Final Four return brings relief to parched Arizona fans after 25-year drought

After a quarter-century of March Madness losses and disappointment, our cup runneth over with excitement. We can’t wait for Saturday’s clash with Michigan in the NCAA semifinal.

Wildcat fanatics attending the Elite Eight in San Jose’s SAP Center likely broke decibel records with their chants of “U of A.” In Tucson, we couch potatoes held our collective breaths in the first half until the Cats found a way to put Purdue away in the second. At the final buzzer, cheers of joy resounded from house to house.

Just a few hours later, past 1 a.m., fans from ages 8 to 80 assembled outside McKale Center to celebrate the victory and to welcome the Cats home. And just a few hours after that, hundreds of UA faithful burst into the UA campus store early Sunday, pouncing on Final Four T-shirts like Jaden Bradley scooping up a loose ball.

Hundreds gathered Wednesday outside McKale Center to cheer and send the team off to Indianapolis. Summing up the feeling of many of us about the Final Four, Pete Quiroz told a KVOA reporter, “Unbelievable. I have chills. I’ve been a Cat fan since I was a kid. It’s just fantastic for the city. I just love it.”

And why not?

For 13 years, from 1988 to 2001, Lute Olson-coached teams clawed their way to the Final 4 on four occasions. That’s about once every three years. During those years, the UA won the title in 1997, finished second in 2001, and (as semifinalists) tied for third in both 1988 and 1994. Clearly, we came to expect success, not only in the PAC-12 or Big 12, but during the madness of March.

Then, in 2002, the start of the Final Four drought rolled in across our Sonoran Desert. A quarter of a century of basketball agony followed. Our squads made it to the Elite Eight five times from 2002 to last year. That would have been remarkable at most Division I schools. But it didn’t satisfy most of us with Final Four dreams. And we plunged into the pits when the Cats were bounced seven (yes, seven) times in the very first round during that quarter century.

Looking ahead now, what are your plans for watching the game on Saturday vs. Michigan, which might be Arizona’s toughest test yet?

Evie Walls, a longtime UA fan, politely sends her guests home before a game so she can shout her heart out at every basket. And when a Wildcat commits a foul or a turnover, she yells at the TV with her critique.

Let’s cut Walls some slack since she carries some hoops cred: Both of her brothers — Ken Carrillo at Glendale Community College and Jerry Carrillo at Cochise College — are basketball coaches. Walls' Ireland-born husband, Henry, says he sits quietly beside her as the action heats up, his eyes focused on the TV screen.

Another fan, UA alum Kassie Renteria, mixed partying and basketball last Saturday at Main Gate Square. As she and friends moved down University Boulevard, she joined screaming UA students and other young people at packed restaurants. In early February, she had lined up on Autograph Day at the campus store and got the signatures of Koa Peat, Brayden Burries and other Wildcats.

Matt Muehlebach, the former Zona hoops standout and current TV analyst, stays away from crowds on game day when he becomes just another UA fan. But, come on, Muehlebach is no ordinary Cat. As a freshman guard, he was a member of the Cats’ first Final Four team in 1988. His teammates, including Warriors Coach Steve Kerr, stay in touch via a text thread, which was especially active on Saturday evening.

Muehlebach, like so many Tucsonans, is “feeling it” about the team’s success and the fans’ anticipation, a feeling he says is similar to 1988. Getting to the Final Four is like making it to baseball’s World Series, he said, an extraordinary achievement.

So, yes, it took us a long quarter-century to “get back” to the Final Four. With apologies to Beatles singer-composer Paul McCartney, a line from “Get Back” seems fitting now: “We’re back to where we once belonged.”