Arizona Basketball Coach Sean Miller: Top 4 favorite 2017-18 moments

We looked back at the regular season to find some classic Sean Miller moments to share with Arizona Basketball fans.

In no specific order, let’s review four of our favorite moments from Arizona Basketball Coach Sean Miller this past season in no specific order. Please note, when we say favorite, we mean memorable, and we love it when Miller gets charged up about something, and he’s right. So keep that in mind.

No. 1 – Jan. 21 Arizona travels to Stanford, offensive foul called on Ayton, Miller gets a technical

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Star freshman Deandre Ayton is a big dude, as they say in the Arizona Football recruiting war room when talking about linemen. Ayton, for most of the season, got tabbed for ticky tack fouls that had nothing to do with him but did have to do with his opponents. Get close to Ayton and his opponent would either flop like he got hit, or fall, or just try to fluster the freshman.

In Ayton’s attempts to play tough defense, which the team was determined to do after the Bahamas ordeal, it seemed anything Dre did, a foul was called. It was the same thing with 7-footer Kaleb Tarczewski. Zeuz would just spin towards the basket and would get called for a foul, even if he got fouled. Frequently, he would get in foul trouble, and it would hurt the team because they couldn’t have their big man on the floor.

Referees were and seem still are so gullible with the head fakes, flinches, and flops.

Sean Miller gets a Technical Foul during the Stanford Game. On this play, Dre did push off with his forearm. The problem is that his opponent needed to give him room to play. It’s called the cylinder rule, and this time, the player moved into Dre and gave him no space. This has happened to Allonzo Trier as well, and the referees have called an offensive foul.

We don’t blame Miller for getting upset, but he clearly says f-you to the referee after pointing to the referee so everyone could see that he had his eye on the referee. Hilarious, were we all not screaming the same thing in our heads at least?

Miller talks about how he feels about Ayton getting foul calls after Utah game. Miller has said that Ayton is incredibly mobile, he has said Reed Travis is so heavy physically and mobile:

No. 2 – Feb. 3, Technical foul after a no call on Ayton with 10:50 left in the game.

Continuing the theme, Ayton once again trying to play the game of basketball against the Washington Huskies. With 10:50 left in the game, Ayton tries to get a shot off, but his defense is up against his body, so there is contact. Instead of Ayton shooting free-throws, he was called for an offensive foul sending Miller into a heated discussion with the referee that led to a technical foul.

Being angry at home is not enough, we seem to enjoy it when Miller gets on the referees for being just downright blatantly ignorant. There we said it. So when Miller gives them a piece of his mind, even if we lose the game during the regular season, we will enjoy it. If the team loses because of a couple of free-throws, then that sort of says the game was lost on a lot more than just two points.

Arizona ended up losing the game 78-75, three measly points made at the buzzer. Dominic Green hit a “cold-blooded” buzzer beater to beat the cats after a brilliant block from Ayton.

It was a blackout at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion (in Seattle). The Huskies are currently coached by Mike Hopkins who publicly backed Sean Miller before he came out with his statement.

Hec Edmundson Pavilion is a tough place to play, as the fans are right on the court, or very close to it. We couldn’t find the video of Miller getting the technical foul, if you find it, let us know.

No. 3 – Miller gets a warm reception in Mckale before Cal game after ESPN Report

After a hell of a weekend defending himself and his star center Ayton against ESPN Reported claims, Sean Miller is cleared to coach and returns to McKale Center as the Wildcats take on Cal in the second meeting between the teams.

Miller got a standing ovation from a packed crowd at McKale. He got a hug from his Associate Coach Lorenzo Romar and was smiling.

Miller on why he was emotional (would be surprised if he wasn’t emotional):

Alternate statement (warning: this is a joke):

No. 4 – Cutting Down the Nets

There’s nothing in college basketball better than cutting down the nets, and for the second time this season Sean Miller and his team has cut down the nets. Once after their game against Stanford at McKale when they won the Pac-12 Regular Season Championship and the second after they won the Pac-12 Tournament.

As is tradition, each player cuts a piece of the basketball net until the last rung which is left for the head coach. The head coach makes the final cut and brings down the entire net. It was unique for Miller to take down the nets in McKale Center in front of his home fans, but it had to be just as special to cut down the nets in Las Vegas in front of probably just as many or more Arizona Fans that packed T-Mobile Arena.

Perhaps even more heartwarming was watching Lorenzo Romar cut his piece off of each net, it had been a while for the future Pepperdine University head coach, and he was taking each moment in.

Here is the cutting down of the nets from McKale Center in case you missed it.

Perhaps even more memorable was the locker room celebration in Vegas where Miller walked away with a soaked shirt, but it was soaked with Gatorade.

Blast from the past – The “He touched the ball” Technical foul, ejection and fine

Borrowed from our last post, Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott Booed by Arizona Fans:

"This all went down in 2013 during a UCLA tournament playoff game knocking Arizona out of the tournament. Remember the famous words that will go down in Arizona Basketball history? “He touched the ball, he touched the ball..“? After being fined, and Miller’s requests for review, it was discovered that head referee Ed Rush, has strongly suggested to his referee crew to T-up Miller and he would give them a trip as a gift. After found out, Rush said he was only joking, “Absolutely, 100 percent said in jest.” Miller was so upset. He was livid because his senior Mark Lyons wouldn’t be able to continue playing that season."

Must Read: More on Arizona Basketball from ZZ..

Did we miss anything? Any rants that got you giggling? Anything rememberable in a good way from the regular season? We purposely left out the entire Atlantis tournament stuff. Frankly, we are sick of talking about it. On to the Final Four and National Championship!