With the recent additions of Missouri and Texas A&M to the SEC, it’s been widely known that one of the marquee names would be taken off the schedule. With the news that Indiana will no longer be on Kentucky’s schedule, and the possibility that the North Carolina game is in peril as well, fans have been debating who should fill those voids. While it’s unlikely that they’ll add more than one major team to the schedule, there are several possibilities on who could end up playing the Cats in years to come.
So here’s a list ten teams that you could end up seeing on schedules in years to come. This list is solely the opinion of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Nationofblue.com or its partners.
10. Southern Methodist
A lot of you just went “who?”, but hear me out here. Normally a game against SMU wouldn’t even register as a blip of a Kentucky fan’s radar, but a lot has changed in Dallas over the offseason. Gone is coach Matt Doherty, replaced with Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown. And let’s not forget that Coach Cal was an assistant under Brown at Kansas. The link to Brown, as well as the chance that Brown can lead the Mustangs to respectability, could land them on a future schedule. Kentucky is 3-2 overall against Southern Methodist, with the Mustangs winning the last meeting, a 56-54 home loss in 1984.
9. Xavier
It’s odd to think that Xavier and Kentucky haven’t played each other in five decades, despite being only an hour or so away from one another. Despite a 37-2 overall record against the Musketeers, these two teams haven’t played one another since 1968. But Xavier has been playing good basketball for some time now, and once again made the NCAA tournament last season. A game against Xavier would not only offer a challenge to the Cats, it would also prepare them for teams they may see come tournament time.
8. Kansas
Who else would like to see a return match from the Championship Game? I certainly would. Like a lot of the marquee teams in the NCAA, Kansas will almost always field a good team, and give fans a chance to watch a competitive basketball game. These two teams have held regular games against one another in the past, and a home-and-home or neutral court game is always a possibility again. Kentucky is 21-6 all time against the Jayhawks, one of their better records against nationally prominent teams.
7. Michigan State
Most Kentucky fans want to play good teams, and they don’t get much better than Michigan State. A game against the Spartans would challenge the Cats to play a team that employs a different style of basketball. Not to mention Tom Izzo always seems to have a good team in East Lansing, even when the national media writes them off. And besides, who doesn’t want a little payback from that 2005 NCAA Regional Final? Kentucky is 12-10 overall against the Spartans.
6. UCLA
Coach Cal hasn’t minced words, he’s coming after UCLA’s championship record. If they’re going to surpass UCLA in the number of championships won, they may as well beat them on the floor a few times to boot. UCLA has slumped over the past few years, but with some stellar recruiting classes coming in, they could be on an upswing. Another odd statistic: Despite being two of the most prominent teams in NCAA distory, the Cats and Bruins have only played one another ten times. Kentucky holds a 6-4 overall record against UCLA, but the Bruins hold the last victory in the series, a 73-68 defeat in the Maui Invitational in 2006.
5. Cincinnati
Much like Xavier, Cincinnati doesn’t have much of a recent history with Big Blue. They were regular opponents up until the 1940’s, and after a period of dormancy played five games from 1983-1990. When Kentucky faced Cincinnati in the NCAA tournament’s second round in 2005, it sparked interest in a return to a regular game with the Bearcats. Of course, that game never came to fruition. But now there’s a chance to bring a cross-river rivalry back to the forefront. Kentucky is 27-10 all time in the series, and Cincy’s last win came in 1939.
4. Notre Dame
A lot of younger fans may not be aware, but this used to be a pretty ugly rivalry. These two teams played regularly from 1936-1952, 1958-1982, 1992-1996 and 2001-2004. It was especially heated in the 1970’s, when Digger Phelps was the head coach of the Fighting Irish. This and the Indiana game were two of the hottest tickets in town back in those days, and since Indiana is gone, they may as well replace them with Notre Dame. Kentucky is 42-18 overall in the series, and Notre Dame’s last win was in 2009.
3. Memphis
To be honest, I’m surprised this one hasn’t already happened. I’m sure the athletic department is probably a little sore still about Coach Cal’s departure, but this game has money matchup written all over it. Think of all the possible story lines here. Cal returns to play his old team to take on his former assistant. ESPN and CBS would be all over that. Not to mention these two schools compete for the same recruits year in and year out, what a better way to showcase themselves to those players. There were rumors a year or so ago about playing Memphis on a neutral floor (Nashville, perhaps?), this could be the chance to make it happen. There has only been one previous game played against the Tigers, a 80-63 loss in the Maui Invitational in 2006.
2. Ohio State
Over the past couple years, there haven’t been many better teams out there than the Buckeyes. Coach Thad Matta employs a similar recruiting style to Coach Cal, bringing in top flight talent year in and year out. Playing a team with Ohio State’s talent level would be immeasurable come tournament time, as it would prepare a team full of youngsters to play against the best talent available. Kentucky is 11-8 all time in the series against Ohio State, with the Buckeye’s last win coming in 1987.
1. Duke
Did you expect anyone else on top of this list? Simply put, Kentucky fans hate Duke. And the Laettner game in 1992 still sticks in our crawls. And even though the Cats have beaten the Blue Devils in 1998 en route to the NCAA Championship in comeback fashion, it still doesn’t feel like retribution. Even though Kentucky fans consider Duke a rival, they haven’t played a regular series since 1956-1958. It’s time to change that. Kentucky is 11-8 all time against Duke, but the Blue Devils have won the past two meetings.
Who would you like to see Kentucky start a series against? Sound off on our Facebook page, and let your voice be heard!
