On Sunday, Coach Greg Kampe said that since the championship win Tuesday night, everyone has been telling the Golden Grizzlies how great they are. Kampe encouraged his players to bask in their glory for a few days, as he felt they had deserved it for earning such an accomplishment. After all, without an opponent to prepare for, there was no need to stay locked in.
Then, come Sunday evening, the matchups were announced.
Oakland. Kentucky. Primetime on CBS.
It might be time to lock back in.
“They’ve had all week for everyone on campus to tell them how great they are,” Kampe told Fox 2 in Detroit Sunday night. “We will get back to work tomorrow.”
The reaction inside the Orena at a watch party hosted by the team was a joyous one. Fans anticipated a bigtime matchup, but drawing Kentucky is certainly exciting.
“They are the bluest of the blue bloods,” Kampe said.
Kampe is right. Kentucky ranks second all time with 8 national championships, third all time with 17 final fours, and in tie for first all time with 131 NCAA Tournament victories. John Calipari leads the Wildcats and has an impressive resume of his own in the tournament. Calipari has already led the Wildcats to a national championship in 2012, while also ranking fifth all time with 57 NCAA Tournament victories as a head coach. He also has amassed six final fours at three different schools, ranking in the top 10 all time for appearances, and the second coach to hit that number at three different schools.
Not only is the program one of the elite, this year’s edition of the Wildcats is certainly one to be reckoned with.
Kentucky leads the country in three point percentage, and is second in the country in scoring. Overall, the offense ranks in the top five in offensive efficiency according to Kenpom.
However there are reasons to feel optimistic about Cinderella’s slipper fitting the Golden Grizzlies.
The Wildcats, while elite offensively, have struggled on the other end of the floor for long stretches this year. That top five ranking on offense is followed up by a sub top 100 ranked defense. In fact, Kentucky has allowed 87+ points in 11 games this year, and is more susceptible to teams that can make threes. If Oakland brings their game offensively, there could be some late game drama in Pittsburgh on Thursday night.
Kentucky has also struggled on the glass, something that Oakland has mightily improved this season. For Oakland to give itself a chance, the rebounding battle will be a key one to watch throughout the night.
The Wildcats history in this event is impressive, but Kampes bunch will not be fazed.
All offseason, Kampe preached this year they had to get older, and that was for moments like this. Look at Blake Lampman’s career. In his five seasons he has played at Maryland, Michigan State, Syracuse, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Purdue, Michigan, Ohio State, Illinois, Dayton, Boise State and Alabama. Trey Townsend and Chris Conway have been to the majority of those places as well, not to mention Rocket Watts, who has played in this tournament before.
Another Golden Grizzly with tournament experience is Kampe himself. He has a 1-3 record in the tournament, with the win coming in the 2005 opening round game against Alabama A&M before being out to eventual national champion North Carolina. The other two losses were to Pittsburgh, and a 4 point loss to Texas in his last appearance.
Kampes illustrious career is already a storybook one, and this year’s team is full of storybook careers of their own. But the one thing missing from this program’s resume is a win like this. National stage, big time program, to get to the round of 32.
We have seen this team defy the odds before, time to find out if they have one more breakthrough left in them.
Tip off in Pittsburgh is Thursday night, at 7:10pm. The broadcast will be on CBS.
