KSR's sights, sounds and updates from Kentucky's locker room celebration

With a big-time win comes a big-time celebration, Kentucky going nuts in the locker room following the victory over Illinois to advance to the Sweet 16. After the dust settled on the cooldown period, the media stormed in to talk with the players as they broke down what went right against the Fighting Illini and what’s next in Indianapolis.

KSR was right in the middle of the action, talking with some of the game’s top standouts — all smiles as the magnitude of sending the program to the second weekend for the first time since 2019 set in. What all was said? We’ve got you covered with all of the top moments and takeaways from the chaos.

Road environments bring out the best in this group

Kentucky had to win with orange outnumbering the blue inside the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Mark Pope paid for a lot of gas, but it didn’t compare to the three-hour drive for Illinois fans as they filled the venue.

Like we’ve seen in other neutral and true road environments, it brought the best out of this group.

“A couple of times you would think when the Illinois crowd goes crazy, it would get to us, but we love it,” Andrew Carr told KSR. “We love it, man. They go on a little run and we know what kind of people we are, the type of players we are. We know we’re going to dig in and respond the right way. When those moments happen, we’re ready to make a response.”

“There is nothing like a road win, especially when it’s a situation of win or go home,” Otega Oweh added. “There was a lot of orange in there, but Big Blue Nation still made some noise and quieted that down. That’s a good feeling.”

Collin Chandler attends the Koby Brea Shooting Academy

Where did Chandler learn to not only pull from the half-court logo, but hit the shot as he continues to play his best basketball of the season in the most important games?

He simply went to school.

“I’ve been attending the Koby Brea Academy a little bit, watching him all season,” he said. “I’m just trying to take a little bit from his playbook.”

What kind of student is he, learning from the best shooter in college basketball? Now 10-18 from deep in his last five games, Chandler is doing just fine, clearly.

“He’s a great student, man, just because he’s somebody — I’ll shoot for hours and stuff, after or before practice, and he’s just watching,” Brea told KSR. “Him and the rest of the freshmen. I feel them watching me, and I’m just like, I’m trying to do my job. I know I’m being looked at by them and they’re learning. Whatever they need, I’m here for them. They’ve definitely been observing a lot. I mean yesterday, he hit that shot fake, sidestep three. I was like, ‘Dang, he took that from my book!’ That’s what’s up.”

‘LaMarch’ gives Fuego new nickname: “Marzo”

We all know about Lamont Butler’s ‘LaMarch’ nickname, hitting one of the biggest shots in the sport’s history: a buzzer-beater in the Final Four to advance to the national championship game in 2023. This is his time to shine, why you bring him to Lexington.

Brea got his own March Madness moment, though, finishing with a game-high 23 points on 10-16 shooting. If Butler is ‘LaMarch,’ what is he?

“I’m just Fuego. After the game, they just kept saying, ‘Fuego! Fuego!’ That’s who I am,” Brea said.

When told that Butler actually gave him a new nickname — ‘Marzo,’ which is March in Spanish — Brea couldn’t help but laugh.

“Marzo? Oh, okay. Spanish! This team is learning Spanish,” he said. “I don’t know how or where, but they’ll come up and start talking to me in Spanish and I’m like, ‘What?!’ It’s crazy.”

If Lamont Butler is La-March… What is Koby Brea?! I asked 'em both…

Introducing: Marzo 🔥😂 pic.twitter.com/5tayGjv91S

— Maggie Davis (@MaggieDavisTV) March 24, 2025

Amari Williams took Tylenol to fix his back

Pope let it slip this week that Williams actually suffered a back injury during Kentucky’s practice on Thursday. He grabbed 13 rebounds in the first-round win over Troy, but struggled to finish around the rim and grimaced on occasion — his head coach confirming he “gutted it out” to play.

How is he feeling after finishing with a near-triple-double, racking up eight points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three blocks in 26 minutes? Williams said he popped a few Tylenol and was ready to go against the Fighting Illini.

“I’m feeling great. I took some Tylenol and things like that,” he told KSR. “When you’re lost in the moment of the game, I didn’t feel it at all. Thankfully I was ready to go.”

Ansley Almonor hits his first three since Senior Night

He wasn’t the team’s top contributor, but Almonor still hit his first 3-pointer since the team’s win over LSU on Senior Night while also knocking down two big free throws in the final minute to help seal the deal.

“It’s great to see one go through the net, obviously,” he told KSR. “We have a big game coming up so hopefully we can continue that momentum going into Tennessee — we’re gonna need it.”

He’s no stranger to March Madness success — he played for No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson when it upset No. 1 seed Purdue in 2023 — but doing it as a Wildcat is a little sweeter.

“Growing up, watching these moments in March and watching March Madness, it’s something you dream of being a part of one day,” Almonor added. “I’m happy to be a part of it.”

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See it all for yourself in KSR’s 25 minutes with the players after the big win:

Let’s do it again this week in Indianapolis. Sound good?