Arizona Issues Statement After Group Of Fans Start Anti-Mormon Chant Following Wildcats' Loss To BYU

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Saturday's college basketball game between BYU and Arizona was an instant classic for 39 minutes and 57 seconds, but then things turned ugly after the Cougars escaped the desert with a big-time road win.

With Arizona leading 95-94, BYU's Richie Saunders drew a foul with 3.2 seconds remaining that, well, the majority of people inside the building and plenty watching at home did not agree with. Saunders stepped to the line and made both free throws to seal the win for the Cougars.

This all occurred shortly after Arizona standout Caleb Love appeared to score on an and-one situation with 12.5 seconds left, but officials ruled that he was not in the act of shooting.

After Arizona failed to even get a game-winning shot attempt off, tempers flared both on and off the court. 

Some jawing took place in the handshake line with Love caught up in the middle of things before BYU ultimately ran off the floor to escape the mayhem. Not long after the Cougars made their way off the court, a group of fans inside the building started a "Fu-k the Mormons" chant.

BYU is the flagship school of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. 

Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois released a statement about the "unacceptable" behavior from fans after the final buzzer.

"Following tonight's men's basketball game, it was brought to our attention that an unacceptable chant occurred," Reed-Francois said in a statement. "On behalf of the University of Arizona Athletic Department, we apologize to BYU, their student-athletes, coaches and fans. The chant is not reflective of who we are and should not have happened."

BYU had been subject to the exact same chant earlier in the season during the team's trip to Providence back in December. 

Both Arizona and BYU are ranked inside the Top 30 of the current NET rankings and should safely be in the NCAA Tournament field come March.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets, including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016, when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.