Nominations are now open for the most heartbreaking loss in UA history. The 1989 Sweet 16 loss to UNLV is usually a runaway winner in heartbreak categories.
The Wildcats were 29-3, the top seed, but lost 67-66 when UNLV’s Anderson Hunt buried a three with 2.6 seconds left. Hunt gave UA guard Kenny Lofton a forearm shove before he launched the shot; the referees didn’t make a call. Lofton fell to the ground as Hunt’s shot hit home.
It was Elliott’s final game as a Wildcat, and he went out with a double-double — 22 points and 14 rebounds — but the game’s star was Hunt, who scored 21.
Most hurtful photograph in UA basketball history? Elliott embracing his mother, Odiemae, near the team’s locker room, tears falling onto her shoulder.