The Kentucky Wildcats are onto the Round of 32 of the NCAA Tournament after a win over Troy. Now, they will prepare for a date with the Illinois Fighting Illini for a berth in the Sweet 16.
In what could be the furthest run the Cats have had in an NCAA Tournament since 2019, this UK team seems to have the juice to make some noise, especially behind the play of Lamont Butler and Amari Williams.
The Cats are coming off a 76-57 win over Troy, the first NCAA Tournament win for Mark Pope as a head coach.
Now, let’s take a quick look at Illinois:
Opposing Players to Watch
G Kasparas Jakucionis, 6-foot-6, 200 pounds
F Will Riley, 6-foot-8, 180 pounds
C Tomislav Ivisic, 7-foot-1, 230 pounds
The Illini come into the tournament leaving a lot to be desired by a roster that is as talented as any in the country, especially in terms of top-end talent.
That is exactly why Illinois enters this game as an extremely boom-or-bust team. When they are hot, they could make a run to an Elite Eight. However, when they are cold, they look pretty rough.
Friday night, they got hot and cruised past Xavier to set up a Sunday date with the Cats.
Led by Kasparas Jakucionis, who is considered a lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft, the Cats will have their hands full, slowing him down in all three areas of the game. Shooting just under 33% from deep, keeping him in check will be a priority as he can heat up quickly.
Add that in with Tomislav Ivisic (Big Z’s twin brother), and the Illini have a strong 1-2 punch.
Freshman forward Will Riley is also having a great season and is a projected first-round NBA Draft pick. He had 22 points (8/12 shooting and 3/4 on 3s) in Illinois’ Friday win over Xavier.
For Kentucky the key will come in depth. Can they continue to keep fresh legs in the game, while Illinois keeps a rotation of seven guys playing all of their minutes? If it is close late, you have to think those fresh legs could make a difference. Add that in with some continued growth on defense, and this matchup is a tough one but a winnable one.
This will be the 16th all-time meeting with Illinois and the first since the 54-51 win at Rupp Arena in the 1984 NCAA Mideast Regional Final.
It’s worth noting that there was about a 70-30 fan disparity in favor of Illinois over UK in Milwaukee. Unless more of the Big Blue Nation shows up, it looks like this could be a semi-road game vs. the Illini.
Kentucky Basketball vs. Illinois Fighting Illini
Time: 5:15 PM ET on March 23rd
Location: Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
TV Channel: CBS
Announcers: Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy, and Lauren Shehadi will call the action
Live Online Stream: March Madness Live, but accessing that requires a valid login with a cable service. There is a one-hour free trial, however.
Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens will have the call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
Replay: Check local listings on CBS Sports Network and March Madness Live
Odds: FanDuel has yet to release an official spread, so check back later for that! EvanMiya has Illinois favored by .4 points and gives the Illini a 51.5% chance of winning. KenPom and BartTorvik give Kentucky a 51% chance of winning.
Predictions: EvanMiya predicts an 83.4-83 win for Illinois, while KenPom is going with an 85-84 win for the Cats, and BartTorvik has it at 86-85 for them. In what should be a 40+ minute war, I’m going with an 81-80 victory, Kentucky!
Send us your Kentucky vs. Illinois score predictions in the comments!
And of course, Go CATS!!
