Kellan Grady recalls facing Kentucky in NCAA Tournament at Davidson

Kellan Grady knows all too well the difficulty of facing Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament. Now, four years later, the Davidson transfer will get to experience March Madness wearing a UK jersey.

In 2018, Grady and Davidson suffered a 78-73 loss to Kentucky in the round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament. Now, two-seeded Kentucky is set to tip off against St. Peter’s at 7:10 p.m. ET Thursday in the round of 64. With Grady preparing to play in his first NCAA Tournament since then, the sharpshooting guard looked back on Davidson’s loss to Kentucky.

“We were all — my whole team was on an emotional high because we had just won the Atlantic 10 Tournament and we felt really good, and we truly thought we were going to beat Kentucky,” Grady said in a Wednesday press conference. “Obviously that didn’t happen. But we were fairly confident. We had a pretty good spirit about us and a level of excitement that I think ran through the whole team.”

Although Davidson rallied in the second half to make it a close game, Kentucky ultimately proved too much. Grady, who was a true freshman at the time, scored the first Davidson basket of the game and finished with 16 points. He ended the year averaging 18 points per game on 37.2% from 3-point range.

Grady starred for the next three seasons at Davidson before opting to use his extra year of eligibility to transfer to Kentucky this offseason. He has been a key piece for them with his shooting ability, leading the SEC with a 3-point percentage of 42.4%.

Despite playing in the NCAA Tournament before, Kellan Grady marked the difference in situations. Although Davidson entered with few expectations outside of its own program, many have touted Kentucky as a national championship contender. It’s certainly a lot more to live up to.

“Like I said, though, it’s different here,” Grady said. “We understand that everybody in this tournament is either here because they got that at-large bid or they’re champions in their own right. So Saint Peter’s University is a very good team. We can’t take the seeding for granted or think this is going to be an easy task at all. It’s a different predicament for me compared to my experience at Davidson, but the overall focus of trying to execute and play the best game you can remains consistent.”

If Kentucky defeats St. Peter’s, it will move on to face the winner between Murray State and San Francisco on Saturday.