Hansen’s Sunday Notebook: Ranking the top 10 college hoops games in McKale’s 50-year run

Fifty years. More than 1,000 college basketball games. How do you possibly pick the No. 1 game ever played at McKale Center?

On a national scale, none was bigger than the first of 10 NCAA Tournaments staged at McKale. In March 1974, UCLA’s John Wooden brought the seven-time defending national champion Bruins to Tucson for a Sweet 16 game against Dayton.

After three hours, through three overtimes, the No. 1 Bruins finally subdued Dayton 111-100. Bill Walton — yes, that Bill Walton — scored 27 points and grabbed 19 rebounds. Of the 51 NCAA Tournament games since played at McKale, Wooden and the Bruins were a tough act to follow.

But when McKale Center celebrates its 50th anniversary on Wednesday, memories won’t be about Wooden and Walton, they’ll be about a half-century of unforgettable Arizona games. Here’s one man’s Top 10:

1. The Record Breaker: In anticipation of a special day, Sean Elliott shaved his head the morning of the long-awaited February 1989 showdown against UCLA. The hometown hero needed 34 points to break Kareem Abdul-Jabbar‘’s Pac-10 career record of 2,324 points. Elliott scored 35. The No.2 Wildcats not only beat UCLA 102-64, it was the most-lopsided defeat in Bruins history.

2. The Streak Breaker: In January 1992, UCLA returned to Tucson ranked No. 2, believing Arizona’s 71-game winning streak at McKale was breakable. It was. The Bruins won 89-87 on Darrick Martin‘s short jumper with 0.3 seconds remaining. “It’s terrible that we lost the Streak,’’ said UA guard Matt Othick. “But that was one great game.’’

3. Tucson meets Steve Kerr: In January 1983, Steve Kerr was an unknown reserve freshman guard on Lute Olson’s first team. Kerr unfortunately moved into public consciousness two days before a game against ASU. His father, Malcolm Kerr, president of American University in Beirut, Lebanon, had been assassinated 48 hours before the Wildcats were to meet the Sun Devils, winners of nine straight against Arizona. Before the game, Kerr and thousands of fans wept during a moment of silence for his late father. With 12:59 remaining in the first half, Kerr was inserted into the game. The first time he touched the ball, he swished a 20-jumper. Everything then changed for the UA basketball program. Arizona won 71-49 as Kerr had a break-out game with 12 points and the Wildcats ended ASU’s domination and went on to beat ASU in 16 of the next 17 meetings..

4. The McClutch Game: In January 1986, Oregon State was the reigning power in Pac-10 basketball, having won four league titles the previous five seasons. The Beavers led Olson’s third UA team 62-61 with 3.2 seconds left in overtime. That’s when Kerr threw a 94-foot pass — a play called the “Home Run’’ — that was deflected by UA center Anthony Cook into the hands of Craig McMillan. At the buzzer, McMillan scored on a layup. Fans rushed the court, mobbing McMillan, who Kerr described to me that night as “McClutch.’’ Arizona won 63-32 and went on to win its first Pac-10 title and replace the Beavers as the league’s top program.

5. The Duke double-double: In February 1991, Arizona beat No. 6 Duke in double overtime 103-96, keeping a 60-game McKale Center streak alive as UA guard Matt Muehlebach stole the ball from Duke’s Bobby Hurley in the final ticks of regulation and the first overtime.

6. The Anniversary Game: In January 1998, a few days before the 25th anniversary of McKale, Arizona’s women’s basketball team faced its most imposing challenge: Stanford. The Cardinal had a 48-0 streak against Pac-10 opponents and a 22-0 streak against Arizona. But UA guard Reshea Bristol took a pass from future UA coach Adia Barnes with two seconds to play and swished a 3-pointer to stun Stanford, 91-90. It triggered the UA to its first-ever Sweet 16 season.

7. The Sweep: In January 1979, No. 6 UCLA and Pac-10 leader USC arrived at McKale for a two-game weekend set. Arizona stunned the Bruins 70-69 and followed with a 74-72 upset over the Trojans, prompting a court-rushing celebration like few in school history as guard Joe Nehls scored 31 points.

8. The Block: In February 2011, the 22-4 Wildcats all but clinched Sean Miller‘s first league championship as center Derrick Williams blocked Washington’s Darnell Gant shot with one second remaining, batting it into the Zona Zoo to preserve an 87-86 victory. The “White Out’’ crowd reacted with such energy that Miller said “I thought the roof was going come off.’’

9. Aari’s Legacy Shot: In February 2020, facing No. 4 Stanford, which had built a 33-1 record over Arizona in 17 seasons, UA guard Aari McDonald rushed through traffic to score at the bucket with six seconds remaining in overtime for an epic 73-72 victory. The second-largest crowd to see a UA women’s regular season home game, 7,838, celebrated Arizona’s first-ever victory over a team ranked in the top five.

10. The Legend Builder: Three weeks after McKale Center’s debut, February 1973, Arizona faced feared WAC rivals Utah and BYU in a now-historic back-to-back, Friday-Saturday showdown. After beating Utah 101-95 in three overtimes on Friday, the Wildcats stunned league-leader BYU 100-94 on Saturday as Coniel Norman scored 38 points. Word of McKale’s homecourt advantage spread, gaining momentum, a celebrated tradition that turns 50 on Wednesday.

If you’ve got a game to add to my list, please let me know at [email protected].