As "Kentucky" popped up on the big-screen television in Coach Matthew Mitchell's basement, players started screaming and hugging each other.
The No. 19 Cats, a four seed in the NCAA Women's Tournament draw televised Monday night, will face Liberty in the first round of the tournament on Saturday.
Mitchell stood in the far corner smiling and pumping his fists. He probably noticed something immediately that his players didn't.
Not only is UK the top seed in its pod, but it's only got to travel to Louisville's Freedom Hall to start its quest toward the Final Four.
"We are elated, ecstatic to play there, to give our fans an opportunity to turn out and watch us play," he said. "Now we just need them to saddle up and ride with us. They can make a huge difference."
As the seed sunk in, you could see the players increase their celebration when they noticed that the game is just down the road.
"It's real exciting," UK freshman and Louisville native A'dia Mathies told the news media after the bracket was unveiled. "I was hoping I'd get to go back home. This means all my family, all my friends can come out and support me.
"This is definitely what I've been thinking and dreaming of."
Southeastern Conference Player of the Year Victoria Dunlap agreed.
"The fact that it's in Kentucky and our fans can support us makes this a great opportunity for us," she said.
The Cats (25-7), who earned their highest seed since 1983, will face Liberty on Saturday.
In his post-bracket news conference, Mitchell noted that UK was an unbeaten 17-0 at home this season and he credited the fans with that.
Kentucky averaged 5,624 fans at Memorial Coliseum. Mitchell would love to see even more blue at Freedom Hall.
"It can make a tremendous difference if we can somehow, someway reach our fans and let them know how important it is to go buy tickets and show up," Mitchell said. "You've seen how well we can play at home. Any kind of support or crowd we could get will mean a lot to us and be a big bonus."
The Cats' first-round opponent is a tournament regular. In fact, the Lady Flames lost to Louisville in the first round last season.
They have advanced to 13 of the past 14 NCAA Tournaments and made it all the way to the Sweet 16 in 2005, when they also were a No. 13 seed, upsetting Penn State and DePaul.
The Lady Flames (27-5) are dangerous, coming back from as many as 20 points down in the second half to win their Big South Conference Tournament on a shot by freshman guard Devon Brown with 4.2 seconds to play.
The Flames have won 10 straight games and 20 of their last 21.
They are 4-0 on neutral courts this season and are led by Brown's 16.9 points and 8.4 rebounds a game.
"Kentucky is a very good team," Coach Carey Green said in a release through the school in Lynchburg, Va. "They have an outstanding ball club. The Wildcats are very athletic and will provide a big challenge."
Waiting in the Freedom Hall wings is No. 5 seed Michigan State (22-9).
Coincidentally, the Spartans knocked UK out in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2006.
Kentucky, making its seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its first since the 2005-06 season, was one of six Southeastern Conference teams to be awarded a bid this year.
SEC champ Tennessee earned the No. 1 seed in the Memphis Regional, while Georgia, Louisiana State, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt all made the cut.
Kentuckians in the NCAA Tournament
Roster
Kentucky
PROBABLE STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Yr.
1 A'dia Mathies G 5-9 Fr.
4 Keyla Snowden G 5-7 So.
24 Amber Smith G 5-6 Jr.
25 Amani Franklin G 5-11 Sr.
34 Victoria Dunlap F 6-1 Jr.
RESERVES
3 Crystal Riley G 5-5 So.
5 Carly Morrow G 5-11 Jr.
10 Bernisha Pinkett G 5-7 Fr.
12 Lydia Watkins G/F 6-1 Sr.
23 Rebecca Gray G 5-10 So.
30 Anna Cole C 6-7 Fr.
40 Brittany Henderson F 6-2 Fr.
statistics
Player FG Pct 3pt Pct FT Pct RPG APG PPG
Dunlap .490 .333 .692 8.3 38 17.7
Mathies .398 .268 .700 4.8 78 13.2
Smith .418 .389 .806 2.8 141 9.6
Franklin .359 .258 .818 6.5 18 7.4
Watkins .504 .273 .720 4.5 11 6.5
Snowden .392 .393 .781 0.8 10 6.3
Morrow .326 .277 .739 2.0 30 5.6
Gray .377 .354 .639 1.7 41 5.6
Riley .339 .154 .414 1.1 23 3.2
Henderson .549 1.000 .548 2.9 1 2.5
Cole .167 .000 .583 1.7 2 1.0
Team 4.2
Total .414 .315 .709 38.5 393 73.9
Opponents .378 .292 .673 37.8 319 58.1
RESULTS
Home games in all caps
Kentucky (25-7, 11-5 SEC)
Date Opponent Result
Nov. 13Boston UniversityW, 92-5
Nov. 15 BUTLER W, 87-66
Nov. 17 at Morehead St. W, 72-65
Nov. 22 TENNESSEE-CHATTANOOGA W, 65-55
Nov. 25 at UC Santa Barbara W, 68-54
Nov. 28 MCNEESE ST. W, 85-50
Dec. 1 MIAMI (OHIO) W, 107-53
Dec. 4 at Cincinnati W, 68-57
Dec. 13 FLORIDA A&M W, 91-39
Dec. 20 LOUISVILLE W, 101-67
Dec. 22 TENNESSEE-MARTIN W, 87-47
Dec. 28 at Middle Tennessee St. L, 57-51
Jan. 1 MISSISSIPPI VALLEY ST. W, 93-48
Jan. 7 at Georgia L, 61-60 (OT)
Jan. 10 VANDERBILT W, 63-53
Jan. 14 at South Carolina L, 79-71
Jan. 17 ALABAMA W, 88-63
Jan. 21 ARKANSAS W, 69-52
Jan. 31 at Mississippi St. W, 68-50
Feb. 4 MISSISSIPPI W, 80-66
Feb. 7 at Arkansas W, 71-57
Feb. 11 GEORGIA W, 64-48
Feb. 14 at Vanderbilt L, 68-55
Feb. 18 FLORIDA W, 77-51
Feb. 21 SOUTH CAROLINA W, 71-50
Feb. 25 at Tennessee L, 81-65
Feb. 28 at Auburn L, 65-53
Mar. 5 a-vs. Auburn W, 65-54
Mar. 6 a-vs. Mississippi St. W, 76-65
Mar. 7 a-vs. Tennessee L, 70-62
a-SEC Tournament at Duluth, Ga.
