Kentucky and UCLA in Sweet 16 heavyweight showdown
By Matt Green
When the NCAA Tournament Bracket came out, everyone circled the potential Sweet 16 matchup between Kentucky and UCLA. And here we are.
Who: 2-seed Kentucky vs. 3-seed UCLA
When: Friday, March 24 at (approximately) 9:39 EST on CBS
Where: FedEx Forum, Memphis, TN
It almost seems criminal that two of the blue bloods of college basketball have to face each other this early in the tournament. But that’s just the way the tournament works out sometimes.
When these two teams met back on Dec. 3, UCLA beat Kentucky 97-92, and we could be in for another track meet on Friday.
It seems like John Calipari’s team does this every year. They start with some of the best freshmen in college basketball. Then halfway through the season it’s unclear how legitimate of a national title contender they are. Then the calendar hits March and they’re playing their best basketball at the right time.
This year’s team is no different.
Flashback to Feb. 4. Kentucky had just lost three out of four to drop to 18-5 on the season. And it was nearly four in a row with their only win during that span coming in overtime against Georgia.
All the Wildcats have done since then is win, and win, and win. Kentucky is currently on a 13-game winning streak, and De’Aaron Fox has taken his game to another level. Since the calendar turned to March, Fox is averaging 19.7 points per game and shooting 53 percent from the field.
And let’s not forget about the SEC’s second-leading scorer Malik Monk. The Wildcats are only going to go as far as this freshmen backcourt duo will take them.
The winner of this game will face the winner of 1-seed North Carolina and 4-seed Butler.
What you need to know about UCLA
We anticipated this matchup before the tournament started when we laid out Kentucky’s Road to the Final Four.
This is Steve Alford’s fourth year as the head coach at UCLA and this is the third time he’s led the Bruins to the Sweet 16. Maybe the third time will be the charm, because they’ve yet to get passed this round of the tournament.
This team is exciting and fun to watch. And their offensive resume is unbelievable.
UCLA Offensive Statistics
Points: 90.2 (1st)
Assists: 21.6 (1st)
A/TO Ratio: 1.93 (1st)
Field Goal Percentage: 52.1% (1st)
Three-Point Percentage: 40.6 (4th)
Here’s some expert analysis for you: Lonzo Ball is really good at basketball. Like, really, really, good.
Ball does everything for the Bruins. He’s their third leading scorer, averaging 14.7 points, third leading rebounder averaging 6.1 boards, and the nation’s leader in assists at 7.6 per game. He also averages 1.9 steals and shoots 56 percent from the field and 42 percent on threes.
But it is far from a one man show (just don’t tell his dad that).
The Bruins have a ridiculous six players who average double figures. For whatever reason, the Pac-12 named 10 players to first team all-conference and UCLA had three players on the team.
Their other stud freshman T.J. Leaf leads UCLA with 16.2 points and also averages 8.2 rebounds. He’s also a good passer for a big man and can step out and hit shots from the perimeter.
Bryce Alford was the other Bruin on first team All-Pac 12. He’s UCLA’s second leading scorer at 15.6 points per game and one of the top three-point shooters in the country.
This UCLA team is going to be tough to beat, but you better believe the Big Blue Nation will make the trek to Memphis to support their Wildcats.
This is the type of heavyweight matchup the college basketball world has been waiting for.