Busting the East Bracket

Letting the dust settle a bit, I guess I don't have too many gripes about the path that has been laid out for the Wildcats. Getting to a Final Four is never going to be easy, and you have to like the fact that UK did get a number one seed, which was well-deserved. The oft-cited statistical probability is significant, when earning a #1 seed as opposed to a #2-- it greatly increases a team's likelihood of making it to the last weekend of the season.

Now personally, I wanted to see the Cats come through Houston so that I could check out a regional here in my own back yard. Instead, it will be the Puke Blue Devils coming through the Lone Star State (barring an upset). Whether that particular seeding was fair or not, I will leave for others to argue. Certainly the #2 seed there in the South (Villanova) would seem to have easier path for the first couple rounds-- vs. UK likely having to play a more "name brand" opponent in the Wake Forest/Texas winner.

Now, I do think Bob Huggins will use the classic "we were snubbed" motivational tool to get his West Virginia team fired up. They are obviously a very talented (strong, even rugged?) group and I have seen them several times this year. Their bigs are a lot to handle. But I'd be wary of looking too far ahead, as perhaps Temple or Wisconsin would provide a very good test in the Sweet 16. (See?! I'm already guilty of looking ahead myself!)

The point is, I don't get too much out of complaining over the bracket that Kentucky is up against this year. UK has always had more than its share of haters-- in the conference, in the media, and yeah, probably on the selection committee. But I do feel like this is a special team and it has Final Four talent, no matter how inexperienced. So let's just talk about East Tennessee State for now, and then after that, we can see who's next.