Keith Lipscomb of ESPN says the Kentucky Wildcats can still be a 2-seed in the NCAA Tournament if they win out.
Kentucky hosts No. 15 Auburn today and Tennessee Tuesday, before traveling to Florida next weekend. The Gators are playing good basketball in February and that will be a tough one. Lastly, the Wildcats will need to win three games in the SEC Tournament.
Lipscomb believes the Cats would earn a 2-seed at that point, and he says that matters a lot:
There’s still time for Kentucky to potentially ascend to the 2 line, especially if the Cats can win out. But how much does it really matter if Kentucky moves up or down a seed line? After all, John Calipari has already taken a No. 4 seed to the Final Four and a No. 8 seed to the title game during his time in Lexington.
Simply put, it still matters a lot.
How big of a difference is there between being a No. 2, 3 or 4 seed?
NCAA tournament history doesn’t shine all that brightly on the 4s, in terms of deep advancement, and there’s a monstrous difference between No. 4s and No. 2s.
• In the modern tournament era — since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985 — more No. 2 seeds have reached the Elite Eight than No. 3 and No. 4 seeds combined (64 to 57).
• When it comes Final Four appearances, No. 2 seeds (29) nearly outnumber the 3s and 4s combined (30).
• No. 2s and No. 3s have had similar success in getting to (and winning) the championship game, but just three No. 4 seeds have reached the title game in the modern era and just one has hoisted the trophy (Arizona in 1997).
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