Best of UK in the NCAA: Elite Eight Highlights

The Elite Eight tips off tonight. Even though the Cats have no part in it, we still have our memories. Here are highlights from Kentucky’s Elite Eight games from the past 30 years.

1992: No. 1 Duke 104, No. 2 Kentucky 103 OT

Saturday, March 28, 1992

We all know how this one ended, but it’s worth looking back at what led to The Shot. The greatest game of college basketball was so much more than Christian Laettner’s buzzer-beater. It was Sean Woods’ one-handed runner from 13 feet to put the Cats up one with 2.1 left. It was Deron Feldhaus’ putback of a John Pelphrey miss to tie the game with 33.6 seconds left in regulation. It was The Stomp, which should have resulted in Laettner’s ejection. It was 28 points and 10 rebounds from Jamal Mashburn. It’s the fact that we are all still haunted by the fact no one guarded Grant Hill, the inbound passer.

Sigh. You can watch the game on YouTube and pretend it ended with Woods’ incredible shot.

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1993: No. 1 Kentucky 106, No. 3 Florida State 81

Saturday, March 27, 1993

Now here’s a happier memory! One year later, Kentucky kept its foot on the gas to make sure there wouldn’t be another heartbreak, winning their fourth consecutive tournament game by 20-plus points. Jared Prickett played the starring role, dominating Florida State’s frontcourt with 22 points and 11 rebounds. The Cats took control with about three minutes left in the first half and came out on fire in the second, pushing the lead to 14 in the first four minutes. Kentucky won the battle of the boards 51-25.

Complete game (including an intro by James Brown!):

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1995: No. 2 North Carolina 74, No. 1 Kentucky 61

Saturday, March 25, 1995

Kentucky’s 1995 tournament run came to an end in Birmingham at the hands of North Carolina. The Cats jumped out to an 8-2 lead before an exchange between Andre Riddick and Rasheed Wallace resulted in fouls on each, and for some reason, a foul on Walter McCarty, who was simply trying to break the two apart. Bad officiating aside, the Cats couldn’t find their shot vs. the Tar Heels, going 7-36 from three and 28% from the field overall. Jerry Stackhouse and Wallace combined for 30 to McCarty and Tony Delk’s 33.

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1996: No. 1 Kentucky 83, No. 2 Wake Forest 63

Saturday, March 23, 1996

Kentucky’s frontcourt held All-American center Tim Duncan to 14 points and just two field goals and forced 20 turnovers in this easy 20-point win. Wake Forest made only four field goals in the first half, which Pitino claimed was the best of his tenure at Kentucky.

“It was funny at halftime (despite a 38-19 lead),” Pitino said. “I walked in, and the guys were somber, not happy. They didn’t understand. We’d just played our best half in (his) seven years (there). But they weren’t happy because the game wasn’t our pace, wasn’t full of acrobatic plays.”

“We’re spoiled,” said Walker. “We like to have fast breaks, fancy passes, things like that. I think that’s what upset us.”

[Chicago Tribune]

Tony Delk led the Cats in scoring with 25 points, followed by Derek Anderson and Anthony Epps with 12 each. The lead reached 28 with seven minutes left before the Cats eased off the gas.

Complete game:

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1997: No. 1 Kentucky 72, No. 2 Utah 59

Saturday, March 22, 1997

Ron Mercer scored a team-high 21 points to lead the Cats to the 13-point win. Kentucky held All-American Keith Van Horn to just 15 points off 5-12 from the floor. The score was tied at 43 with just under ten minutes to play, which is when Pitino drew up a play for Ron Mercer and gave him a pep talk:

“I wrote on one side of the board `Winner’ and the other side `Loser,’ ” Pitino said. “It told them, `It’s 43-43, and it’s your choice to make: Which do you want to be?’ “

Mercer got the message, burying a jumper with 9:15 left and adding another a minute later.

[Chicago Tribune]

From there, the Cats ran away with it to advance to the Final Four.

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1998: No. 2 Kentucky 86, No. 1 Duke 84

Sunday, March 22, 1998

Revenge tastes so sweet, especially against Duke. The Comeback Cats avenged the Unforgettables’ heartbreaking loss to the Blue Devils in 1992 with a thrilling win in Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. Kentucky trailed Duke by ten at half, but rallied in trademark fashion, taking its first lead with a Cameron Mills three with 2:15 left. Duke retook the lead on the next possession, but Scott Padgett hit a three with 40 seconds left to put the Cats ahead for good.

Final two and a half minutes:

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1999: No. 1 Michigan State 73, No. 3 Kentucky 66

Sunday, March 21, 1999

Kentucky jumped out to a 19-6 lead in this one, but Mateen Cleaves led a Michigan State rally to cut the Cats’ lead to one at half. From there, the Spartans controlled the game, hitting 49% from the floor and turning the ball over only 11 times. Morris Peterson had 19 points and 10 rebounds, winning the battle against Scott Padgett, who finished with 11 points and 3 rebounds.

Again, no highlights for losses.

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2003: No. 3 Marquette 83, No. 1 Kentucky 69

Saturday, March 29, 2003

Two words: Dwyane Wade. The future NBA All-Star had 29 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, and 4 blocks to lead Marquette to the win, which snapped Kentucky’s 26-game winning streak. Tom Crean’s team went on a 28-7 run in the first half and when Antwain Barbour pulled the Cats within ten with ten minutes left in the game, officials ruled it a charge and Marquette went on another run to put the game out of reach. Gerald Fitch and Keith Bogans each had 15 points.

Stupid Tom Crean.

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2005: No. 5 Michigan State 94, No. 2 Kentucky 88 (2OT)

Sunday, March 27, 2005

Six years later, the Cats would suffer another Elite Eight loss to the Spartans in a double-overtime thriller in Austin, Texas. Patrick Sparks’ three at the buzzer of regulation danced on the rim forever before finally dropping in to give Kentucky new life. The Cats were able to pull within two twice in the final 30 seconds of the second overtime, but the Spartans hit all six free throws put the game on ice and advance to the Final Four. This was Chuck Hayes’ final game as a Wildcat, and Tom Izzo came over to Kentucky’s bench afterward to comfort him.

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2010: No. 2 West Virginia 73, No. 1 Kentucky 66

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Another heartbreaker. West Virginia capitalized on Kentucky’s biggest weakness, using a 1-3-1 zone to force the Cats to shoot threes. Kentucky made only four of 32 attempts, shooting 23-67 from the floor overall and a brutal 16-29 from the free-throw line. Nothing went right that day. The 2010 team deserved a way better ending.

I’d rather gouge my eyes out than watch highlights of that one.

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2011: No. 4 Kentucky 76, No. 2 North Carolina 69

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Hey, a happy Elite Eight memory! After knocking off No. 1 seed Ohio State in the Sweet 16, the 2011 team’s improbable run continued with an Elite Eight win over No. 2 seed North Carolina. Brandon Knight had a game-high 22 points, including five threes, en route to East Regional Most Outstanding Player honors. The Cats led by as many as 11 in the second half, but North Carolina rallied to tie the game at 67 with three minutes left. From there, Knight hit a three, and DeAndre Liggins hit a three of his own and had two huge blocks, earning a sweet embrace from John Calipari on the sidelines.

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2012: No. 1 Kentucky 82, No. 3 Baylor 70

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Kentucky advanced to its second straight Final Four in easy fashion, beating Baylor by 12 in Atlanta. Baylor took an early lead, but Kentucky seized control with a 16-0 run and led by 20 at halftime. From there, the game was never in doubt. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had a team-high 19 points, followed by Anthony Davis with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 blocked shots. Doron Lamb and Terrence Jones had 14 and 12, respectively.

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2014: No. 8 Kentucky 75, No. 2 Michigan 72

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Aaron Harrison hit another huge three to give Kentucky the lead with 2.3 seconds left. It was his fourth three in the final 8:05 of the game. Julius Randle had a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds and James Young and Marcus Lee chipped in 13 and 10 points, respectively.

I could keep going over the box score, but it’s much more fun to watch videos of Aaron’s three:

Highlights:

Complete game:

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2015: No. 1 Kentucky 68, No. 3 Notre Dame 66

Saturday, March 28, 2015

It looked like Kentucky’s undefeated season might come to an end, but a trio of players stepped up to make sure the Cats advanced to the Final Four. Aaron Harrison hit a crucial three, Karl Towns scored 25 points (17 in the second half), and Andrew Harrison’s free throws put the Cats ahead by two with six seconds left to fend off a pesky Notre Dame team. The game featured 20 lead changes, 12 ties, and millions of racing hearts across the Big Blue Nation.

Highlights:

Complete game:

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2017: No. 1 North Carolina 75, No 2 Kentucky 73

Sunday, March 26, 2017

You know what happened. Stupid Luke Maye.

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2019: No. 5 Auburn 77, No. 2 Kentucky 71 (OT)

Sunday, March 31, 2019

Auburn’s Jared Harper and Bryce Brown combined for 50 points, Harper tying the game with 37 seconds left. Somehow, Kentucky couldn’t answer and the game went to overtime. Even Tyler Herro and PJ Washington admitted that Auburn just wanted it more. In his final game as a Wildcat, Washington came off the bench to score 28 points and grab 13 rebounds, playing 37 minutes on a hurt foot.

Stupid Auburn.