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As part of the 100th anniversary of our motto, "Bear Down," the University of Arizona is looking back at several of the most remarkable moments and accomplishments in the university’s illustrious history, with an eye toward the "Bear Down" moments of the future.

Every Wildcat can tell you exactly where they were on March 31, 1997. But the foundation for what took place on that date took years – even decades – to build.

Upon his arrival in Tucson in 1983, Lute Olson turned the Arizona Wildcats into a yearly participant in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and a Pac-10 powerhouse. By the mid-1990s, Olson had built the Wildcats into a perennial title contender – work that laid the path for the future of Arizona basketball and the success that carries through today – but the ultimate prize remained elusive.

In the constantly evolving world of college athletics, this kind of consistency is nearly impossible to maintain. Many believed that it was not a matter of if one of Olson's could eventually win it all, but when.

A long shot

Most college hoops fans, however, did not believe 1997 would be that year.

The Wildcats entered the 1996-97 season ranked a respectable No. 19, but Olson's squad was stacked with promising – but unproven – underclassmen. It seemed to many that this core might be a year or two away from truly challenging for the title.

Arizona started the season with an impressive 83-72 win over North Carolina, but the season would be marked with equally thrilling highs and dispiriting lows. Despite finishing the regular season No. 12 in the polls, the Wildcats wrapped up 1997 with four losses in their final eight games.

The road to Indianapolis – home of the 1997 Final Four – seemed long and bumpy. Even if they got past the first two rounds, the fourth-seeded Wildcats would have to topple three No. 1 seeds to win the title – something that had never been done in the history of college basketball.

An 'impossible' task

First up, Kansas. The Jayhawks entered the contest winners of 34 of 35 games. Many expected Kansas to be the last team left standing at the end of the NCAA Tournament, but the Wildcats had other ideas. Arizona 85, Kansas 82.

Then after a nail-biting overtime win over Providence in the Elite Eight, Arizona squared off against another No. 1 seed. The North Carolina Tar Heels would be seeking revenge from that opening-day loss six months prior, but the backcourt duo of Miles Simon and Mike Bibby proved to be too much. Arizona 66, North Carolina 58.

One more game. One more No. 1 seed. Arizona versus Kentucky. The winner takes it all.

Basketball, at its core, is a simple game. At the college level, each team gets 40 minutes to try to put a ball through a hoop as frequently as possible. But the weeks, months, years, lifetimes leading up to those 40 minutes contain the essential building blocks of what it means to be human – drama, heartbreak, determination, despair, and occasionally, pure joy. Those 40 minutes can act as a microscope and magnify the intensity of those emotions to such a degree that you stop thinking and you simply start believing.

Every Arizona fan knows what happens next. Simon scores 30. Jim Nantz calls it a "milestone victory for Arizona." Olson finally cuts down the nets. The seemingly impossible task of defeating three top-seeded teams made the victory that much sweeter.

When it can't be done, we can't be stopped.

Explore more Bear Down 100 moments at Arizona.edu/BearDown.