Kentucky moved into Top 5 of NET rankings following Gonzaga win

Koby Brea - Stephen Brashear, Imagn Images

There is a ton of Top 5 buzz surrounding the Kentucky men’s basketball program following Saturday’s thrilling overtime win on the road against Gonzaga. The Wildcats checked in at No. 5 in both the AP and Coaches Poll updates for this week. Mark Pope‘s team is also within the Top 10 among analytical-based polls such as KenPom (No. 10) and EvanMiya (No. 8).

But the only poll that truly matters in the end is the NET rankings, which is the NCAA’s “primary sorting tool” used to establish a team’s resume. It weighs heavily in deciding the seeding order of teams for the NCAA Tournament. So Kentucky checking in at No. 5 in the NET (after debuting at No. 8 last week) as of Sunday’s update is significant.

Holding an 8-1 record on the season, Kentucky already has a pair of Quad 1 neutral site wins over Duke and Gonzaga, although both the Blue Devils (No. 4) and Bulldogs (No. 3) rank above UK in the updated NET. The Wildcats’ lone loss this season to Clemson (No. 11 in NET) is considered a Quad 1 defeat, which won’t negatively impact Kentucky’s resume all that much if the Tigers continue to play like one of the nation’s best teams.

Looking at the rest of Kentucky’s previous wins this season, three are considered Quad 3 victories (Wright State, Lipscomb, and Western Kentucky) while the remaining three are considered Quad 4 wins (Bucknell, Jackson State, and Georgia State). UK’s next two opponents this week will be considered Quad 4 (vs. Colgate on Wednesday) and Quad 2 (vs. Louisville on Saturday) opportunities.

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Kentucky’s record in the NET Rankings

Quad 1: 2-1
Quad 2: 0-0
Quad 3: 3-0
Quad 4: 3-0

The latest NET Rankings are loaded with SEC teams too. Tennessee and Auburn hold down the top two spots, respectively, while 12 total SEC schools make up the Top 50. The next-highest conference is the Big Ten with 11 among the Top 50 followed by the Big 12 with nine.

Kentucky still has one more Quad 1 non-conference matchup left to play, which is against Ohio State in New York City on Dec. 21. The neutral site matchup against a Buckeyes team ranked No. 21 in the NET will be the final Quad 1 opportunity until SEC play begins in the new year.