PREVIEW: La Familia takes on Herd That in TBT Sweet 16

La Familia cruised through its first The Basketball Tournament games, but the third will assuredly be the toughest test yet.

Tonight at 9:00 p.m. EST inside Rupp Arena on FS1, La Familia will host Herd That in the final round of the Lexington Regional. It’ll be the (2-seed) Kentucky alums vs. the (1-seed) Marshall alums with a spot in TBT’s Elite 8 on the line. But where La Familia is new to TBT, Herd That is very familiar with this event, even making the semifinals last summer.

Tickets for tonight’s showdown are still available and are starting at just $7 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. Since this is a winner-takes-all, $1 million grand prize tournament, it’s win-or-go-home for both teams.

Remember that TBT utilizes the Elam Ending. For more information on what the Elam Ending is and how it’s incorporated, click 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 tonight’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)

La Familia had little issue making it to the Sweet 16. The former Wildcats led from nearly start to finish in the opening round against the (7-seed) 305 Ballers, winning 82-56 on Friday inside Rupp. Two days later, La Familia overcame a slow first-half start against (6-seed) The Nawf, ultimately coming out on top 81-64.

Oddly enough, it’s been Kanter — now an honorary Kentucky Wildcat — who has kept La Familia afloat through the first two games. The 6-foot-10 former Xavier big man is averaging 23.5 points and 11 rebounds per game while shooting 16-21 (76.2 percent) overall from the field. He recorded 19 points in the opening half against The Nawf as head coach Tyler Ulis ran the offense through him.

But Kanter has had plenty of help along the way. Eric Bledsoe, in particular, took over the second half against The Nawf, finishing with 16 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. Nate Sestina found his shooting rhythm in game two, going 4-8 from deep on his way to 15 points. Willie Cauley-Stein has done an excellent job as this team’s “X-Factor” — he contributed eight points, seven rebounds, and seven blocks against The Nawf.

Elsewhere for La Familia, the Harrison Twins have had their fair share of highlight moments. For whatever reason, a couple of The Nawf’s players were jawing with the twins throughout Sunday’s game, and the former ‘Cats responded with their play. We haven’t seen much out of James Young so far (and even less from Daniel Orton outside of some late-game antics against The Nawf) and we’re just waiting for Kellan Grady’s shots to start falling.

Overall, La Familia has shot 47.7 percent from the field, 30.6 percent from deep, and 77.2 percent from the free throw line. Below is the updated Lexington Regional bracket. La Famila is currently a 3.5-point favorite to beat Herd That over on FanDuel with the over/under set at 142.5.

So, what should we expect out of Herd That? Unlike the 305 Ballers and The Nawf, you might actually recognize some of the names on this roster. Despite being titled as a Marshall alumni team, only half of Herd That’s 12-man roster actually played for the Thundering Herd. They have plenty of talent though and even more familiarity with this event.

To reach the Sweet 16, Herd That trounced (8-seed) Jackson TN Boom 92-57 before sneaking away with a round two win against the Auburn alumni team, (4-seed) War Ready, 63-59. Herd That even trailed War Ready by as many as eight points once the Elam Ending began before finishing the game on a 14-2 run to earn the win.

Let’s outline Herd That’s roster and break down what they’ll bring to the hardwood:

• Chris Cokley (6-8 wing | Alabama-Birmingham)
• DeAndre Kane (6-5 wing | Marshall & Iowa State)
• Jacorey Williams (6-8 forward | Arkansas & Middle Tennessee State)
• Jarrod West (5-11 point guard | Marshall & Louisville)
• Jon Elmore (6-3 point guard | Marshall)
• JP Tokoto (6-6 wing | North Carolina)
• Nick McGlynn (6-9 forward | Drake)
• Rondale Watson (6-4 guard | Wake Forest & Marshall)
• Ryan Taylor (6-5 wing | Marshall)
• Stevie Browning (6-3 guard | Fairmont State & Marshall)
• Tyrus McGee (6-2 point guard | Cowley College & Iowa State)
• Xavier Munford (6-3 guard | Rhode Island)

The name to know is Jon Elmore, a veteran on this roster and in TBT. Don’t let his shining head deceive you either — this dude can shoot the ball. He’ll earn most of his money behind the arc. Elmore is just 6-16 from deep through two games, but he’s someone you can’t leave open. If he has a sliver of space, a shot is going up. Elmore was most recently playing in the G League.

JP Tokoto is a name you might remember from his playing days at North Carolina. He struggled to shoot against War Ready (3-11 FG) but made contributions in other ways (10 rebounds, four steals). Jacorey Williams is the only player on Herd That who has reached double-figures in both outings, going for 17 points in game one and 13 in game two. Tokoto and Williams, both 30 years old with ongoing professional careers, create a challenging duo on the wing.

DeAndre Kane and Xavier Munford round out Herd That’s starting lineup. Kane registered nine points, three rebounds, and four steals against War Ready while Munford went for 13 points, four rebounds, and five assists on three made triples against Jackson TN Boom. Kane, 35, is among the oldest players in TBT but is still playing professionally overseas. Munford, 32, also plays overseas.

Off the bench, Herd That has plenty of options. Chris Cokley provided a scoring punch against Jackson TN Boom (14 points on 4-6 FG) while Tyrus McGee did the same against War Ready (11 points on 4-11 FG). Nick McGlynn (6-foot-9 PF) and Jarrod West (5-foot-11 PG) have both played at least 10 minutes in both games, so expect bench minutes from them against La Familia.

The nine Herd That players mentioned are the ones who saw most of the playing time in a close game against War Ready. These are the nine we should expect to see tonight. Of note, they don’t have a lot of size, whereas La Familia has dominated in the paint through its first two games. Kanter and Cauley-Stein will be the difference in this one. If the former ‘Cats are hitting from deep too, they’ll be looking at an Elite 8 appearance.