Kentucky great Jamal Mashburn spoke with CBS Sports about the Wildcats’ chances of making the NCAA Tournament and he believes his alma mater would win out over a mid-major team because of the fanbase.
“The one thing I’ve always said since I played professional basketball is I understand the business of basketball,” Mashburn said on Friday night. “If there’s a toss-up between another mid-major and the University of Kentucky you have to take into account what they’ve done on the floor, but as you can see, with the SEC Tournament, UK fans travel, so I think that’s going to be in consideration. It’s not like they deserve any extra treatment than any other program but I do think the committee is going to look at the business side of it.”
During an interview at halftime of Kentucky’s quarterfinal matchup versus Vanderbilt on Friday night, the former Wildcats’ small forward said his former team needed to rally in the second half to earn an at-large bid in the tournament. After cutting a 21-point deficit to 11 midway through the second half, Kentucky fell 64-48 to the Commodores.
“They can’t lose this game if they want to be in the NCAA tournament,” Mashburn said. “I think people judge them based on last year’s team and that’s unfair. I also think their opponents are also playing the jersey, as well, not necessarily the players in the jersey but they’re playing the mystique of the university. That can be difficult for this team, but it’s a growing process for them. We’ll see how it plays out.”
The Big Blue Nation could help the Wildcats sneak in the tournament, which shows why it is the #1 college basketball fanbase in the entire world.
