March 11, 2003
2003 Southeastern Conference Tournament
No. 2/2 Kentucky Wildcats (26-3, 16-0 1st East)
Southeastern Conference Champions
vs.
(E5) Vanderbilt Commodores
Quarterfinals * March 14, 2003 * 7:30 p.m. ET
The SEC Tournament
New Orleans, La.
Louisiana Superdome (27,000)
March 13-16, 2003
Complete SEC Notes in PDF Format
RADIO
UK Radio Network (80+ stations): Tom Leach, Mike Pratt, Dave Baker.
TELEVISION
JP Sports: Games 1-10
CBS Sports: Game 11
Wildcats’ Next Goal: Tourney Title in “Big Blue Easy”
After completing the 2003 Southeastern Conference schedule with a 69-67 victory at Florida to keep its league record perfect at 16-0, Kentucky now sets its sights on the postseason as the Wildcats take the floor Friday in their 42nd SEC Tournament. UK is the second team to sweep the league slate in the last 47 years, joining their ’96 UK predecessors with the historical achievement. The Cats can become the first team since the 1952 Wildcats to sweep the regular-season slate (14-0) and win the conference tournament.
Kentucky enters SEC Tournament play with the nation’s longest win streak — 20 games. The last loss came Dec. 28, more than 10 weeks ago. UK also owns more wins (14) away from Rupp Arena, both road and neutral site games, than any other team in the country and leads Division I teams with an 11-1 record against ranked foes.
Kentucky will attempt to win its 24th SEC Tournament title and secure the automatic bid for the upcoming NCAA Tournament. UK owns a first-round bye and will play Friday night at 7:30 p.m. ET at the Louisiana Superdome against the winner of the Vanderbilt-Alabama game. The Cats beat the Commodores twice this season, 74-52 in Nashville and 106-44 in Lexington, and handed the Crimson Tide a 63-46 decision in January, holding Alabama to its lowest point total in Tuscaloosa since 1969.
UK has won more league tournament titles than all the other teams combined, and since the SEC switched to its expanded tournament format in 1992, the Wildcats have won eight of the 11 crowns.
In the previous five years of the Tubby Smith era, UK has captured the SEC Tournament Championship three times – 1998, 1999 and 2001.
This marks the second time UK has played in the “Big Easy” this season, defeating Tulane at the New Orleans Arena on Dec. 10. It’s the Cats’ first appearance in the Superdome since 1999, when they won two NCAA first/second round games en route to the Midwest Regional final. Their last SEC Tournament appearance there ended with a shocking upset in the 1996 finals to Mississippi State.
Cats’ Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Ppg Rpg Hometown Cat Scratch44 Chuck Hayes F 6-6 247 So. 8.9 6.7 Modesto, Calif. Team-leader with 80.2% FT14 Erik Daniels F 6-8 214 Jr. 9.8 5.1 Cincinnati, Ohio UK's #2 shooter - 56.1% FG50 Marquis Estill C 6-9 236 Sr. 11.0 5.8 Richmond, Ky. Last 5 games: 4.4 orpg10 Keith Bogans G 6-5 213 Sr. 15.9 3.8 Alexandria, Va. 13th Cat to top 300 assists 4 Gerald Fitch G 6-3 188 Jr. 12.6 3.2 Macon, Ga. 18 pts. in win at Florida
Key Reserves40 Jules Camara F-C 6-11 220 Sr. 6.8 3.5 Dakar, Senegal Shooting 87% FT vs. SEC 1 Cliff Hawkins G 6-1 187 Jr. 5.9 *3.7 Dumfries, Va. Best sixth-man in nation?33 Antwain Barbour G-F 6-5 195 Jr. 3.7 1.8 Elizabethtown, Ky. Tied CH with 2 3FGs vs. UF24 Kelenna Azubuike G-F 6-5 208 Fr. 4.0 1.2 Tulsa, Okla. DNP after 16 points vs. VU* Assists per game
Historic Sweep
With a thrilling 69-67 win over Florida on March 8, Kentucky captured a perfect league record at 16-0. It’s the second time in seven years that UK has accomplished the feat. In the first 22 years of the SEC (1933-54), 17 teams recorded perfect records in league play, including four seasons where two teams accomplished the feat. During those 22 years, Kentucky totaled 10 perfect SEC records.
Since 1954 (49 years), only two teams have swept the SEC regular-season schedule three times:
1956 – Alabama – 14-0
1996 – Kentucky – 16-0
2003 – Kentucky – 16-0
SEC Marks
In 1992, the league split into two divisions and implemented its current postseason tournament format.
Since then, the Cats have earned a bye in all 12 tournaments, meaning the Cats have finished no worse than second in the division since the league split 12 years ago. In SEC media voting, UK was picked to finish third in the East this season at SEC Media Days but instead, captured the Eastern Division title.
Kentucky has won or shared nine East titles since 1992 and six of its league-leading 42 SEC Championships.
SEC Domination
UK is a charter member of the SEC and since the league’s inception in 1932-33, the Cats have been the most dominant team, recording a 796-212 mark (79.0%) during regular-season SEC play. No other team has won more than 654 regular-season SEC games (Alabama) and no other team has a better winning percentage. UK has averaged 11.4 wins and 3.0 losses per season during its SEC tenure.
The Wildcats have won 42 SEC titles and 23 SEC Tournament Championships, more titles than the other teams combined.
Kentucky has won eight of the last 11 SEC Tournament titles and nine of the last 12 Eastern Division crowns.
Tubby Smith is in his eighth season in the SEC, his sixth at Kentucky. In SEC regular-season play, he’s 94-34 (73.4%), the best record and most wins of any active coach in the league. He’s captured four SEC Championships and five Eastern Division crowns in six seasons in the Bluegrass. He also owns a 13-4 record in seven SEC Tournament appearances, winning three titles.
Inside the SEC Numbers
UK needs one win to reach 100 in SEC Tournament play. Next among tournament wins are Alabama and Tennessee, which both have totaled 53 victories… Kentucky is 99-17 overall in SEC Tournament action, 42-12 since the tournament was renewed in 1979… This is the 44th SEC Tournament, and UK has won more than half (23) the titles despite playing in just 41 previous events… UK has won 26 of its last 29 SEC Tournament games… Since the tournament was renewed in 1979, UK is 15-0 in semifinal games, 11-4 in championship games… Georgia (0-7) and Ole Miss (0-12) have never beaten UK in the SEC Tourn-ament… Since the league split in 1992 (12 years ago), UK has earned the No. 1 seed six times and the No. 2 seed six times.
At Home in the Dome
Kentucky is 4-2 all-time in the Louisiana Superdome, which includes the Cats’ 1996 SEC Tournament appearance. UK’s two losses in the dome came against Michigan in the 1993 Final Four and to Mississippi State in the finals of the SEC Tournament in 1996.
Date Opponent Result4-3-93 Michigan L, 78-81*3-8-96 Florida W, 100-763-9-96 Arkansas W, 95-753-10-96 Miss. St. L, 73-843-12-99 New Mexico St. W, 82-603-14-99 Kansas W, 92-88**overtime
Neutral Sites
Kentucky owns a 4-1 record at neutral sites this season with the only loss coming to Virginia in the semifinals of the Maui Invitational. The Cats have not played a neutral-site game since defeating Ohio, 83-75, in Cincinnati’s U.S. Bank Arena on Jan. 4. The neutral-site games include:
Date Opponent Result11-25-02 Arizona St. W, 82-6511-26-02 Virginia L, 61-7511-27-02 Gonzaga W, 80-7212-21-02 Indiana W, 70-641-4-03 Ohio W, 83-75
For the complete SEC Tournament notes, Download them in PDF format.
