Kentucky debuts as No. 2 seed in Joe Lunardi's first Bracketology (Yes, he's already back at it)

It’s not even May, and Joe Lunardi is already churning out predictions for the 2026 NCAA Tournament. The ESPN college basketball writer released his first Bracketology for next season this morning, and I’m happy to report that your University of Kentucky Wildcats are in good shape.

Kentucky is a No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region, playing No. 15 seed North Alabama in the first round in St. Louis. Beat the Lions, and the Cats will play the winner of No. 7 seed Illinois and No. 10 seed Creighton. If it’s the Fighting Illini, it will be a rematch of this year’s second round, except that former Cat and Arkansas Razorback Zvonimir Ivisic has joined his brother Tomislav on Illinois’ roster, along with Andrej Stojakovic, the former Cal guard that Mark Pope recruited this offseason.

No. 3 seed Iowa State or No. 6 seed Missouri could be waiting in the Sweet 16 in Chicago, and No. 1 seed Purdue, No. 4 seed Auburn, or No. 5 seed Louisville in the Elite Eight. Pat Kelsey’s team lost in the first round of this year’s tournament, but can you imagine if it’s Cats vs. Cards for a spot in the Final Four?

Who’s ahead of Kentucky in Bracketology? Purdue is the overall No. 1 seed, with Houston, Duke, and St. John’s also on the top line. Michigan, BYU, and UConn are the other No. 2 seeds. Florida and Tennessee are the next highest-seeded teams from the SEC, both claiming No. 3 seeds. In total, the SEC has 13 teams in Lunardi’s initial field, which is one fewer than this year’s record of 14.

There are 339 days until Selection Sunday, so this will change a million times (Lunardi’s next update will come next month); something that won’t change are the tournament sites. As mentioned, Kentucky is slotted in St. Louis and Chicago if they make it out of the first weekend. The Final Four is in Indianapolis. The Circle City has been anything but kind to Kentucky recently, but it can certainly redeem itself with a banner next season.

2026 NCAA Tournament sites

Round	Dates	City	Venue	Host(s)
First Four	March 17 & 18	Dayton, OH	UD Arena	University of Dayton
First/Second	March 19 & 21	Buffalo, NY	KeyBank Center	Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, Canisius College, Niagara University
First/Second	March 19 & 21	Greenville, SC	Bon Secours Wellness Arena	Furman, Southern Conference
First/Second	March 19 & 21	Oklahoma City, OK	Paycom Center	Big 12 Conference
First/Second	March 19 & 21	Portland, OR	Moda Center	Oregon State University
First/Second	March 20 & 22	Tampa, FL	Amalie Arena	University of South Florida
First/Second	March 20 & 22	Philadelphia, PA	Wells Fargo Center	Saint Joseph’s University
First/Second	March 20 & 22	San Diego, CA	Viejas Arena	San Diego State University
First/Second	March 20 & 22	St. Louis, MO	Enterprise Center	Missouri Valley Conference
South Regional	March 26 & 28	Houston, TX	Toyota Center	University of Houston
West Regional	March 26 & 28	San Jose, CA	SAP Center	San Jose State University
Midwest Regional	March 27 & 29	Chicago, IL	United Center	Northwestern University
East Regional	March 27 & 29	Washington, D.C.	Capital One Arena	Georgetown University
Final Four	April 4 & 6	Indianapolis	Lucas Oil Stadium	Horizon League, IU Indianapolis

Kentucky a preseason Top 15 squad in Way-Too-Early Rankings

Kentucky’s 2025-26 roster may not be final. With Travis Perry entering the transfer portal, the Cats may add another guard to shore up the backcourt. Late last week, the staff reached out to North Carolina A&T transfer guard Ryan Forrest, who averaged 19.1 points and 3.7 rebounds this season. Today, we found out assistant coach Mikhail McClean has also been in contact with Miami transfer guard Divine Ugochukwu. They’re also still involved with 2025 four-star forward Braydon Hawthorne.

Even without another player, the Cats are a preseason top 15 team in the national rankings if Otega Oweh withdraws from the NBA Draft to return to school.

• On3’s James Fletcher III: No. 4
• ESPN’s Jeff Borzello: No. 10
• CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish: No. 11
• Jon Rothstein: No. 12

Kentucky’s 2025-26 Roster

COMMITS (6)

• Kam Williams – G – Tulane – 9.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 48.5% FG, 41.2% 3PT | Committed 3/28
• Jaland Lowe – G – Pittsburgh – 16.8 PPG, 5.5 APG, 4.2 RPG, 37.6% FG, 26.6% 3PT | Committed 4/5
• Mouhamed Dioubate – F – Alabama – 7.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.1 APG, 61.7% FG, 46.2% 3PT | Committed 4/7
• Jayden Quaintance – F – Arizona State – 9.4 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 2.6 BPG, 52.5 FG% | Committed 4/8
• Andrija Jelavic – C – Mega Basket — 10.8 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.4 APG, 50.3% FG, 32.3% 3PT | – Committed 4/12
• Denzel Aberdeen – G – Florida – 7.7 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 41.8 FG%, 35 3PT% | Committed 4/21

RETURNING / INCOMING (6)

• Otega Oweh – G – Rising Senior – 16.2 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.7 APG, 49.2% FG, 35.5% 3PT | Going through NBA Draft process
• Brandon Garrison – C – Rising Junior – 5.9 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 50.9% | Confirmed return on 4/12
• Collin Chandler – C- Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 1.0 RPG, 0.7 APG, 36.1% FG, 34.7% 3PT | Confirmed return on 4/17
• Trent Noah – F – Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 0.4 APG, 45.1% FG, 33.3% 3PT | Confirmed return on 4/18
• Malachi Moreno – C – Incoming Freshman – Great Crossing (Georgetown, KY)
• Jasper Johnson – SG – Incoming Freshman – Overtime Elite (Lexington, KY)

DEPARTURES (2)

• Kerr Kriisa – G – Senior – 4.4 PPG, 3.8 APG, 2.4 RPG, 27.9% FG | Entered Portal 3/31, Committed to Cincinnati
• Travis Perry – PG – Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 0.6 APG, 31.3% FG, 32.1% 3PT | Entered Portal 4/22

HIGH SCHOOL TARGETS (1)

• Braydon Hawthorne – SF – Huntington Prep (WV) – 4-star, No. 35 overall