Kentucky men’s basketball advances to the Sweet 16 during March Madness. To get in the Sweet 16, the Kentucky Wildcats were able to defeat Troy and Illinois. On Friday, March 28th, Kentucky who is a number 3 seed will play Tennessee, the second seed, in a very intense matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. This will be their third time playing each other, with Kentucky defeating Tennessee both of the other times. If Kentucky can beat Tennessee, this will be their first time beating them 3 times since 2005. Only one player, Lamont Butler, knows what it’s like to play in a Sweet 16 game. 

“I don’t think we have to do anything different. I think we’ve got to do the same thing against every team, continue to be ourselves. We trust each other on the court. We know what we’re capable of doing.” Koby Brea, a player at Kentucky, said 

“There’s the strategic side of coming to know to consider you might have a better idea of if you’re going to make changes, a better idea of how and why. But I think that’s like the .1 percent. I think mostly this is a free-standing game. This is a great Tennessee team. It’s one of the top teams in the country. It’s the best defensive team in the country. They have one of the best offensive teams in the country.” Coach Mark Pope said. Pope has great admiration and respect for Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes. 

“Rick Barnes is, if not the best, one of the best coaches in all of college basketball right now,” Pope said. “He’s one of the people that I really, really admire. I admire him because he puts together great teams every year. And I admire him because, everything I know about him, he’s a way better man than he is a basketball coach. When you’re one of the best basketball coaches, that’s saying a lot about him.” Pope said.