Why in 2003 did you guys get shipped out to Minnesota?

[EvilMD]

If you don't mind the question, since you're making a distinction... what's your point of view on Duke/UK 2010?

We all feared we would get West Virginia as our two, even though we were a top two team all season long. West Virginia was considered "the fifth one seed" by many going in. Duke, meanwhile, got Villanova/Baylor/Purdue, and Purdue lost its star player a couple weeks before the tournament. When the pairings came out we were upset. This wasn't an after the fact thing. Cal was really pissed. We had lost two road games and won everything else. We beat UConn, Louisville, Indiana, Tennessee twice (Tennessee barely missed making the Final Four), UNC before their wheels came off, and Stanford.

Out of curiosity, how did you guys do against Wake Forest that year? You only had like five losses, right? Who beat you that year?

 

[EvilMD]

If you don't mind the question, since you're making a distinction... what's your point of view on Duke/UK 2010?

Okay, I just looked it up. You lost at Wisconsin, Georgetown, Maryland, Georgia Tech and N.C. State that year. You beat Wake by 20 at home.

I still feel you got our rightful spot. WV should have been your 2. Wisconsin was our four but they got upset by Cornell. Cal was like 1-8 against Huggins going into that game. He has beaten him twice since, but that whole setup still smells.

 

[UK90]

Why do you keep addressing dezydeco with the "you" stuff as if he were a Duke fan? There's nothing in his posts to support that assumption.

 

[dezyDeco]

Out of curiosity, how did you guys do against Wake Forest that year? You only had like five losses, right? Who beat you that year?

LOL! Brother, I am a Kentucky Wildcat fanatic! Always have been... always will be.

BTW, I pretty much agree with your 2010 assessment. Personally, I did not want to see WVU pop up when our bracket was announced that year... similar to how I felt about ND this past season. I do concede that you have to expect a tough game when you get to the EE, no matter who it is... so I try not to piss and moan too much about that particular situation.

 

[dezyDeco]

That's a pretty fair assessment. Kansas was the overall #1 seed and went to St. Louis. It could be argued that UK should have went to Texas, but imagine the whining on this board and talk of things being unfair if they would have had to play Baylor in Texas. It's enough of that going on with having to have played WVU in Syracuse.

Yeah... I'll cop to it. You're right about that.

I made a huge mistake by watching that 2010 WVU game with a bunch of UC-fan in-laws... who, of course, still loved and rooted for Huggins, in addition to their "dislike" of UK. I've probably overreached on the excuses for that game, to combat the effects of that horrible experience.

 

[EvilMD]

Sorry, dezy. I assumed, and we all know what happens when you assume.

In 2010 we got screwed by having by far the best two in our region. In 2011 we REALLY got screwed....Ohio State, which means the committee ranked us 16th. In 2012 I felt we got the favorable draw we deserved. In 2014...screwed royally again. An eight seed? We beat a one and two twos, as well as Louisville. And last year again Duke got what should have been our path.

Seems like the years they really stick it to us, we get pissed and win amazing games. So maybe I shouldn't complain. But still, Duke has two more titles and it's not hard to see that and think "could have/should have been ours".

 

[bthaunert]

Sorry, dezy. I assumed, and we all know what happens when you assume.

In 2010 we got screwed by having by far the best two in our region. In 2011 we REALLY got screwed....Ohio State, which means the committee ranked us 16th. In 2012 I felt we got the favorable draw we deserved. In 2014...screwed royally again. An eight seed? We beat a one and two twos, as well as Louisville. And last year again Duke got what should have been our path.

Seems like the years they really stick it to us, we get pissed and win amazing games. So maybe I shouldn't complain. But still, Duke has two more titles and it's not hard to see that and think "could have/should have been ours".

I feel like in 2011 and 2014, if anyone got screwed, it was the higher ranked teams in our bracket. Can you imagine how pissed Ohio State fans were when they got us as their 4 seed?

In 2014, Wichita State gets us as an 8 seed? That is royally screwed. Poor Michigan had to play us in Indianapolis in the Regional Final.

 

[EvilMD]

I feel like in 2011 and 2014, if anyone got screwed, it was the higher ranked teams in our bracket. Can you imagine how pissed Ohio State fans were when they got us as their 4 seed?

In 2014, Wichita State gets us as an 8 seed? That is royally screwed. Poor Michigan had to play us in Indianapolis in the Regional Final.

Ann Arbor is almost as close to Indy as Lexington, isn't it?

 

[dezyDeco]

Sorry, dezy. I assumed, and we all know what happens when you assume.

".

No problem.

I just wanted to make sure... because if I was actually giving off a Dook vibe, I'd grab the wire brush from the BBQ grill and jump in the shower--- to scrub that vile essence off of me!

 

[bthaunert]

Ann Arbor is almost as close to Indy as Lexington, isn't it?

Anywhere within a few hours drive of Lexington to play UK, especially Indianapolis, where we have always had great crowds, is an advantage for UK. That one was less of a screw job for Michigan because we were the 8 seed, but WSU having to play us in the 2nd round was a major screw job for them.

 

[ncaaky]

The crazy thing this year was Notre Dame being the 3 seed in our region. They were a top 5 team this season. There is no way a great team from the ACC that wins the conference tourney by beating UNC and #1 seed Duke gets a 3 seed. They beat Duke twice and had a few non conference resume builders. Lost 5 games all season and win ACC tourney and get a 3 seed??!!

 

[EvilMD]

The crazy thing this year was Notre Dame being the 3 seed in our region. They were a top 5 team this season. There is no way a great team from the ACC that wins the conference tourney by beating UNC and #1 seed Duke gets a 3 seed. They beat Duke twice and had a few non conference resume builders. Lost 5 games all season and win ACC tourney and get a 3 seed??!!

Seeding was hard last year. UK, Duke...no brainers. But Arizona, Wisconsin, Villanova....pick two for your final top seeds. So now you have one of your twos set. Gonzaga, Kansas, Virginia...all teams that flirted with top seed status during the year. Maybe you could have flip flopped Notre Dame and Kansas, but it wouldn't have made any difference.

 

[.S&C.]

Don't forget the game before that one... vs. Wisconsin.

Back-to-back Sweet 16 and E8 games with a guaranteed hostile crowd... isn't that what the top overall #1 seed is supposed to get?

I thought all the "tin foil hats" were the answer? How could it be a pattern dating back that long?

I love those posters. I scratch my head at how any real longtime UK fan could ever think the bias is a made up fairytale. Of course, those idiots only come around here and there, but you'll know it when you see them. Everything is made up. Everything is actually fair. Oh, and Duke gets no special treatment.

I call them Message board fans. They know nothing about what's really going on, they just like playing the "normal guy" to strangers on a message board. The biggest douche bags on the board imo.

 

[.S&C.]

Seeding was hard last year. UK, Duke...no brainers. But Arizona, Wisconsin, Villanova....pick two for your final top seeds. So now you have one of your twos set. Gonzaga, Kansas, Virginia...all teams that flirted with top seed status during the year. Maybe you could have flip flopped Notre Dame and Kansas, but it wouldn't have made any difference.

Duke was gift wrapped an intentional road last year. We deserved their road, they deserved a much harder road. It was clear, and Notre dame was trending hotter than hell and we were forced to play them. The top seed.

Terrible seedings last year. One of the worst I've seen in 29 years.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Anywhere within a few hours drive of Lexington to play UK, especially Indianapolis, where we have always had great crowds, is an advantage for UK. That one was less of a screw job for Michigan because we were the 8 seed, but WSU having to play us in the 2nd round was a major screw job for them.

Not that you're saying this, but it's not Kentucky's fault we travel well. The SC shouldn't start moving Kentucky further or sending us harder brackets because our fans will go the distance. Other teams and their fan-bases can very well stop neutral sites from becoming a sea of blue.

Still, this debate always comes back to that it's not necessarily Kentucky getting slighted (although I firmly believe we've been hampered a few times because of our "Goliath should be able to beat anyone" mentality), but more so, why UNC and Duke always seem to find themselves a favorable bracket? In recent history, has Duke ever been the overall #1? Not last year, not in their 2010 title year. Yet they get favorable brackets in both. Can you imagine their bracket if they WERE the overall #1 seed?

The only year I can think of where Duke had to take a hit due to bracketology issues was 2014, when they got the #3 seed despite better records than Kansas and Michigan. An argument could be made for the #2 seed... but that's it.

 

[UKWildcats#8]

Duke was gift wrapped an intentional road last year. We deserved their road, they deserved a much harder road. It was clear, and Notre dame was trending hotter than hell and we were forced to play them. The top seed.

Terrible seedings last year. One of the worst I've seen in 29 years.

It is all based on geography...that's the problem. ND was placed in the region closest to home. They could have been a 2 seed, so their "reward" was the 3 seed in Cleveland with UK as the 1 seed lol not much of a reward overall IMO.

The problem was Villanova...if they had just lost one more game I think you see Wisconsin as the 2nd or 3rd one seed and Arizona as the 4th 1 seed out west. UK, Duke, Wisconsin, and Zona were the four most talented teams by far, but Arizona screwed around and lost to 3 teams they really should not have. If they had just lost 2 games maybe Villanova is bumped down, but then again maybe Wisconsin is as they had 3 losses and then they are UK's 2 seed (due to geography) with ND as the 3 seed still. That would have been armageddon on here.

 

[.S&C.]

It is all based on geography...that's the problem. ND was placed in the region closest to home. They could have been a 2 seed, so their "reward" was the 3 seed in Cleveland with UK as the 1 seed lol not much of a reward overall IMO.

The problem was Villanova...if they had just lost one more game I think you see Wisconsin as the 2nd or 3rd one seed and Arizona as the 4th 1 seed out west. UK, Duke, Wisconsin, and Zona were the four most talented teams by far, but Arizona screwed around and lost to 3 teams they really should not have. If they had just lost 2 games maybe Villanova is bumped down, but then again maybe Wisconsin is as they had 3 losses and then they are UK's 2 seed (due to geography) with ND as the 3 seed still. That would have been armageddon on here.

I hear geography a lot, then bam. Duke goes out west to the easier regions. It's all set up for Duke to benefit. Has for a long time and probably always will.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Actually...I remember now, from last year, how everyone tried to speculate on the brackets. We heard several accounts and shared numerous articles of how it was supposed to be seeded. Some media members said it was geography, others said it was done by seeding.. some said it was a combination of both.

And I distinctly remember laughing, before SC made their picks, saying "Great, so this whole thing is arbitrary and subject for debate.. some teams will be seeded on location but others on wins, and no explanation for why one and not the other".

And then the picks came, and just like we all knew.. there was no rhyme or reason to it.

 

[EvilMD]

Duke was gift wrapped an intentional road last year. We deserved their road, they deserved a much harder road. It was clear, and Notre dame was trending hotter than hell and we were forced to play them. The top seed.

Terrible seedings last year. One of the worst I've seen in 29 years.

Yes we did. Just like in 2010. And there's really no getting around this, but Duke did what they had to do both times. In every other year they pooped the bed, but those two years they were handed a break and ran with it.

Meanwhile, we seem to do best when we are handed the absolute worst bracket possible. Until we play UConn.

 

[.S&C.]

I get the whole "they beat the team in front of them" argument and Duke was playing fantastic, but we shouldn't pretend when you "beat the team in front of you" it always means you beat a quality team or a team that deserves their seeding. There's not tons of quality teams out there. Being choosy for Duke can have disastrous advantages for a team with dukes roster caliber. If the NCAA plays the "everybody plays regions but Duke" game, that can certainly be enough for them to rack title after title with a mix of OAD + upperclassman. We are in a new era, and Duke doesn't need the help. Time for them to compete on their own feet. They're a big boy now they can handle it.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

for S&C..

That's exactly how I see it. Yes, the best team doesn't always win the title. But if you give a great team enough slack, they will at times take advantage of that. Duke was given a lot of slack last year, which made Kentucky's road more difficult. That very well have been the difference between 40-0.

 

[EvilMD]

When you compare their road last year to ours, it's frustrating.

Second round
They get....San Diego State. A decent team, albeit one battling food poisoning that game. Still, not a challenge even if healthy.
We get....Cincinnati. About the same level as San Diego State, only UC would have killed to end our season.

Third round
They get....Utah, aka Kentucky Roadkill. Another nondescript team. Decent, but not gonna scare anybody.
We get....Maryland (West Virginia). Maryland-WV winner would beat Utah seven out of 10 times.

Fourth round
They get....Gonzaga. Again, a soft team from the West. San Diego St, Utah, Gonzaga. Zzzzzz.
We get...Kansas (Notre Dame). Obviously Duke couldn't draw ND having played them 3 times already. But it's clear ND was better than Kansas or Gonzaga.

Fifth round
They get....Villanova (Michigan St)
We get....Wisconsin. One could argue that Wisconsin was the last one seed, therefore the committee did right. But how many times does Villanova have to flame out (2010, 2015) and give Duke an easier road? Nova lost to NC State, for crying out loud.

 

[.S&C.]

Exactly. ^^.