PREVIEW: La Familia hosts The Nawf at Rupp Arena in 2nd round of TBT

La Familia is five victories away from winning The Basketball Tournament, but before the Kentucky alumni team can dream of taking home the $1 million grand prize, they’ll have to go through The Nawf first.

After beating the 305 Ballers, 82-56, during the opening round of TBT’s Lexington Regional on Friday inside Rupp Arena, La Familia will take the hardwood again this afternoon. Tipoff between La Familia and The Nawf is set for 2:00 p.m. EST on FOX.

Tickets are still available and are going for under $20 a pop. Click here to grab yours now if you haven’t already done so. A portion of ticket sales will go towards Kentucky’s NIL efforts. Games will also be livestreamed (for FREE) here.

Below is the entire La Familia roster along with the coaching staff. Only Kerem Kanter, the younger brother of former Wildcat Enes Kanter, did not play at UK. However, Kerem has said that Enes is hoping to make the trip to Lexington for Sunday’s game to cheer on his brother and Kentucky brethren.

PLAYERS

• Eric Bledsoe (2009-10)
• Daniel Orton (2009-10)
• Willie Cauley-Stein (2012-15)
• James Young (2013-14)
• Aaron Harrison (2013-15)
• Andrew Harrison (2013-15)
• Nate Sestina (2019-20)
• Brennan Canada (2019-24)
• Kellan Grady (2021-22)
• Kerem Kanter (Green Bay/Xavier, 2014-18)

STAFF

• Tyler Ulis (2014-16, head coach)
• Jon Hood (2009-14, assistant coach)
• Sean Woods (1988-92, assistant coach)
• Twany Beckham (2008-13, general manager)
• Sam Malone (2011-15, general manager)

We’re expecting a closer matchup this afternoon after La Familia (2-seed) took down the 305 Ballers (7-seed) with ease. Up next is The Nawf (6-seed), which upset WoCo Showtime (3-seed) in its opener on Friday by a score of 87-76. This is The Nawf’s second TBT appearance after losing in the first round in 2023.

To quickly recap Friday’s result, Kerem Kanter led the way with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Eric Bledsoe and Aaron Harrison both finished with 13 points while Nate Sestina chipped in 12 points and Andrew Harrison another 11. Willie Cauley-Stein hit a three-pointer and Brennan Canada won the game on a free throw in the Elam Ending.

A win on Sunday could put La Familia on a collision course with top-seed Herd That (a talented Marshall alumni team) in round three, which made the TBT semifinals in 2023 and won its opening-round game on Friday over Jackson TN Boom (8-seed) by a score of 92-57. Herd That will take the floor ahead of La Familia in a second-round showdown with 4-seeded War Ready (Auburn’s alumni team). Tipoff is set for noon EST inside Rupp Arena.

If you’ve got a hankering to make a wager, La Familia is currently an 8.5-point favorite over The Nawf over on FanDuel with the over/under set at 150.5.

Now one game into the Lexington Regional, La Familia needs to lock up two more wins for a chance to take on Louisville’s alumni team, The Ville, in the quarterfinals. If those two rivals end up making it out of their regions, the team with the most ticket sales through the first three rounds will host that matchup. Below is the updated Lexington Regional bracket.

So, what should we expect to see out of The Nawf? Much like the 305 Ballers, you’ll likely have a tough time recognizing many of the names on this squad. But The Nawf (based out of north Atlanta, GA) upset a solid WoCo Showtime team on Friday and will have sights set on upsetting their hosts later today.

Let’s outline The Nawf’s roster and see what they’ll bring to the hardwood:

• AJ Cheeseman (6-8 forward | New Orleans)
• Alphonso Willis (6-2 point guard | Texas A&M-Commerce)
• D’Marcus Simonds (6-4 guard | Georgia State)
• Damion Rosser (6-5 guard | New Orleans)
• Dejon Waters Jr. (6-3 guard | Pitt State University)
• Derek St. Hilaire (6-1 point guard | Jacksonville State & New Orleans)
• Ish Hollis (6-8 guard | Western Carolina & North Georgia)
• Kareem Brewton (6-3 point guard | Memphis)
• Kendall Lewis (6-8 wing | Illinois State)
• Qiydar Davis (6-6 wing | Louisiana Tech & Indiana State)
• Roberto Gallinat (6-4 guard | Pacific)
• Simeon Kirkland (6-10 center | New Orleans)
• Tavin Cummings (6-5 wing | Miles College)
• Westley Hinton (6-10 center | Troy)

Of the 14 players on the roster, only 11 of them appeared in Friday’s win over WoCo Showtime. The three who did not play were Kareem Brewton, Qiydar Davis, and Tavin Cummings. The Nawf had four players finish in double-figures in game one: Damion Rosser (22 points), Derek St. Hilaire (15; 5-22 FG), Roberto Gallinat (14), and D’Marcus Simonds (11).

Rosser spent four seasons at New Orleans (2017-21) and was named All-Southland his senior season. He last played overseas in Malaysia. St. Hilaire was teammates with Rosser on New Orleans during that 2020-21 season before earning All-Southland honors of his own the following season in 2021-22. He last played professionally in Saudi Arabia.

Simonds played three seasons at Georgia State (2016-19) and was named All-Sun Belt in all three, including an AP All-American Honorable Mention in his final year. He averaged 17.9 points, five rebounds, and 3.4 assists throughout his college career. Finally, Gallinat played two seasons at Pacific (2017-19) where he averaged 14.9 points per game as a pure scorer.

Those four (all 6-foot-5 or shorter) will be the ones to keep an eye on for La Familia. Where the former Wildcats should have the advantage is in the post. The Nawf only has two big men over 6-foot-10 in Simeon Kirkland and Westley Hinton, who combined to score four points and grab eight rebounds against WoCo Showtime.

Ish Hollis and Kendall Lewis are long and lengthy wings to watch for at 6-foot-8, although they combined for just three points and five rebounds on Friday. Dejon Waters and Alphonso Willis are another pair of guards that The Nawf will trot out. The two combined for 15 points on Friday, albeit on a combined shooting clip of 6-17. AJ Cheeseman, a 6-foot-8 wing, added three points in limited minutes.

The opportunity to advance one step closer to winning $1 million begins today. La Familia is in a great position to make the third round of TBT if all goes well this afternoon.