Recapping the Brief History Between Michigan and Kentucky

Kentucky and Michigan have combined for 25 Final Fours, yet when the two teams take the court at O2 Arena in London, it will be only the eighth meeting between the two storied college basketball programs.

The Wildcats and the Wolverines played four times in five years in the late 60s. Since then they’ve only met twice and each were epic clashes in the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky leads the all-time series 5-2. Let’s revisit some of those historic moments before they make some more Sunday afternoon across the pond.

Dan Issel vs. Rudy Tomjanovich

The games between Kentucky and Michigan between 1966-70 featured so much star power. Rupp’s Runts handled Michigan in a seven-point Mideast Regional Final win, thanks to 29 points from Pat Riley. The teams looked drastically different when they met two seasons later. A couple of All-American forwards, and future NBA head coaches, took center stage.

Hosting the Wildcats in Ann Arbor, Rudy Tomjanovich brought his A-Game. The 6-foot-8 forward stole the show, scoring 17 points and corralled 27 rebounds. He won the battle of the box score against Dan Issel, but lost the war. Issel had 18 points and 15 rebounds and Mike Casey led all scorers with 28 points as the Wildcats romped, leaving Michigan with a 96-79 win.

The following year Michigan returned the favor in the UKIT. This time the Wildcats needed Issel’s best effort to out-duel Tomjanovich and Dennis Stewart, who each scored 26 points. Kentucky’s all-time leading scorer had 34 points and 12 rebounds, while Mike Pratt chipped in 20 and 10 to propel Kentucky to a 112-104 win over Michigan.

Fab Five Victorious in Mashburn’s Absence

In back-to-back NCAA Tournaments Kentucky was ahead late in a classic thriller. In back-to-back years that slim lead slipped away after Jamal Mashburn was charged with his fifth foul.

A year after the Cats lost to Duke on ‘The Shot,’ they could not be denied a trip to the 1993 Final Four in New Orleans. Their foe: Michigan’s Fab Five. A duel between Chris Webber and the Monster Mash was one for the ages. Webber had 27 points and 13 rebounds, while Mashburn scored 26 in the Superdome. Played to a draw, Kentucky had the early advantage in overtime, leading by as many as four. The tide turned when Mashburn fouled with a little over three minutes remaining. Michigan sunk 23-of-30 free throws, eventually pulling away for an 81-78 victory.

The Wolverines current head coach, Juwan Howard, scored 17 points in the Final Four victory, Michigan’s most recent win over the Wildcats.

Aaron Harrison Sends Kentucky to the Final Four

Few Kentucky fans could have believed it. John Calipari assembled unprecedented talent in the offseason. 40-0 shirts were printed before a game was ever played. Then they lost, and lost, and lost some more. The Cats were 22-10 entering postseason play, earning an 8-seed in the NCAA Tournament. They needed to upset undefeated Wichita State and Louisville just to reach the Midwest Regional Final. It was already a great story. Aaron Harrison was not finished writing it. The freshman hit 4-of-6 threes, with his last catapulting the Cats to an improbable Final Four berth.