Kentucky Wildcats Advance To National Championship After 74-73 Victory Over Wisconsin Badgers.
With Billy Donovan and his Florida Gators suffering an upset loss Saturday evening at the hands of the Connecticut Huskers, we were almost nearing a non-SEC collegiate title game. Coincidentally, Connecticut was the last team the Kentucky Wildcats lost to nearly a month ago for the SEC title game in a 1 point defeat. The Wildcats went on to knock out Wichita State, Michigan and the defending 2013 champion Louisville Cardinals all within 5 points, before their Final Four destination last night in North Texas.
Video highlights and more from the Kentucky’s big victory below after the jump.
Wisconsin was the higher seed, which many thought the freshmen 5 of Kentucky would make advancement due to their recent impressive play throughout the tournament thus far. That wasn’t the case for the first half, as they struggled initially to avoid a double digit hole early on. In the 2nd half however, the Wildcats would come out after a brief break and put pressure on Wisconsin going up by 8 points in the first five minutes.
A lot of foot stomping going on here. #BBN @KentuckyMBB @marchmadness pic.twitter.com/zpzWHOtfk3
— ashley judd (@AshleyJudd) April 6, 2014
The Badgers would answer right back taking a 5 point lead of their own with just six minutes remaining. Although the Harrison brothers didn’t provide much offensive power throughout most of the game, the final 10 minutes of the game saw them involved in nearly every Kentucky score. With the game tied and only 16 seconds remaining, Wisconsin would have a sigh of relief, as Traevon Jackson was fouled by Andrew Harrison on a 3-point attempt. Jackson would miss the first try, but hit the next two giving the Badgers a 2 point lead.
On the next ensuing possession, Andrew would make up for his previous mistake, providing an assist to his brother Andrew for the game winning 3. Traveon Jackson would get one last nearly open look but would come up short in Wisconsin’s Final Four sxit. The Kentucky Wildcats now prepare for their epic Monday night showdown and rematch of the 2011 Final Four, where the school lost to Kemba Walker and then champion Connecticut Huskers. Initially, we were moderately excited for the big game, but it’s essentially become MUST SEE TV!