As the ball left Anderson Hunt’s hands, we naturally assumed it would find its mark, desperate and deep as the 3-pointer might have been in the waning seconds of the national semifinal game.

Hunt never seemed to missed big shots, and the Rebels were on a historic run during which they seemed unbeatable … until the shot hit the back of the rim and bounced away.

Thirty years later, that 79-77 upset loss to Duke in the 1991 Final Four still stings. At the time, we knew the defeat ended UNLV’s undefeated season after 34 wins. We didn’t know it would also mark the beginning of the end of the program’s reign as a national power.

UNLV hasn’t been back to the Final Four, reached the Sweet 16 just once in the ensuing three decades and hasn’t even played in the tournament since 2013.

Still, those of us who grew up with Jerry Tarkanian’s Rebels will tell you, there’s been no team better in the history of college basketball history than those 1990-1991 Runnin’ Rebels, even without a championship cherry on top.

Coming off the 1989-1990 title season, UNLV got every team’s absolute best shot the next year. Yet the Rebels were untouchable, outscoring opponents by nearly 30 points on average.

They were ranked No. 1 the entire season and had just one game decided inside double digits, a 112-105 road win at Arkansas—a squad that went on to claim one of the other three No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

UNLV’s roster included three of the eventual top 12 picks in the 1991 NBA Draft: Larry Johnson (first overall), Stacey Augmon (9th) and Greg Anthony (12th). A fourth player, George Ackles, went in the second round.

Any of them could have left early for the NBA, but they returned to try for title No. 2 under their Hall of Fame coach. It’s difficult to imagine a group like that making such a decision in today’s pro-oriented environment.

Johnson earned the Naismith College Player of the Year award. Augmon was an award-winning defender and an elite finisher near the rim. And Rancho High product Anthony, the point guard, was the glue that held it all together.

If Anthony didn’t get into foul trouble against Duke, we’d almost certainly be talking about UNLV’s back-to-back championships today. And many still question the charging call that knocked him from the game with under four minutes to play. With Anthony on the bench, UNLV managed just three points the rest of the way.

Many locals can tell you exactly where they were when Hunt’s shot just missed its mark. We can also describe in great detail the championship game the previous year, a 103-73 victory over Duke.

That remains the largest margin of victory in any tournament final—an amazing achievement by UNLV’s fantastic title team. Yet for my money, there was no greater team in college basketball than the one that came next, even if its final shot happened not to go through the hoop.