Kentucky's NCAA Tournament resume after the win over Tennessee

What a difference a few days makes. Coming into the weekend, Kentucky had more Quad 4 losses (1) than Quad 1 wins (0) on its NCAA Tournament resume. Now, that resume has a big W atop Quad 1 thanks to the victory over the No. 5 Tennessee Vols in Knoxville. The Cats are up to No. 41 in the latest NET Rankings, a 24-spot jump from Saturday morning. Tennessee remains No. 2.

As we do after each game, let’s look at Kentucky’s team sheet, which the Selection Committee will use to determine whether or not the Cats deserve a spot in the tournament, and if so, what seed.

Quad 1: 1-5

Home: 1-30, Neutral: 1-50, Away: 1-75

NET Ranking	Date	Opponent	Result
2	01/14/2023	at Tennessee	W 63-56
2	02/18/2023	Tennessee
3	01/07/2023	at Alabama	L 52-78
5	01/28/2023	Kansas
6	12/17/2022	UCLA (CBS Sports Classic, New York NY)	L 53-63
9	11/20/2022	at Gonzaga	L 72-88
26	02/25/2023	Auburn
27	03/04/2023	at Arkansas
27	02/07/2023	Arkansas
42	11/15/2022	Michigan State (Champions Classic, Indianapolis, IN)	L 77-86 (2 OT)
48	02/22/2023	at Florida
53	12/28/2022	at Missouri	L 75-89
54	02/15/2023	at Mississippi St.

Quad 2: 1-0

Home: 31-75, Neutral: 51-100, Away: 76-135

NET Ranking	Date	Opponent	Result
48	02/04/2023	Florida
57	01/21/2023	Texas A&M
75	12/04/2022	Michigan (London Showcase, London, England)	W 73-69
91	01/24/2023	at Vanderbilt
93	02/11/2023	at Georgia
113	01/31/2023	at Ole Miss

Quad 3: 3-0

Home: 76-160, Neutral: 101-200, Away: 136-240

NET Ranking	Date	Opponent	Result
88	12/10/2022	Yale	W 69-59
91	03/01/2023	Vanderbilt
93	01/17/2023	Georgia
109	01/03/2023	LSU	W 74-71
115	11/11/2022	Duquesne	W 77-52

Quad 4: 6-1

Home: 161-357, Neutral: 201-357, Away: 241-357

NET Ranking	Date	Opponent	Result
263	11/29/2022	Bellarmine	W 60-41
272	01/10/2023	South Carolina	L 68-71
285	11/23/2022	North Florida	W 96-56
296	11/07/2022	Howard	W 95-63
336	11/17/2022	South Carolina St.	W 106-63
337	12/31/2022	Louisville	W 86-63
360	12/21/2022	Florida A&M	W 88-68

As you can see, Kentucky’s loss to South Carolina remains firmly in Quad 4. Following the win over the Cats in Rupp, the Gamecocks lost to Texas A&M 94-53 in Columbia. South Carolina is currently No. 272 in the NET. For that loss to move out of Quad 4, the Gamecocks will have to rise above No. 161 in the NET, no small feat.

The Road Ahead

Kentucky has a great chance this week to get some momentum rolling at home. On Tuesday, the Cats host Georgia (NET No. 93) in a Quad 3 game, and on Saturday, the Texas A&M Aggies (NET No. 57) come to town for a Quad 2 contest. As mentioned, the Aggies walloped South Carolina in Columbia on Saturday. They’re riding a six-game winning streak, with wins over Florida, LSU, Missouri, and the Gamecocks.

As of today’s rankings, Kentucky has seven Quad 1 games remaining, so plenty of chances to further improve the resume; however, as we learned not even a week ago, they’re not above taking a bad loss at home. Here is the remaining schedule with each team’s NET Ranking and where that contest falls on the team sheet.

Date	Opponent	NET Ranking	Quad
01/17/2023	Georgia	93	Q3
01/21/2023	Texas A&M	57	Q2
01/24/2023	at Vanderbilt	91	Q2
01/28/2023	Kansas	5	Q1
01/31/2023	at Ole Miss	113	Q2
02/04/2023	Florida	48	Q2
02/07/2023	Arkansas	27	Q1
02/11/2023	at Georgia	93	Q2
02/15/2023	at Mississippi State	54	Q1
02/18/2023	Tennessee	2	Q1
02/22/2023	at Florida	48	Q1
02/25/2023	Auburn	26	Q1
03/01/2023	Vanderbilt	91	Q3
03/04/2023	at Arkansas	27	Q1

Just keep winning.