Utah had a special guest for Thursday night’s game — Andre Miller, a Utes basketball legend and longtime NBA player.
Miller isn’t exactly a welcome visitor for Arizona fans.
Back in 1998, Arizona was the defending national champion and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament when it faced a No. 3-seeded Utah squad in the Elite Eight. The Wildcats were armed with Mike Bibby, A.J. Bramlett, Miles Simon, Michael Dickerson, Bennett Davison and Jason Terry, all back from the previous year’s title run.
Then Miller, and the Utes, got in the way.
The Wildcats scored just 20 first-half points and wound up falling by 25 points in one of the worst postseason losses of the Lute Olson era. Miller was the star that night, amassing a triple-double with 18 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists.
“Yes, I think this is the best game I’ve ever played,” Miller told reporters after the game.
The Utes defeated No. 1 seed North Carolina on their way to a national title matchup with Kentucky, but lost that game by nine points.
Miller went on to play 17 years in the NBA. He retired after spending last season with the San Antonio Spurs. He lives in San Diego.
