Kentucky's undefeated regular season is good for college hoops
At the end of a season defined by low scores, plodding pace and off-court scandal, college basketball caught a much-needed break.
The sport kept alive the one storyline that will resonate even with casual fans this March.
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Top-ranked Kentucky completed the regular season without a loss on Saturday afternoon, pulling away from visiting Florida 67-50 in the regular season finale for both teams. The Wildcats finished the regular season unbeaten for the first time since 1954 and maintained hope of becoming college basketball's first undefeated national champion in 39 years.
Though the sellout crowd at Rupp Arena gave Kentucky a standing ovation as the final seconds melted off the clock, the muted celebration from the Wildcats reflected the mindset of a team with bigger goals ahead. They smiled, danced a little bit and soaked in the cheers, all while wearing blue T-Shirts that read "31-0 Not Done."
Only five other Division I teams besides Kentucky have achieved an unbeaten regular season since the 1976 Hoosiers became the last team to win a championship with an unblemished record.
Larry Bird led Indiana State to the national title game in 1979. Alcorn State also went unbeaten that same season but was ineligible for the NCAA tournament. Powerful UNLV reached the Final Four before falling to Duke in 1991. St. Joseph's lost a memorable back-and-forth Elite Eight game to Oklahoma State in 2004. And Wichita State dropped a thriller against eventual national runner-up Kentucky last March a round of 32 classic.
That its Kentucky who's taking an undefeated record into the postseason this year is a boost for college basketball because make no mistake, the Wildcats are currently the sport's top draw.
They boast the nation's most polarizing coach and nine McDonald's All-Americans on their roster. They've played in four of the six highest-rated college basketball games of the season on the ESPN family of networks. And they have business-savvy Indianapolis ticket brokers who are lifelong Hoosiers or Cardinals fans pulling for the Wildcats to make it to Lucas Oil Stadium for the Final Four.
It would be a surprise if those ticket brokers don't get their wish if only because of how dominant the Wildcats have been against other name-brand opponents. They throttled Kansas by 32 points in November. They pounded Arkansas by 17 last week. In between, they also beat North Carolina, Texas, Louisville and UCLA by eight or more points.
Though a handful of SEC opponents have given Kentucky a scare over the past two months, an unusually mediocre Florida team didn't have the firepower to challenge the Wildcats at Rupp Arena on Saturday. Trey Lyles and Karl Anthony-Towns led a balanced Kentucky attack with 14 and 13 points respectively, helping the Wildcats break open a three-point game at halftime.
Most neutral fans will surely be rooting against Kentucky over the next month, whether it's out of dislike for Calipari and the one-and-done system or simply just the desire to see the underdog win. But whether the Wildcats hoist a trophy on April 6 or not, the fact that their quest for a 40-0 season is still alive entering the postseason is beneficial for college basketball.
The old adage says that nobody cheers for Goliath. Everyone will tune in to watch Goliath though.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
