March 31, 1997: Arizona Basketball knocks off Kentucky to win the NCAA Championship

No. 1 seed Minnesota: Big Ten champions, 31-3 (16-2 in Big Ten), No. 3 in AP Poll
No. 1 seed North Carolina: ACC champions, 28-6 (11-5 in ACC), No. 4 in AP Poll
No. 1 seed Kentucky: SEC champions, 34-4 (13-3 in SEC), No. 5 in AP Poll
No. 4 seed Arizona: 4th in Pac-10, 23-9 (11-7 in Pac-10), No. 15 in AP Poll

The 2024 NCAA Tournament window has closed for Arizona Basketball, but that doesn't mean we can't still reminisce. 27 years ago today, No. 4-seeded Arizona summitted the peak and knocked off Kentucky to secure its first and only National Championship in program history.

It was a culmination that not many saw coming, considering Arizona finished in fourth place in the Pac-10 and lost nine games for the first time in 10 years. However, the ensuing postseason run was legendary: three No. 1 seeds and two conference champions all saw their seasons come to an end against the Lute Olson-led Wildcats.

In this, we'll look at how the regular season played out and dive into each postseason game played that year by the 'Cats.