Thanks for joining us, and from everyone here at Vavel.com, See you next time!
Until then, enjoy the madness of the tournament and join us on Thursday for the live coverage of UK and WVU/UM.
UK will play in Cleveland on Thursday, while trying to extend their record to 37-0 on the season.
Kentucky will now face the winner of West Virginia and Maryland in the Sweet 16.
For UK, Lyles finishes with a double-double 11 points and 11 rebounds. Aaron Harrison has 13 points to lead the Wildcats in scoring.
For UC, Caupain finished with 13 points, Thomas finished with 10.
2nd Half, FINAL: 64-51 final tonight as UK moves to 36-0 and the Sweet 16!
2nd Half, 24.0: Harrison misses both and then Thomas with a run down layup, 64-51 UK.
2nd Half, 24.0: Thomas fouls Andrew Harrison up top, Harrison will head to the line for 2.
2nd Half, 30.7: Dakari gets stripped and fouls the UC player.
2nd Half, 59.6: Thomas with a big dunk on the other end. UC stull fighting.
2nd Half, 1:09: Johnson hits both free throws to make is 64-45.
2nd Half, 1:09: Dakari Johnson pulls in the board and gets fouled coming down. Will head to the line for 2 free throws.
2nd Half, 1:32: Foul on Andrew Harrison. Caupain at the line hits both. 62-45
2nd Half, 1:43: Willie knocks down both free throws 62-43
2nd Half, 1:43: Harrison throws an oop for Cauley-Stein and WCS gets fouled.
2nd Half, 2:33: UK worked the clock down and then found Lyles for an open layup. 60-43
2nd Half, 3:20: Ulis gets blocked on a breakaway.
2nd Half, 3:54: Ulis knocks down both free throws 58-43.
2nd Half, 3:54: UK has 9 blocks tonight so far.
2nd Half, 3:54: I wish someone would listen to Jay Bilas and get the amount of timeouts limited in games. It slows down the action so much.
2nd Half, 3:54: Ulis takes it hard at the rim and draws the foul. We are on another timeout break.
2nd Half, 4:01: The antics from Ellis has done nothing more than pump up this team and this crowd.
2nd Half, 4:01: UC puts on full court pressure and UK calls a timeout on the inbounds.
2nd Half, 4:10: Ellis gets fouled and misses the front end of the 1-and-1 and then get an offensive foul called on them.
2nd Half, 4:25: Ulis with a huge 3!! 56-53.
2nd Half, 4:58: ANOTHER BLOCK!!! But the UC player grabs it and throws up a prayer as the shot clock sounds.
2nd Half, 5:02: ANOTHER BLOCK!!!
2nd Half, 5:15: Passion from these young men! 2 more blocks and then a jump ball by Towns. HUGE!
2nd Half, 6:00: Aaron Harrison with a quick answer on a layup. Comes up holding his wrist right after the play.
2nd Half, 6:14: 2 blocks in a row for UK but UC finally gets it in the basket.
2nd Half, 6:35: Ulis gets into the lane and Lyles pulls in the offensive board and gets fouled trying to put it back up. Hits one to make it 51-39 UK.
2nd Half, 7:29: A double foul on Towns and Ellis on the inbounds and this is truly incredible. Ellis is flopping and Towns is taking the beating. This is just bad basketball by Ellis.
2nd Half, 7:30: We are at the under 8 timeout. This game looks like it has tipped in UK's favor as they are running with momentum behind their defense.
2nd Half, 7:30: The Cats with another blocked shot but step out of bounds trying to gather the rebound.
2nd Half, 8:01: Dakari to the line after making a good move on the block. Hits 1-2. 50-39
2nd Half, 8:15: Jump shot puts UC behind 49-39
2nd Half, 8:32: OH MY!!! Andrew Harrison with a huge and-1...these boys are playing!!! Knocks down the free throw 49-37
2nd Half, 9:04: A gift for the Bearcats....an airball just falls in the lap of the UC player and gets a layup. 46-37
2nd Half, 9:22: UC calls a timeout to try to settle things down.
2nd Half, 9:30: Andrew Harrison goes hard at the rim for the layup over the Cincinnati defense. UK has come alive folks! 46-35
2nd Half, 9:45: Ellis tries to push his way into the lane and then Towns comes over top with the big rejection!!
2nd Half, 10:56: Clark now has his 4th foul in the game. Ellis checks back in and Lyles hits both free throws to make it 44-35 UK.
2nd Half, 10:56: Lyles has been a warrior this game, he brings in a big offensive board and then draws the foul under the basket.
2nd Half, 11:28: Deberry at the line for 2 shots. Hits 1-2, 42-35
2nd Half, 11:45: For the first time all year, Calipari has basically only used a 7-man rotation, leaving Dakari and Lee on the bench for most of the game.
2nd Half, 11:45: We are at the under 12 timeout and I feel the need to comment on the refs. They are calling it tight but there is no doubt that UK is getting the tough end of the whistle. They have been called on some very questionable fouls over the last 5 minutes.
2nd Half, 11:45: Aaron Harrison with a big 3-pointer to make it 42-34.
2nd Half, 12:35: 3 offensive boards on one trip wasnt enough to get the ball in the hoop by UC
2nd Half, 12:54: Deberry misses both free throws but Cincinnati gets the offensive board.
2nd Half, 12:54: WCS called for a foul on Deberry, Very questionable call.
2nd Half, 13:23: First trip down the court without Ellis on the floor shows a shot clock violation.
2nd Half, 14:12: Ellis with an offensive board and a dunk. He is the only production for the Bearcats right now.
2nd Half, 14:40: Watching this team all year, I have come to realize that they live for the big moments. They are always just waiting for a big stage to come to life. They are getting that stage right now.
2nd Half, 14:40: Cincinnati calls a timeout to try to slow down the momentum. This is one very exciting game!
2nd Half, 14:50: Cauley-Stein with a block and Booker with a run out layup...the arena is loud and this UK team is looking very focused.
2nd Half, 15:12: WCS makes a spin move and a score on the block 37-32
2nd Half, 15:37: Ellis scores on a move down low. 35-32 UK
2nd Half, 15:45: At the timeout, I cant help but to feel that UC is poking the bear and we are about to see some big time intensity for the Wildcats. I think those that have seen UK play with intensity knows that it can be a scary thing for opponents.
2nd Half, 15:45: Off the ball foul on WCS. Ellis is full on acting at this point, trying to play the refs against the UK players as much as possible. This guy is not one of my favorite players.
2nd Half, 16:34: Booker being aggressive and gets a goaltending call to make it 35-30. This game is getting very intense!
2nd Half, 16:54: Now UC shooting their technical free throws and hit both. 33-30
2nd Half, 16:54: It looks like Lyles will get his 2 free throws off the common shooting foul. Misses both. 33-28
2nd Half, 16:54: Aaron Harrison was just called for a technical foul. Things are getting very rough and it looked like Harrison is just sticking up for a teammate with a tiny shove.
2nd Half, 16:58: Lyles is being physical with the Bearcats and Ellis is questionable again, keeping his hands on Lyles.
2nd Half, 17:53: Harrison with a drive down the lane, for an easy layup. 33-28
2nd Half, 18:12: Caupain with a hard drive all the way down the court and finishes an and-1 against Booker. Knocks down the free thow to make it 31-28
2nd Half, 18:54: Booker is struggling still, hitting every part of the rim. Just cant get it to go down.
2nd Half, 19:21: Foul on Towns trying to grab the offensive board.
2nd Half, 20:00: UC inbounds the ball to open the second half. Immediately attacks the defense and Ellis draws a shooting foul on UK. Hits one free throw. 31-25
Davis just said that Ellis will be back this half and it was only back spasms. Big news!
and we are about to start the second half!
Halftime: The teams are back out on the floor getting ready for the second half. Larry Davis, the head coach for the Bearcats will look to keep up the same effort in the second half. They played 15 minutes of good basketball in the first half. The last 5 minutes is what hurt them...but to be fair, that is what happened to just about every UK opponent all year.
Halftime: The real story in the second half will be if Ellis for UC will be able to come back and play at a high level. Without Ellis, Cincinnati becomes much more average on the offensive end of the court.
Halftime: Trey Lyles has 6 points, 6 boards and Karl Towns leads the scoring with 8 points at the half for the Cats.
Halftime: We are going to take a little break and will be back in 5 minutes.
Halftime: Sir Charles says that Cinci has to believe that they can win, but doesnt think they have enough fire power to win.
Halftime: Cal seemed pretty content with the play of his guys other than so many missed shots.
Halftime: Coach Cal says, "are we up?" when asked about UC slowing the ball down on them. Then said, "eventually you are going to have to shoot against 7-footers."
1st Half, Halftime: An. Harrison missed a long 3-pointer and UK will go into halftime with the lead 31-24.
1st Half, 1.2: UK forces a backcourt violation and now will get a shot at the end of regulation.
1st Half, 44.8: UC calls a timeout to try to get things under control and not let this get any worse going into half time.
1st Half, 58.4: "Go Big Blue" chants erupt after a forced turnover and Aa. Harrison burries a 3 on the other end...the gym is rocking!!!! 31-24
1st Half, 1:56: WCS was out on a guard, Caupain thought he was quicker....wrong! Stein blocks the shot and then Ulis on the other end with a jumper, 28-24 UK.
1st Half, 2:44: Willie got fouled on that dunk as well....hit the free throw 26-24 UK.
1st Half, 2:44: Ellis is headed to the locker room, it looks like a lower back injury.
1st Half, 2:44: WOW, that was big-time!! For all of those that questioned how "soft" WCS is....take a look at this dunk on a vine in about 15 seonds. This crowd is hyped!! 25-24 UK
1st Half, 2:44: BOOM!!!! CAULEY-STEIN with a poster dunk!!!!
1st Half, 3:10: Booker with a cut through the lane for a layup. 24-23
1st Half, 3:41: UC with a 4-1 breakout after a steal gives them a 24-21 lead. UK struggling with this matchup defense.
1st Half, 4:46: Cincinnati is obviously looking to slow this game down on both ends and it has kept this close so far, but, its obvious that UK's defense is superior and if they can find their shot on offense they are ripe for a run.
1st Half, 4:46: We are at a timeout break. The refs have let some contact go over the last couple minutes and it is working in the favor of the Bearcats.
1st Half, 4:46: Cobb took it to the chest of Ulis and put it in to give UC back the lead 22-21
1st Half, 5:50: Lyles fouled going up for a shot, knocks down both free throws, 21-20 UK
1st Half, 6:05: Kentucky got lost on defense and Caupain was wide open for a layup. 20-19 UC
1st Half, 6:!0: Foul on Towns off the ball.
1st Half, 6:57: A circus shot from Deberry on a fadeaway that almost touched the ceiling makes it 19-18
1st Half, 7:34: Ulis at the line for 2 and sinks them both. 19-16
1st Half, 7:42: Another foul on UC will put UK on the line after the tv timeout. Kentucky is looking to find their touch on offensive and it looks like going through Trey Lyles will work just fine for now. He is showing off some fantastic moves for a 6'10" guy!
1st Half, 8:03: Kevin Johnson knocks down a 3 on one end and then Lyles gets the ball and extends over the defense and dunks on UC!!! 17-16 UK
1st Half, 8:34: Lyles puts it on the floor and finds the rim and puts it in to give UK the lead 15-13
1st Half, 8:44: Another foul on UC. UK fans are doing all they can to pump this team up!
1st Half, 9:21: Aaron Harrison finds the bottom of the net to tie the game up off of a 3-pointer from the corner. 13-13
1st Half, 10:17: Deberry with another offensive board. Scores it for Cininnati 13-10
1st Half, 10:43: Cats fans are on their feet!
1st Half, 10:53: Towns is headed to the line again after forcing the 4th turnover for the Bearcats this game. Knocked down both of them. 11-10
1st Half, 11:38: Deberry with a hook shot, answered quickly by Towns on an offensive board on the other end for a fast exchange. 11-8 UC
1st Half, 11:57: We are at a tv timeout. Bearcats lead 9-6. Just like a predicted...this is looking like it is going to be a low scoring game, just what UC is looking to do. UK is getting some good looks but have yet to see much of anything fall.
1st Half, 12:31: UC with a 3 to extend a lead to 9-6
1st Half, 12:43: WILLIE with a big dunk that bring the crowd to their feet!
1st Half, 13:02: Ellis with an aggressive play at the basket for 2.
1st Half, 13:49: UK has started this game 1-7. The offense is struggling for both teams.
1st Half, 14:22: Dakari Johnson with a big block!
1st Half, 14:59: UK forces a 5 second call...the defense for Kentucky is looking dominate right now.
1st Half, 15:21: Foul on Deberry for UC, Lee at the line for 2. Missed both.
1st Half, 16:00: The Wildcats usually spend a good amount of time at the line, against this style I think we will see a 25+ free throw game from the Cats tonight and that could be the determining factor for them moving on.
1st Half, 16:00: We are at our first timeout and the Bearcats remind me a lot of Louisville in the fact that they are very "handsy" and are looking to be as physical as possible with the Cats.
1st Half, 16:34: Huge block by Towns, second big block of the game for UK
1st Half, 17:00: Towns at the line hits both to tie it up 4-4
1st Half, 17:25: Ellis with an offensive rebound and a score. The boards will be important in this game. UC 4-2
1st Half, 18:15: UK forces a shot clock violation and immediately comes down and give it to Towns for 2. 2-2
1st Half, 19:12: Thomas for UC scored first, UC 2-0
1st Half, 20:00: Tip-off goes to UK!
and here we go!!
Starting lineups tonight are Cobb, Caupain, Clark, Thomas and Eliis for Cincinnati and Aa. Harrison, An. Harrison, Lyles, Towns and Stein for Kentucky.
We are 3 minutes away, as Kentucky looks to be the second team to punch their ticket to the Sweet 16!
The tension level is high, you can feel the Bearcat players disdain for the Big Blue faithful as they have made this court feel like Rupp Arena.
The game will be officially tipped at 2:53 pm EST, so we have 10 minutes...get the popcorn ready...this should be a show!
Being undersized wont make Cincinnati any less scrappy and we can all just hope that things dont get too physical. The Bearcats have been known for their "brawling" style at times. For some reason I feel like they are going to come out with a "Rocky" attitude. The smaller, scrappy underdog trying to take on America's champ in Apollo Creed (played by UK).
Tonight, the Bearcats will be outsized significantly at every position. Their biggest guy is Octavius Ellis at 6'10" then Quadri Moore at 6'8".
The line on the game tonight is locked in at 15.5 in Kentucky's favor. I am unsure if they cover...only because these are two very good defensive teams and I think the game will be too low in the scoring column to see that kind of seperation.
Kentucky is warming up and Karl Anthony-Towns looks super focused, but no matter how focused he looks he will never be as intimidating as a zoned in Willie Cauley-Stein #beast
Roars from the crowd as the Wildcats run through the tunnel. The KFC Yum! Center is very blue and very loud!
UCLA-UAB is finished. The Bruins dominated the paint to move on to the next round. The final score was 92-75.
UK is cued up and ready to take the floor....the massive blue crowd is ready to see their Cats.
UCLA was a team that many people felt like didnt belong in the tournament. To give credit to the selection committee...they got this one right. The Bruins will be the first team to punch their ticket to the Sweet 16!
Kentucky will look to become the first team EVER to start the year 36-0. Last years Wichita St. team was 35-0 before being knocked off by the red hot Wildcats.
The Cats are in the building and we are awaiting the end of the UCLA-UAB game to get started. Right now UCLA is up 86-73 at 2:00
The game will tip at 2:45 pm EST and we will be giving the play-by-play analysis right here!
UK opened up an 18 point favorite over the Bearcats but it has dropped to 16.5 over the last 12 hours.
UK will also need to win the rebounding battle if they hope to cruise past the Bearcats into the Sweet 16. Kentucky handled Hampton with ease on the boards but Cincinnati won’t be as easy, especially since they are much bigger than the Pirates. The Wildcats owned the boards with a 20 point advantage against Hampton. UC on the other hand lost their rebounding battle 51-38 against Purdue.
One of the biggest stories to watch in this game is the battle of the defenses. Kentucky ranks number 1 in the country, followed closely by Cincinnati, who ranks 6th in the category.
“We're not going to come out like that again, “ Tyler Ulis said. “We came out really flat last game. We know what we have to do, we know we can’t play like that in order to win national titles.”
Kentucky has had the problem of slow starts throughout the season and Andrew Harrison was the first to admit it in his post-game interview on Thursday. He admitted that his energy and intensity was lacking and vowed to his teammates and fans that it would not happen again.
The Bearcats will look to their leader, Octavius Ellis, to lead them to the win against the undefeated Cats. Ellis averages 10 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He was ejected on Thursday night for throwing a high elbow against Purdue center A.J. Hammonds. Due to the extent of the Flagrant 2 foul, Ellis will be able to play in this game. Ellis plans to continue his aggressive style of play.
“Obviously, you can’t give them transition,” associate head coach Larry Davis said about the Wildcats. “If you turn the ball over against them, they are great at finishing because they’ve got eight or nine guys that are pro prospects and they’re going to finish it on you if you turn it over. How we handle that will determine what the game’s like.”
If you have watched Kentucky play this year, you know that the Wildcats don’t change their game style for their opponent. UK focuses on being their best version within their own system, therefore Calipari watches tape to prepare the kids more mentally than anything for what to expect to see during the game.
“We just know that they’re going to play extremely hard and try to bully us,” UK’s Willie Cauley-Stein said.
Cincinnati is a hard-nosed team that is very physical and uses a zone defense a majority of the time. Something that could prove to be a tough test for Calipari’s team. Devin Booker, Kentucky’s best three-point shooter has been in quite a slump lately, shooting well under 30% from the perimeter. They will need him to step up if they are going to succeed on the offensive end of the floor.
The Bearcats have already shown confidence in their ability to take down UK. “The have won 35 games, but none of those teams was Cincinnati,” one of the Bearcat players announced in the pre-game interviews.
Cincinnati played the game before Kentucky on Thursday night and took it to overtime against the 9-Seed Purdue. It was a hard fought game that ended with the Bearcats on top 66-65.
The Wildcats had the latest game of the night on Thursday and John Calipari recognized it, letting his student-athletes sleep in until 11:30 on Friday morning. “We didn’t get back to our rooms until 2 o’clock,” Calipari said on Friday. “I don’t understand why it was this late, but when you’re behind on an overtime game, thats the kind of stuff that happens with long timeouts.” The Cats had a 50-minute practice session in the afternoon in preparation for the round of 32 game.
UK didn’t look like the powerhouse we have come accustomed to seeing against Hampton on Thursday night. Even though they cruised by the Pirates will relative ease, the Cats were sloppy and looked somewhat disinterested. They finished off the game 79-56.
1-Seed Kentucky (35-0) rolled past Hampton in its first round game, but 8-Seed Cincinnati (23-10) will look to prove to be a tougher test as they battle for a birth in the Sweet Sixteen today at 2:40 pm EST. I'm Nate Smith, and I'll be your host in this LIVE Kentucky - Cincinnati.