Kenny Brooks has faced Liberty 11 times in his career, and they've 'always been a pain in my side'

On Selection Sunday, Kentucky learned that it will be a 4-seed in the Spokane 4 region, taking on 13-seed Liberty in the first round in Historic Memorial Coliseum. Liberty is rather unfamiliar opponent to Kentucky, but not to Kenny Brooks.

Brooks has actually faced Liberty 11 times in his illustrious coaching career, boasting a 9-2 overall record against the Flames. Here’s how the Brooks-Liberty series history has gone game-by-game:

• 2006-07 (JMU): 74-64 W (H)
• 2007-08 (JMU): 79-66 L (A)
• 2008-09 (JMU): 77-64 W (H)
• 2009-10 (JMU): 60-50 W (A)
• 2010-11 (JMU): 54-51 W (H)
• 2011-12 (JMU): 62-58 W(A)
• 2012-13 (JMU): 60-48 L (H)
• 2013-14 (JMU): 67-56 W (A)
• 2015-16 (JMU): 72-56 W (H)
• 2019-20 (VT): 73-69 W (H)
• 2020-21 (VT): 81-66 W (H)

However, despite what some of the results may indicate, it’s never been an easy feat to beat Liberty.

“Always been a pain in my side,” Brooks said in his post-Selection Sunday press conference. “Carey [Green] does a tremendous job with that program — it’s well-documented. You can look at his record, and it’s real. It’s no fluke. He does a tremendous job, and he got that program back.”

When the Cats and Flames meet on the court at noon on Friday, Brooks knows that his team will be put to the test.

“I come to Kentucky, and I’m still playing against Carey Green,” Brooks mentioned. “I played against his teams a lot when I was at James Madison, I played against his teams a lot when I was at Virginia Tech, and you get the opportunity to play against him again. You know you’re gonna play against a very well-coached basketball team. Doesn’t matter what the seedings are at this point in the year, you just gotta go out and be ready to play.”

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