Holy Cross Game Notes
Kentucky Tips Off NCAA Tournament
Live TotalCast!
Ticket Info
Coach Smith Comments
A Closer Look at the Wildcats
The University of Kentucky mens basketball team received the No. 2 seed in the East Region and will face the Crusaders of Holy Cross in the first round of the NCAA Division I tournament on Thursday, March 15, in Uniondale, N.Y. Duke holds the No. 1 seed in the East.
This marks the Cats 10th consecutive tournament appearance and NCAA-record 42nd overall appearance. UKs No. 2 seedis its first since 1998 when the national champion Wildcats advanced to the Final Four from the South Region with a victory overDuke. The Cats also were a second seed in the 1992 East Region when the Unforgettables advanced to the region final against theBlue Devils. UK suffered a 104-103 overtime loss in what was widely considered as one of the greatest games ever played.
This will be the third game between UK and Holy Cross in the schools long histories. The first meeting came in the semifinalsof the 1948 NCAA Tournament in New York, N.Y., when the Cats Fabulous Five claimed the 60-52 victory over the BobCousy-led Crusaders en route to their first of seven NCAA titles. They met again the next season with UK winning, 51-48, at HolyCross, on its way to claiming back-to-back national championships.
In the first round, UK coach Tubby Smith and Holy Cross mentor Ralph Willard will be reunited. Smith and Willard servedtogether on Rick Pitinos first Wildcat staff (1989-90), and after one year as associate coach, Willard moved on as head coach atWestern Kentucky while Smith was promoted to associate coach at UK. The two faced each other as head coaches in the 1998Puerto Rico Shootout with Willards Pittsburgh Panthers stunning Smiths Wildcats, 69-56, in the second round.
UK is 10-7 this season against teams in this years tournament field. The only two teams to defeat the Wildcats and not makethe field of 65 are St. Johns and Alabama. The Red Storm defeated the Cats, 62-61, in the season opener, while the Crimson Tidetopped UK on Jan. 23, 70-60, one of only two double-digit losses for the Cats this season.
The Wildcats are the winningest team in NCAA Tournament history with 85 victories dating back to 1942, and UK ranks third in winning percentage at 70.2.
