Tennessee basketball went from the peak to the pit 30 years ago | Mike Strange

“The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat.’’

That weekly introduction to ABC-TV’s “Wide World of Sports” is etched into memory. Especially the agony guy, the ski jumper careening sideways off the ramp into catastrophe.

The description fits college hoops. This week 30 years ago, Tennessee basketball was basking in the thrill of a near-miraculous victory. But the agony of historic defeat was looming.

The same cast assembled for both episodes, the Vols and Rick Pitino’s Kentucky Wildcats. At the center of it was Allan Houston.

Houston doesn’t need a long introduction. He’s the leading scorer in UT men’s basketball history with 2,801 points from 1989-93. Pete Maravich is the only SEC player who scored more.

Tennessee retired Houston’s jersey in 2011, after an NBA career in which he scored another 14,551 points and won an Olympic gold medal in 2000.

As February was turning to March in 1993, Houston’s bittersweet career was nearing an end.

As pure a shooter as you’ll ever see, Houston was a pleasure to watch. He scored 30 or more points 23 times. He remains UT’s most accurate 3-point shooter, hitting 42.4 percent, ranks third in free-throw percentage and – no gunner – stands sixth in assists.

He led the Vols to several rousing victories while playing for his father, Wade. But not enough of them. The Vols had winning seasons just twice in Allan’s four years. They never made the NCAA tournament.

So it was on Feb. 24, 1993, when No. 2 Kentucky came to Knoxville. The Vols were 11-13, going nowhere.

Eight days earlier, UT had stunned No. 13 Arkansas 101-91 in Fayetteville. But the Vols had lost four consecutive home games.

The clocking ticking, a fifth appeared inevitable.

Leading 77-74, Kentucky fouled Houston with 4.9 seconds to play. Sound strategy, preventing a game-tying 3-point shot by one of the best 3-point shooters the league has ever seen.

Houston made the first free throw, his 27th point. Two-point game. Now, he had to intentionally miss the second and pray a Vol could rebound and score to tie it.

His second shot came hard off the right side of the rim. Teammate Jermaine Brown was able to tip it toward the basket but not in.

Corey Allen collected the ball to the left of the basket, hit a 4-footer with 1.5 seconds to play – and was fouled by Kentucky's Jamal Mashburn.

Allen completed the miracle by swishing the free throw. Tennessee won, 78-77.

Wade Houston credited the players and staff for their execution, adding, “Because people around here don’t think I can coach anyway.’’

So the Vols capitalized on the magic moment by … losing their final three games. The SEC tournament awaited in Lexington.

They upset Auburn in the first round. In hindsight, they probably wish they hadn’t.

Sixteen days after Tennessee’s thrill of victory in Thompson-Boling, Kentucky was waiting for its revenge.

It was awful. The Wildcats won 101-40, the worst margin of defeat in UT history. The Vols shot 23 percent, made 30 turnovers.

Tennessee’s scoring king deserved a better exit. He missed his first 14 shots.

Wade left him in, hoping for a final swish to leave on. Four minutes left, one of those perfect-form shots at last found the net. To respectful applause, Allan Houston left the court.

In the final 16 days of an historic career, he had experienced both the pinnacle of exhilaration and the depths of disappointment. Such is basketball.

Mike Strange is a former writer for the News Sentinel. He currently writes a weekly sports column for Shopper News.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee basketball's peak-to-pit moment 30 years ago