NCAA Tournament: No. 3 Seed Feels Inevitable for Kentucky

by:Nick Roush•about 9 hours•

RoushKSR

Andrew Carr vs Alabama, via Dr. Michael Huang, Kentucky Sports Radio

Kentucky got shellacked by Alabama. There’s no telling how it will play on their psyche ahead of the NCAA Tournament, but we do know what it meant for the Wildcats’ seeding ramifications: absolutely nothing.

Alabama is ranked No. 5 in the NET. That Quad 1 loss does not hurt Kentucky. The Cats are 11-10 in Quad 1 games this season. Only three teams have more Quad 1 wins than Kentucky: Auburn (16), Houston (12), and Michigan State (13).

On the final day before Selection Sunday, you will not find much drama surrounding the Wildcats when the bracketologists share their latest updates.

Joe Lunardi has the Cats as a No. 3 seed, facing Robert Morris in Milwaukee. Kentucky is the No. 10 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, according to On3’s James Fletcher. The No. 10 overall seed is actually the consensus in the Bracket Matrix, which aggregates and averages every prognosticator’s picks.

Despite the wide margin of defeat, the Kentucky resume is still strong, maybe strong enough to make traveling to the first round games doable for Big Blue Nation. In case you forgot, here are the host cities. If only the Cats could stay at home and play in Rupp…

Milwaukee
Cleveland
Denver
Providence
Lexington
Wichita
Seattle
Raleigh

The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is Sunday evening at 6 p.m. EST on CBS. Shortly after the dust settles, the KSR crew will gather for a live Selection Special on YouTube. Subscribe now to make sure you receive a notification every time we go live.

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If Kentucky gets a No. 3 Seed

In the Wildcats’ long and illustrious basketball history, Kentucky has been a No. 2 seed nine times and a No. 1 seed a dozen times, most recently in 2015. For whatever reason, a No. 3 seed has consistently eluded this program.

Kentucky has been a No. 3 seed only once. It was a disaster. There was a No. 3 next to Kentucky’s name on the scorebug when John Calipari coached his last game on a UK sideline. Mark Pope can secure his first NCAA Tournament victory as a head coach and exorcise its Jack Gohlke demons all at once.

Let the UNC-Texas Debates Begin

A couple of big-time logos will be dominating the bubble conversation ahead of Selection Sunday. After Tennessee took down Texas, Rick Barnes lobbied for his former team to make the Big Dance as the SEC’s 14th selection. Another team vying for that spot, North Carolina, nearly secured an impressive win, but could not complete the comeback against Duke, thanks to a snafu at the free throw line.

"Oh, no. OH, NO."

Cory Alexander knew it immediately.

UNC's Jae'Lyn Withers commits a critical lane violation foul, offsetting a game-tying free throw from Ven-Allen Lubin. https://t.co/RU2HtBRR9F pic.twitter.com/cU2DDUI499
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 15, 2025

Indiana, Dayton, and Ohio State also appear to be on the wrong side of the bubble, with Xavier and Boise State among the last teams projected to make the NCAA Tournament.