Posted on 03/23/2018 5:37:48 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
ATLANTA — The South Regional was supposed to be the Kentucky Invitational, a warm up tournament for the vaunted Wildcats before the team took its rightful place in the Final Four next week in San Antonio. The regional semifinals, after all, were lacking star power and quality. Loyola-Chicago and Nevada were mere upstarts.
And Kansas State? It might be a pretty good football school, but it was widely considered the weakest team of the 16 remaining in the N.C.A.A. tournament — so said various pundits and analysts who re-ranked the tournament’s survivors. They brought to Thursday’s matchup a 24-11 record, a mid-pack finish in Big 12 Conference play and a seeding of No. 9.
Star power? Few outside Manhattan, Kan., had heard of Xavier Sneed. They know him now. Behind Sneed’s 22 points and gritty all-around play, Kansas State defeated Kentucky, 61-58, and will face No. 11 seed Loyola here in an improbable South Regional final — the first game between a No. 11 seed and a No. 9 in tournament history.
“We’ve been picked eighth in the Big 12, finished fourth, and we saw the new seedings come out, 16th in the Sweet 16,” Sneed said. “So we felt disrespected all year, and we just came out here and proved people wrong, and we’re going to do that game by game.”
What went wrong for the Kentucky Wildcats? About everything.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Why would anyone expect Kentucky to waltz through their bracket? Kentucky is a crappy team this year. Granted, with Tennessee, Virginia and Cincinnati gone, their road got easier... but why should they succeed where Tennessee, Virginia and Cincinnati failed?
A classic! How do we know the toothbrush was invented in Arkansas? Anywhere else it would have been called a teethbrush.
This is sort of a stupid article. How was this region supposed to be easy when Kentucky was only a 5-seed going in??
Anyway, I have Loyola winning the finals in my bracket, so I am still going strong.
Man, that is cruel, funny as hell, but cruel.
A good old fashioned, non-correct, joke.
Craziest NCAA Tournament I can recall in a long time...
#1 seed not only in their division, but overall taken out in the first round... A nun being the center of attention... A number 11 taking out a number 3 and number 2....
#11 vs #9 for the final 4...
Its definitely been a crazy one this year.
Clemson is ACC.
We are a KU family as our Mom in law was a KU graduate. Also Witchta St. as my wife is from there, and then KSU. It would be funny if both Kansas teams played for the Championship. We would have to go with KU though.
Mouth-shaming at its finest, no doubt!
Calipari could not seem to get his to to play to its potential. I never liked the guy because he always seemed two-faced. Lately, he hasn’t been so insufferable.
Of all the UK games I’ve watched in my lifetime - and there have been many - last night’s game against K-State was possibly the worse I’ve ever seen. UK played horribly on both ends of the court, in all aspects of the game. UK thoroughly deserved to lose. I think this game illustrates the glaring defect of the one-and-done system.
No, please.
Feeling disrespected, Sneed? How bout beating ku more than 6% of the time?
Even UMBC could better that
KU has already beat them 3 times this year, no one including Bruce wants to see a fourth. RCJH
If they get past the Ramblers (and that is no given), hopefully Dean Wade's stress fracture can heal a bit before the Final Four. A full week off his foot could help. When K-State went to a five-guard lineup after Snead fouled out, it became clear that Wade was hurting after playing earlier in the game.
Team plays with a chip on its shoulder. Barring transfers or a surprise entry into the NBA draft, the Wildcats only lose two guys both of whom played little. Should be really good next year.
It was a CRAPPY game, no doubt... K-State game out angry, and with a plan to out-physical UK. It was MIGHTY UGLY, but it worked.
As bad as they played, Kentucky was still tied at the end, and had a good chance to win this game. Not bad, considering that, 6 weeks ago, we all thought this team was going nowhere. Getting to the Sweet 16 was exceeding expectations.
Good news is: MOST of these players will be back next year, and a sterling group of new players will be joining them. Give Cal even a couple of 2 year players, and he’ll be competing in the Final weekend.
ANY bone displacement takes 10 days or more for the bone to start to knit & heal. Even a ‘stress fracture’. Don’t wish any bad juju on any athlete, but that is a medical fact.
Seeing Ashley Judd’s disappointment was a bonus for this KSU grad.
:-)
Pretty pleasing after hearing all the nonsense about how the SEC might be the best BB conference in the country this season. Even the SEC's public relations department, also known as ESPN, shut up about how good SEC basketball was. After Kentucky fell, there were 13 teams remaining in the NCAA tournament, none of whom were from the SEC.
Now Coach Calipari is going have to go out shopping and buy a whole new crop of 5* recruits.
I went to KU. My brother, only 20 months younger, went to K-State. That was all in the Vietnam era but we have both stayed loyal to our schools. At March Madness and at Bowl Season, we get to root for both of them together with texting back and forth.
We have had 3 Sunflower Showdowns (as we call it) in round ball this year and really enjoy getting together over the phone or sometimes in person to watch this rivalry that has lasted about 50 years.
When we started, KU towered over KSU in football and track, and K-State was their equal in basketball. We have to remember that in 1951, the year before KU played for the championship and won, K-State played. They lost to — -— — Kentucky.
I'm not optimist that K-State will get any significant minutes from Wade until next season. He's trying to tough it out but there is only so much he can do.
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