It's been a long time since Kentucky beat Ohio State

Kentucky and Ohio State have been in the CBS Sports Classic since the event was created in 2014. Somehow, some way, Kentucky has never defeated the Buckeyes in this event.

Jamal Murray had 33 points when the fourth-ranked Wildcats lost to the unranked Buckeyes in the Barclays Center. Four years later, D.J. Carton and Co. out-muscled the Cats in a Top-5 matchup in Las Vegas. Kentucky must win on Saturday, or Ohio State will even the all-time series at 11 wins apiece.

The last time the Wildcats beat the Buckeyes, you have to turn back the clock to 2011. The photo pictured below is hanging in my office, titled, “An Unforgettable Knight.” Boy, was it.

The Path to the Upset

To set the scene, folks around Big Blue Nation were still skeptical of John Calipari. As fun as his debut season was, it ended disastrously in the Elite Eight. Many still questioned if the one-and-done model could work and those critics received more gasoline for the fire in SEC play.

If the Cats were playing on the road, there was a good chance they had a chance to win it, only to miss the game-winning shot. Kentucky was 10-6 in SEC play, but they picked up some late momentum by closing the season with three straight wins and dominating the field en route to an SEC Tournament Title.

Kentucky drew a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but the path wasn’t easy. Fortunately, Brandon Knight finally hit one of those game-winning shots in the first round of the NCAA Tournament over Princeton. Knight put up 30 in a revenge win over West Virginia, setting up a showdown against the No. 1 overall seed in the Sweet 16.

How Kentucky Knocked Off Ohio State

Jared Sullinger was an All-American and a projected Top 5 pick. Aaron Craft was a scrappy, defensive-minded point guard. Diebler, Buford, and Lighty made this a complete team, clearly the in college basketball ahead of the NCAA Tournament.

Then a guy named Jorts threw a ball off Sullinger’s chest. The out-of-bounds save let the Buckeyes know the Cats weren’t going down without a fight.

Sullinger had 21 points and 16 rebounds, but Harrellson answered him tit for tat with 17 points and 10 boards of his own. DeAndre Liggins’ defense on the lengthy Ohio State shooters was just as valuable as the 15 points of offense he provided.

Kentucky had the upper hand for most of the matchup, but doubt crept in when Jon Diebler tied the game with a difficult long three from the top of the key. There were less than 20 seconds on the clock. It was Brandon Knight time. Those shots that didn’t fall on the road in SEC play kept falling. Knight pulled up and delivered a dagger, just his third make of the day, with 5.4 seconds on the clock, sending Ohio State packing with a 62-60 Kentucky victory. The Wildcats defeated North Carolina two days later in Newark to punch a ticket to the Final Four, John Calipari’s first at Kentucky.

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