This board is underrating our bracket

[Runnin'Ramel]

From Sports Illustrated's analysis of the East region:

Toughest draw: No. 2 Kentucky​

Remember last year’s Big Dance, when No. 1 seed Illinois drew a Loyola Chicago team in the second round that was significantly underseeded based on quality metrics like KenPom? The Wildcats got a similar draw in this tournament, facing the winner of San Francisco and Murray State should they advance past Saint Peter’s in the first round. San Francisco ranks No. 21 in KenPom and is battle-tested, having faced Gonzaga three times and hung in during all three matchups. Meanwhile, Murray State is 30–2 and hasn’t lost since December 22 against Auburn. The Racers have tremendous guards and a dangerous inside-out big man in KJ Williams.

Plus, even if the Wildcats do advance past two potential Cinderellas in the second round, they could have quite the test incoming in the Sweet 16 against Purdue. If anyone has the bodies to throw at Oscar Tshiebwe down low, it’s the Boilermakers.

 

[Cats192]

I wanted to avoid:

Gonzaga
Arizona
Duke
Auburn
TN
Tx Te
Arkansas

We did it.

Beyond that, you’ve got to accept that you’re going to play SOME good teams.

 

[Cats192]

From Sports Illustrated's analysis of the East region:

Toughest draw: No. 2 Kentucky​

Remember last year’s Big Dance, when No. 1 seed Illinois drew a Loyola Chicago team in the second round that was significantly underseeded based on quality metrics like KenPom? The Wildcats got a similar draw in this tournament, facing the winner of San Francisco and Murray State should they advance past Saint Peter’s in the first round. San Francisco ranks No. 21 in KenPom and is battle-tested, having faced Gonzaga three times and hung in during all three matchups. Meanwhile, Murray State is 30–2 and hasn’t lost since December 22 against Auburn. The Racers have tremendous guards and a dangerous inside-out big man in KJ Williams.

Plus, even if the Wildcats do advance past two potential Cinderellas in the second round, they could have quite the test incoming in the Sweet 16 against Purdue. If anyone has the bodies to throw at Oscar Tshiebwe down low, it’s the Boilermakers.

Yeah. We just can’t worry about Murray State or SF. If we can’t win that game, we don’t deserve the Final 4.

Purdue CAN beat us. They don’t play defense though. They could lose to Texas.

 

[STL_Cat]

Man, this board spent a whole year shitting on Gonzaga’s conference. I know we’re not gonna act like we’re worried about San Francisco now lol

 

[cornbreadnmilk]

From Sports Illustrated's analysis of the East region:

Toughest draw: No. 2 Kentucky​

Remember last year’s Big Dance, when No. 1 seed Illinois drew a Loyola Chicago team in the second round that was significantly underseeded based on quality metrics like KenPom? The Wildcats got a similar draw in this tournament, facing the winner of San Francisco and Murray State should they advance past Saint Peter’s in the first round. San Francisco ranks No. 21 in KenPom and is battle-tested, having faced Gonzaga three times and hung in during all three matchups. Meanwhile, Murray State is 30–2 and hasn’t lost since December 22 against Auburn. The Racers have tremendous guards and a dangerous inside-out big man in KJ Williams.

Plus, even if the Wildcats do advance past two potential Cinderellas in the second round, they could have quite the test incoming in the Sweet 16 against Purdue. If anyone has the bodies to throw at Oscar Tshiebwe down low, it’s the Boilermakers.

Scary Murray State.If we have gotten to the point fans are scared to play them something is wrong.

 

[track42]

Do some of the wimps in this thread know that we aren't Louisville in the NIT?Crying because we might have to play some good teams in the NCAA.

 

[Rideordiewildcat]

Sure, it would be a tough game. But we’re talking about an Elite Eight game. It’s supposed to be a tough game. If we’re talking about a game against a 4 seed UCLA to get to the Final Four? Sure. Sign me up. I don’t think anyone is saying this is like running through the MAC. It’s the NCAA tournament, it’s supposed to be hard.

I'm just saying there are easier paths. Some are acting like the East is the easiest. Look at the path for Arz. It's s cakewalk.

 

[STL_Cat]

I'm just saying there are easier paths. Some are acting like the East is the easiest. Look at the path for Arz. It's s cakewalk.

Also though, Arizona earned a 1 seed. Relative to the seed we earned it’s about as favorable as it can get.

 

[Cats192]

Man, this board spent a whole year shitting on Gonzaga’s conference. I know we’re not gonna act like we’re worried about San Francisco now lol

Preach

 

[HerrosHeroes]

Yeah I mean the East has
Baylor
UK
Purdue
UCLA
That is by far the toughest group. Some are saying we have an easy draw but there isnt any great teams anywhere just some good ones so I wasn't afraid of any of them. However, the Zags and KU have a walk to the FF.

Duke, Texas Tech and Auburn say hello.

 

[HerrosHeroes]

Purdue will be tough. They will have the best player on the floor. How much success Oscar has against their bigs will determine the winner imo.

Ummmm Oscar is the prohibitive fav. to win NPOTY. He is a double double machine, with the most already in a single season in UK history. A record that stood for 52 yrs.
Ivey is damn good but O will be the best player on the floor.

 

[HerrosHeroes]

It’s not a round robin. You don’t play all the teams in the region. Kentucky’s 7-10 matchup is the best of the four - could have been USC, Ohio State or Michigan State.

Then, if Purdue advances, a major if, they have had a KenPom defense ranking of around 100 all year and got beat easily by IU, and should have lost to them at home.

Then, if chalk holds, Baylor. A very good team but weakened by injury. The weakest of the #1 seeds. I actually think the Cats could be facing UCLA or even UNC.

That’s a fortuitous path.

Md for post of the year!

 

[Rideordiewildcat]

Duke, Texas Tech and Auburn say hello.

I dont get it. Dook and Aub aren't in the same region and Aub has been choking left and right lately along with Dook getting spanked by a soso cheat team on their own court then not having to play anyone to win the Acc and got heat by another soso team lol.

 

[track42]

I dont get it. Dook and Aub aren't in the same region and Aub has been choking left and right lately along with Dook getting spanked by a soso cheat team on their own court then not having to play anyone to win the Acc and got heat by another soso team lol.

Just a week ago people on here were griping that we would be stuck in Duke's bracket and be helped by cheating refs but now they suck and we should be in there with them.Can't make this shit up.

 

[Rideordiewildcat]

Just a week ago people on here were griping that we would be stuck in Duke's bracket and be helped by cheating refs but now they suck and we should be in there with them.Can't make this shit up.

Wasn't me though was it? I'm not afraid of Dook. The refs with the rat farewell tour yeah hard not to. But getting drummed by 2 soso teams in 2 weeks I cant see many teams being afraid of them.

 

[Nbacats]

Our bracket has six Kenpom top 16 teams, more than any other bracket. The 10 seed is KP #21, 11 seed is KP #23, and 7 seed is KP #27. Those are all highest of their seed. Purdue and Baylor are good hypothetical opponents for us at those stages in the tournament, but there are some really good teams in this bracket relative to their seed line.

What's on the top half of our region is pretty irrelevant. You won't face that team until the Elite 8, and at that point whoever you face is either going to be a team that has been really good all season or has gotten hot at the right time.

 

[michaeluk26]

Not sure why you're surprised? 90% of the people are convinced no matter who we're playing we will smoke them by 30. This is a haven for anonymous overconfident people. I still enjoy it but I know whom to listen to. Doesn't matter what anyone thinks on here except to each other. Enjoy it.

 

[Runnin'Ramel]

Scary Murray State.If we have gotten to the point fans are scared to play them something is wrong.

Just sharing the information. Not scared of Murray State or San Fran.

 

[runt#69]

I don't think anyone is underrating the regional we are in. It is winnable for this Kentucky team, though. It sets up nicely in any of the matchups, as I've seen all these teams play this year.

The only other choice they would've possibly made was a Kansas 1 - Kentucky 2 kinda deal. NO WAY they want to risk another debacle like that.

So we got Baylor. But Baylor has lost their center for the year, run a VERY SHALLOW and SHORT rotation, and Cryer has been fighting injuries all year. Sound familiar?

I don't see how any Kentucky fan should be quaking in fear at the proposition of this team playing Baylor, Purdue, Murray State or San Fran, UCLA, UNC or anyone else in our region. This Kentucky team can win this regional this year. It appears better than any in recent memory. But is no reason to let down our guard.

Man up and let's go do this !

 

[CatOfDaVille]

This, 100 percent. We struggle with grind-it-out, tug, push, slap defensive teams. They just aren't in this bracket, other than perhaps Texas. But I don't suspect we ever see them.

I haven't seen them play, but I have to assume that St. Peter's will play that way. Their coach is a Kevin Willard disciple and Willard was Pitino's guy when they played that hacking defense at UofL.

 

[Gromcat]

Look I’ve been preaching this since it was released. It’s a damn hard bracket with quirky player matchups for UK that also consist of an in state small school, San Francisco who is a really good team, a rival blue blood revenge game in UNC, former champs, and on. It’s not a good bracket for UK. I would have taken all other regions.

 

[Gromcat]

Not sure why you're surprised? 90% of the people are convinced no matter who we're playing we will smoke them by 30. This is a haven for anonymous overconfident people. I still enjoy it but I know whom to listen to. Doesn't matter what anyone thinks on here except to each other. Enjoy it.

It’s crazy how many people think this is a good bracket for UK. To me it flies in the face of all reality.

What scares me is I bet on so much basketball especially this year and I feel I’ve got a decent grasp of some of these teams. I trust myself looking at it, and I don’t like it.

 

[Gromcat]

Man, this board spent a whole year shitting on Gonzaga’s conference. I know we’re not gonna act like we’re worried about San Francisco now lol

Apples and pears STL. This is a single game elimination for a title. Gonzaga getting an easy win every night inconference doesn’t consist of UNC, Purdue, Baylor,l etc.

Texas Tech is one of the more overrated teams to me, and Duke got’m.

 

[STL_Cat]

Apples and pears STL. This is a single game elimination for a title. Gonzaga getting an easy win every night inconference doesn’t consist of UNC, Purdue, Baylor,l etc.

Texas Tech is one of the more overrated teams to me, and Duke got’m.

Man, I don’t even know who you are anymore.

 

[Chief Paducah]

The way I look at our bracket, I go to the next highest seed which is Purdue. I didn’t want to see them because of their size. Still a concern but we get a week to prepare. The other 3’s are Tennessee(we can’t play), Wisconsin (plodding, slow, rock fight) and Texas Tech(see Wisconsin). At least Purdue will try to get up and down the floor with us and if that’s the case, it will negate their bigs some.

As far as the 7-10 game, it hurts me to see Murray there. I live about 30 minutes from there and follow and cheer for them regularly. But there are other 7/10’s that would cause me more heartburn(see Loyola Chicago, Michigan St, Davidson, Miami). At the end of the day you have to lace them up and beat good teams. If we can’t get out of this lower half, we were not beating the high seeds from the other brackets.

 

[michaeluk26]

It’s crazy how many people think this is a good bracket for UK. To me it flies in the face of all reality.

What scares me is I bet on so much basketball especially this year and I feel I’ve got a decent grasp of some of these teams. I trust myself looking at it, and I don’t like it.

Same here Grom about our draw. If you've been betting all year then you probably know more about other teams than damn near anybody on here. For real.

 

[Gromcat]

Same here Grom about our draw. If you've been betting all year then you probably know more about other teams than damn near anybody on here. For real.

I’m not betting like some that’s for sure. But I feel I watched enough to trust my eyes on teams I’ve seen quite a lot and I definitely do not like our draw. Seems I’m in the minority that’s fine. Not the first time I’ve had to preach truth to a crowd.

 

[kybassfan]

Our bracket has six Kenpom top 16 teams, more than any other bracket. The 10 seed is KP #21, 11 seed is KP #23, and 7 seed is KP #27. Those are all highest of their seed. Purdue and Baylor are good hypothetical opponents for us at those stages in the tournament, but there are some really good teams in this bracket relative to their seed line.

This bunch of basketball supa geniuses? Surely you jest. They consulted the oracle. You know, the one that atop Mount PlayStation.

Anyone that thinks our bracket will be a cakewalk is a blithering idiot. The haters must be salivating.

 

[Gromcat]

From Sports Illustrated's analysis of the East region:

Toughest draw: No. 2 Kentucky​

Remember last year’s Big Dance, when No. 1 seed Illinois drew a Loyola Chicago team in the second round that was significantly underseeded based on quality metrics like KenPom? The Wildcats got a similar draw in this tournament, facing the winner of San Francisco and Murray State should they advance past Saint Peter’s in the first round. San Francisco ranks No. 21 in KenPom and is battle-tested, having faced Gonzaga three times and hung in during all three matchups. Meanwhile, Murray State is 30–2 and hasn’t lost since December 22 against Auburn. The Racers have tremendous guards and a dangerous inside-out big man in KJ Williams.

Plus, even if the Wildcats do advance past two potential Cinderellas in the second round, they could have quite the test incoming in the Sweet 16 against Purdue. If anyone has the bodies to throw at Oscar Tshiebwe down low, it’s the Boilermakers.

It’s the hardest bracket said it first second I saw it. The Purdue game is a problem. Of the 5 teams I did not want to see, we got 3 of them. It’s unreal.

Then to see so many think it’s easy. Flat out insane. They gave us the most Kenpom top 15’s of any side. Think about that when were talking about UK always getting screwed over. You think they’d ever put that many on Dukes side? No. Never. They’ve hated us for years and this is just more evidence.

 

[Fancatstik]

Our 1 seed is hurt by injuries. Their best big man Jonathan Tchatchoua is out. Oscar will have a field day if they meet. That in itself makes our road to the FF much easier.

 

[IroquoisPliskin]

San Francisco and Murray have 2 combined wins over at large teams. Davidson and Memphis. San Francisco has 9 losses this year in a mediocre conference, and if they beat Murray will be playing in Indy with what I assume will be less than 200 fans against us.

 

[ukfan1622]

I'm assuming we are one of the six and that we don't have to beat all the other five...

 

[StubbornPenny]

1. You don’t have to play everyone in your bracket

2. you eventually gotta play someone good, and we match up pretty well with our potentials, AND more importantly we avoided narrative driven games like Duke or Memphis. Even when we play UCLA it’s just another game to everyone involved.

 

[jwphelps]

Our bracket has six Kenpom top 16 teams, more than any other bracket. The 10 seed is KP #21, 11 seed is KP #23, and 7 seed is KP #27. Those are all highest of their seed. Purdue and Baylor are good hypothetical opponents for us at those stages in the tournament, but there are some really good teams in this bracket relative to their seed line.

Still the best draw for any 2 seed to get to the final 4.

 

[Nbacats]

What's on the top half of our region is pretty irrelevant. You won't face that team until the Elite 8, and at that point whoever you face is either going to be a team that has been really good all season or has gotten hot at the right time.

Just going to post this again for the folks citing all the highly ranked KenPom teams. We're only going to face 1 of the ones that's in the top half of our region. All the teams that lose on the Baylor side of the bracket? Irrelevant. We'll never play them. They could have the best damn 4 seed that ever existed, but if Baylor beats them it won't matter.

 

[STL_Cat]

Just going to post this again for the folks citing all the highly ranked KenPom teams. We're only going to face 1 of the ones that's in the top half of our region. All the teams that lose on the Baylor side of the bracket? Irrelevant. We'll never play them. They could have the best damn 4 seed that ever existed, but if Baylor beats them it won't matter.

Exactly. This is not a round robin tournament. Only one team on that side comes out.

 

[Lightbringer12]

Gonzaga beat San Fran by double digits every time they met including even the tournament. More worried about Murray St even so Auburn beat them by 13 so not really a game and looking at their schedule it’s just full of cupcakes. If we had they’re schedule at most we would’ve had 1 loss with a whole ton of 30 point blowouts instead of them having close games.

 

[CatsIndy2010]

Lets just say, we should be able to make a run to the elite 8 or final four.

You got to be able to beat these teams like we did Kansas in regular season...Every Game.

 

[CatsIndy2010]

And the argument that big guys for purdue wil give oscar headaches, well what about when we played Auburn? The 7 footer for auburn gave him headaches..

 

[Creed Bratton]

I didn't read all the post but in case nobody has mentioned it St Peter's has the 34th ranked defense according to KenPom's adjusted defense matrix. That may be a game that is closer than we want.