Where will Kentucky be placed in NCAA Tournament? Here’s a look at the final projections
One of the greatest days on the college basketball calendar has arrived.
It’s Selection Sunday, and the Kentucky Wildcats will know exactly where, when and who they’ll be playing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by the end of the night.
The annual selection show is scheduled to air on CBS at 6 p.m. EDT Sunday, and Mark Pope’s UK basketball team is planning to be together in Rupp Arena for a private watch party. The gathering in their home base will happen less than 48 hours after a humiliating exit from the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tennessee, where Alabama defeated the Wildcats 99-70, handing the program its most lopsided defeat ever in the league tourney.
Pope’s team will surely be eager to hit the court again and get back to winning basketball. The Cats are still viewed highly in the bracketology projections, of course — their overall body of work, which includes a record-tying eight victories over AP top 15 teams, is still among the best in the country — and they should also be closer to full strength by the time the NCAA Tournament tips off.
Kentucky played Friday night without Lamont Butler, who suffered another injury to his left shoulder in the previous night’s game — an 85-84 victory over Oklahoma — and was ruled out of the loss to Alabama.
Pope offered up a positive update on Butler’s status, however, saying before the Alabama game that UK received the “best possible news” regarding his shoulder earlier in the day and implying that he would be good to go for the NCAA Tournament.
The Kentucky coach confirmed to the Herald-Leader after the loss that the injury to Butler’s left shoulder was “totally different” than the one that sidelined him for six games — and left him playing hurt for others — over the past two months.
Pope reiterated his optimism that Butler would play in the NCAA Tournament this week.
“The imaging was perfect,” he said of the tests on Butler. “So we’re hopeful that he’ll be back in action.”
The Cats next game will be either Thursday or Friday, and many prominent bracketology sites have them playing their first week of the tournament in Milwaukee, which would mean a Friday opener.
Kentucky basketball bracketology
So, with the final conference tournaments wrapping up Sunday afternoon and the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee having spent the past several days huddled in Indianapolis, here’s a look at some final bracketology projections from prominent outlets:
▪ ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded Troy in the first round in Milwaukee, with Illinois or Drake as a possible round of 32 opponent. ESPN Bracketology has UK in the Atlanta regional.
▪ CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded UNC Wilmington in the first round in Milwaukee, with Kansas vs. a First Four opponent (Boise State or Indiana) and the winner of that as a possible round of 32 opponent. CBS has UK in the San Francisco regional.
▪ Bracketville’s Dave Ommen projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded UNC Wilmington in the first round in Milwaukee, with Louisville vs. a First Four opponent (Baylor or San Diego State) and the winner of that as UK’s round of 32 foe. Bracketville also has UK in Atlanta.
▪ The Washington Post projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded Wofford (coached by former UK walk-on Dwight Perry) in the first round in Milwaukee, with Saint Mary’s vs. a First Four opponent (San Diego State or Vanderbilt) and the winner of that as UK’s round of 32 matchup. That bracket has UK in the Indianapolis regional.
▪ The On3.com bracketology projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded Troy in the first round Milwaukee, with Gonzaga vs. a First Four opponent (San Diego State or West Virginia) and the winner of that as UK’s round of 32 matchup. On3 has UK in the Indianapolis regional.
▪ USA Today projects Kentucky as a 3 seed, playing 14-seeded Akron in the first round in Providence, with Illinois or West Virginia as a possible round of 32 opponent. USA Today has UK in the Indianapolis regional.
▪ According to BracketMatrix.com, nearly all of the updates that have been posted after Kentucky’s loss to Alabama on Friday night still have the Cats as a 3 seed. One prominent exception is The Athletic, which projects UK as a 4 seed, playing 13-seeded Liberty in Providence in its final bracket projection, with BYU (the school Pope coached for the previous five seasons) or Yale as a possible round of 32 foe. The Athletic has Kentucky in the Newark regional.
This story was originally published March 16, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
