 overtime win over Kentucky in the 1992 NCAA East Regional final provided all his criteria for greatness, while Wahl chose the thrilling second leg of the 2003 Champions League quarterfinal between soccer superpowers Manchester United and Real Madrid at fabled Old Trafford.

We invite you to read all the essays (we'll debut new ones each day this week) and then head over to FanNation to tell us your favorite game.