Kentucky MBB continues to climb in latest Bracketology update

Ole Joe Lunardi is finally starting to come around on the Kentucky Wildcats.

In Lunardi’s latest Bracketology update from Monday morning, he once again bumped up Kentucky in the pecking order. Kentucky is now a No. 3 seed in the projected field for the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Lunardi has the Wildcats taking on No. 14 seed Purdue Fort Wayne in Memphis as part of the South (Dallas) Region. UK is in a region that includes No. 1 seed Houston and No. 2 seed Clemson (yes, Clemson).

In this scenario, a win for Kentucky in the first round would set up a second-round matchup against the winner of No. 6 seed Villanova and No. 11 seed South Carolina.

This is a pretty significant rise from just a month ago. In early December, Kentucky was considered a No. 6 seed by Lunardi. During a Christmas edition of Bracketology, he had the Wildcats up to a No. 4 seed. A week after that, UK is now knocking on the door of a No. 2 seed.

Looking at the rest of Lunardi’s field, the remaining No. 1 seeds are UConn (East), Kansas (Omaha), and Purdue (Midwest). Other SEC schools include Tennessee (No. 2 seed), Auburn (No. 5), Texas A&M (No. 6), Alabama (No. 6), Ole Miss (No. 8), Mississippi State (No. 10), Florida (No. 10), and South Carolina (No. 11). The SEC’s nine selections are the most by any conference.