NCAA Tournament March Madness

#19 Kentucky

Bubble Watch | Bracketology

Chat with the Bracketologist | How does this work?


Projection: likely out

Kentucky’s resume reads like a team that can blow past overmatched opponents at home but has yet to prove itself against elite competition away from Rupp, and that contrast is what drives the committee’s take. Convincing wins over mid‑major foes are undermined by a lopsided neutral loss to Gonzaga, another neutral setback to Michigan State and an away defeat at Louisville, while a close home loss to North Carolina highlights inconsistency rather than a clear résumé builder. The remaining schedule gives Kentucky a mix of manageable home and neutral tests against the likes of Indiana and St. John’s plus a brutal conference road gauntlet at Alabama, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas and LSU, so the team still has multiple opportunities to manufacture a marquee road victory or, conversely, to pile up more damaging losses. In short, the absence of a genuine signature win, the severity of the neutral-site setbacks and uneven play away from home explain the cautious committee posture, even as forthcoming chances exist to change that view.

Date Opponent Ranking Outcome
11/4Nicholls St265W77-51
11/7Valparaiso196W107-59
11/11@Louisville14L96-88
11/14E Illinois329W99-53
11/18(N)Michigan St11L83-66
11/21Loyola MD318W88-46
11/26Tennessee Tech302W104-54
12/2North Carolina26L67-64
12/5(N)Gonzaga3L94-59
12/9NC Central345100%
12/13Indiana2463%
12/20(N)St John's1541%
12/23Bellarmine28399%
1/3@Alabama1329%
1/7Missouri3769%
1/10Mississippi St7883%
1/14@LSU2542%
1/17@Tennessee1631%
1/21Texas5577%
1/24Mississippi5276%
1/27@Vanderbilt624%
1/31@Arkansas3044%
2/4Oklahoma4673%
2/7Tennessee1653%
2/14@Florida1229%
2/17Georgia2263%
2/21@Auburn2039%
2/24@South Carolina9271%
2/28Vanderbilt644%
3/3@Texas A&M4552%
3/7Florida1250%