Where does Kentucky’s loss to Oakland rank among its notable NCAA Tournament defeats?
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Even a program with 2,400 victories has suffered infamous defeats.
The two most famous losses in Kentucky basketball history were both in the NCAA Tournament. There was the historic 1966 national title 72-65 loss to Texas Western, the first team to start five Black players in a championship game. And there was the now legendary 104-103 overtime loss to Christian Laettner and Duke in the 1992 East Region finals.
As for the worst, or most disappointing, or even infamous, losses by Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament, here’s a list:
Most unexpected
March 15, 1981, to UAB: Three years after winning the national title, the Wildcats lost to the upstart UAB Blazers 69-62 in a second-round game in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Coached by former UCLA coach Gene Bartow, UAB’s program was in its third year of existence.
March 22, 1986, to LSU: Kentucky had beaten LSU three times in the regular season, which made the Wildcats’ 59-57 loss to Dale Brown and the Tigers in the Southeast Region finals in Atlanta hard to swallow.
March 31, 1997, to Arizona: Kentucky was a seven-point favorite over Arizona to become the first back-to-back national champions since Duke in 1991 and 1992. Instead, the Wildcats fell victim to the Arizona backcourt of Miles Simon and Mike Bibby and lost 84-79 in overtime in Indianapolis.
March 21, 2004, to UAB: Kentucky was the 1984 NCAA Tournament’s overall No. 1 seed when Tubby Smith’s Wildcats lost 76-75 to the Blazers in a second-round game in Columbus, Ohio.
March 31, 2019, to Auburn: Kentucky had beaten Auburn twice in the regular season, including 80-53 at Rupp Arena the month before, but the Cats lost 77-71 in overtime to Bruce Pearl’s Tigers in the Midwest Region finals in Kansas City.
Most disappointing
March 14, 1970, to Jacksonville: Ranked No. 1 in the nation, the Dan Issel-led Wildcats lost 106-100 to Jacksonville in the Mideast Region finals in Columbus, Ohio. That Jacksonville’s Vaughn Wedeking all but tricked Issel into his fifth foul by taking an off-the-ball charge with 10:16 remaining only added to the misery.
March 31, 1984, to Georgetown: The accomplishments of a Kentucky team that won 29 games and reached the national semifinals were overshadowed by a 3-for-33 shooting performance in the second half of a 53-40 loss to the Georgetown Hoyas.
March 27, 2010, to West Virginia: Led by John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins, John Calipari’s first Kentucky team was ranked No. 2 in the AP Top 25 when it went 4-for-32 from 3-point range and lost 73-66 to Bob Huggins and West Virginia in the East Region finals in Syracuse, New York.
April 7, 2014, to Connecticut: Unranked heading into the NCAA Tournament, Calipari’s freshman-dominated team made an unlikely run through the Big dance until missing 11 of 24 free throws in the national championship game and falling 60-54 to the Huskies in Arlington, Texas.
April 4, 2015, to Wisconsin: John Calipari’s loaded Wildcats fell short of their goal of going 40-0 when they lost 71-64 to Wisconsin at the Final Four in Indianapolis. It was revenge for Bo Ryan’s Badgers, who had lost to Kentucky on a shot with 5.7 seconds left the year before in the national semifinals.
March 26, 2017, to North Carolina: Luke Maye’s jumper with 0.3 seconds left gave the Tar Heels the heart-stopping 75-73 victory over Kentucky in the finals of the South Region in Memphis, Tennessee.
Most embarrassing
March 18, 1971, to Western Kentucky: UK coach Adolph Rupp had a hard rule of not playing in-state schools. That made the Hilltoppers’ 107-83 thumping of the Wildcats in a Mideast Region semifinal in Athens, Georgia, that much sweeter for WKU and more embarrassing for the Cats.
March 11, 1982, to Middle Tennessee: One win away from its first matchup with Louisville since 1959, No. 6 seed Kentucky lost 50-44 to the No. 11 seed Blue Raiders from the OVC in a first-round game at Memorial Gym in Nashville.
March 17, 2022, to Saint Peter’s: Kentucky became only the 10th No. 2 seed to lose to a No. 15 seed when Calipari’s Cats were stunned 85-79 in overtime by the Peacocks in a first-round game in Indianapolis.
March 21, 2024, to Oakland: Two years after the loss to Saint Peter’s, Kentucky is again bounced in the first round, this time by a No. 14 seed. The 80-76 loss to the Golden Grizzlies in Pittsburgh marked the third consecutive year in which Calipari’s club failed to make out of the first weekend of the tournament.
After another early NCAA exit, Kentucky’s John Calipari needs to look in the mirror
Why doesn’t Kentucky just pay the $33 million it would take to make John Calipari go away?
Kentucky’s basketball season is over. Here’s who’s leaving the team and who might return.
Three takeaways from Kentucky basketball’s loss to Oakland in the NCAA Tournament
Kentucky basketball’s trap: UK can’t fire John Calipari, but the coach’s way isn’t working
