Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus No. 9-Seed Cincinnati (1st Round) on March 10, 2026 , Loss , 66, to, 73
Final Score
Men's Basketball
66
vs No. 9-Seed Cincinnati (1st Round)
73
The University of Utah Athletics
Utes Fans Keep Their Pride Despite Loss
6/21/1999 12:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 30, 1998
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A parade and pep rally awaited coach Rick Majerus and the Runnin' Utes after the cheers of thousands of fans at home evaporated with Utah's hopes for an NCAA title.
Less than a year after the city's major sports attraction, the Utah Jazz, fell in six games to the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Finals, the upstart Utes suffered the same fate Monday night in losing 78-69 to Kentucky.
But their fans, as surprised as many around the country in recent days at Utah's unexpected appearance in the championship game, were only disappointed to a point.
"We thought Utah did a super job. That's a great team and a super coach," said Donna Tanner, a Utah alumnus who watched the game on a giant screen at the University of Utah's Huntsman Center, where Utah plays its home game.
"We're still number two, and that's OK," Sue James said.
Gov. Mike Leavitt proclaimed Monday as Runnin' Ute Day before departing for San Antonio to see the game. Afterward, he said, "How many ways can you say 'I'm disappointed?'
"I think America was pulling for us," he said. "We have to remember how far we've come and how proud we are. What a remarkable year it has been!"
Leavitt's proclamation said "the Runnin' Utes have made believers out of basketball fans in the state of Utah, around the country and around the world."
As for the Utes falling short within a year of the second-place finish by the Jazz, the governor said, "We all would have felt better if we had not fallen short either time."
Majerus and his players were scheduled to return late today to a pep rally at the Huntsman Center. On Wednesday, a parade was scheduled to wind up at City Hall, where mayor Deedee Corradini and the city council were to present them the key to the city.
"We are definitely a sports capital and the world knows it," Corradini said in San Antonio. "This was a great run and there's more to come."
On Monday night, some 4,000 red-clad die-hards showed up at the Huntsman Center. Afterward, as they spilled into the cool night air, many seemed stunned and shocked by what they had witnessed.
"I felt like I had an autopsy performed on me in those last four minutes," Kent Scott of Salt Lake said. "It hurts, but that's the price of caring."
"We missed so many jumpers and open shots that we normally make," Ross Fornelius said. "I was just hoping we weren't going to leave the building like this."
Jayne Steenblik admitted to being disappointed, but she and her husband, Glen, nevertheless were buying Final Four T-shirts for their children after the game.
Across town at the E Center, where the Utah Grizzlies minor league team was playing the Chicago Wolves, fans watched portions of the Utah-Kentucky matchup on a large screen and stood for an ovation as the final seconds ticked away in San Antonio.
"We won tickets to the hockey game, but we couldn't bear to miss the Utes," said Cathy Brewer, who with husband Bill came armed with two portable radios and a portable television.
Danny Simpson was there with face painted red and white and toting a sign that read, "Utah Kicks Ice."
Bob Tremmer, another hockey fan, said he had a bet with his aunt in Lexington, Ky. Since he lost, he'll go to Kentucky's campus in a Kentucky jersey and sing the Wildcats' fight song this summer.
"It looks like I'm wearing blue," he said. "I hate blue."
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