Kentucky plays Bellarmine in Elite Eight of Manager Games Friday

The University of Kentucky will be represented at the Final Four; in fact, the Cats could even win a championship.

The Kentucky Men’s Basketball managers made it to the Elite Eight of the Manager Games, an annual 64-team tournament. Managers from 185 schools, ranging from Power 5 to mid-majors, compete against each other all season in the underground basketball league for a berth in the tournament, which culminates on Friday and Saturday at the Final Four Fan Fest. Fan voting determined the first three rounds, with the #BBN carrying the No. 2 seed Cats past No. 12 seed Northern Kentucky, No. 7 seed Western Kentucky, and No. 11 seed Tennessee. You probably remember players and media members tweeting out reminders to vote for them.

Go vote for our managers, hardest workers in the country💙💙💙 https://t.co/IdP5gBDJAC

— Big O (@Oscartshiebwe34) March 21, 2023

Tomorrow, Kentucky’s managers take the court in Houston to face another familiar name: Bellarmine. Although the Cats and the Knights played each other in Rupp on Nov. 29, this will be the first meeting of the teams’ managers. The game is the second of the day and will take place around 1-1:15 p.m. CT at the Final Four Fan Fest at the George R. Brown Convention Center. It will be streamed live on the Kentucky Managers’ Instagram account.

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So, who will be suiting up for the Cats tomorrow? Ray Suratt, Jonas Alger, Sean Dunleavy, Brody Dempsey, Clay Smith, Nicolas Chapman, Davis Hayes, Will Summers, and Kevin Gallagher. Kentucky’s managers finished No. 5 in the final Manager Games Top 25 (yes, such a thing exists), which earned them a No. 2 seed in the tournament.

ESPN’s Jake Trotter published a feature on the Manager Games yesterday that includes a great story about Surratt, 6’11”, dunking on a member of Kentucky’s team during a walkthrough. The dunk was so impressive John Calipari let Surratt put a football helmet on the player’s head, a tradition going back to the start of the Calipari Era.

Manager teams are allowed to bring in ringers to fill out their rosters, including graduate assistants, strength coaches, video coordinators, and operations staff members. The most famous ringer in Manager Games history is Greg Oden, who dropped 50 points in a managers game while serving as a grad assistant for Ohio State.

Tyler Ulis is still recovering from a car accident in 2022, but we’re hearing fellow grad assistant Riley Welch may give it a go tomorrow. Just wait until Rajon Rondo joins the staff as a GA next season. Kentucky may take two titles home from Phoenix.

UPDATE: You can also watch the Managers Games on YouTube below: