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Kentucky faces March Madness pressure: Beat Santa Clara, or face the heat
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- Kentucky faces March Madness pressure: Beat Santa Clara, or face the heat
Say this for Kentucky basketball : At least the 'Cats will be well-rested, after a quarterfinals exit in the SEC tournament . While the Wildcats prepped for the NCAA Tournament , former coach John Calipari and his Arkansas Razorbacks cut down nets in Nashville.
Now, after a season filled with inconsistency, the pressure's on second-year Kentucky coach Mark Pope to achieve something in March Madness — or, at least last as long as Calipari does.
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NCAA Touranment bold predictions: Popular upset picks, Final Four dark horse
On this basketball-themed episode of " SEC Football Unfiltered ," a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams weigh in on the SEC teams facing the most pressure in this NCAA Tournament, plus teams that were "snubbed."
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Then, they offer first-round upset picks , and they highlight a sleeper team from the SEC that could reach the Elite Eight. Finally, they give their Final Four picks ! In a surprise twist, neither host picks an SEC team to reach the Final Four.
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Which SEC basketball team faces most March Madness pressure?
Adams: Kentucky. Ask me again next year, and my answer will be the same. Ask me again the year after that, well, you get the idea. It's always Kentucky. You want to be Kentucky's coach? You get the reins of a tradition-rich program with an elite fan base and excellent resources. You also get the maximum pressure. Calipari's success at Arkansas does Pope no favors. This first-round draw does Kentucky little favor, either. No. 10 Santa Clara is good enough to slay a blue blood.
March Madness Cinderella predictions: VCU, Akron top NCAA Tournament upset picks
Toppmeyer: Six reasons why we love March Madness
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Toppmeyer: Of course it's Kentucky. Big Blue Nation demands banners, not participation ribbons. Pope will have a new boss soon, with Mitch Barnhart retiring as athletic director and moving into a golden parachute role. Pope is good for now, but an early exit paired with new leadership spells Year 3 heat. Better to win a few games this March and show a hint of momentum.
Beyond the obvious of Kentucky, though, how about Missouri facing some first-round pressure after drawing a de facto home game as a 10-seed in St. Louis, against No. 7 Miami? The last time the Tigers appeared in St. Louis, they got embarrassed by Illinois. Missouri basketball took a bleak turn after joining the SEC. Instead of dominating a bunch of football-crazed Southerners, the Tigers went into a hoops tailspin. They've produced just one NCAA Tournament win in 14 years as an SEC member. Now, here's a golden draw in front of a home crowd.
SEC sleeper team to make the Elite Eight?
Adams: Arkansas. Get hot, stay hot. Darius Acuff is the SEC's best player. He's exactly the type of dynamic freshman you'd expect from a Calipari lineup.
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Toppmeyer: Vanderbilt. The Commodores beat Florida in the SEC Tournament, a flash of what they can achieve when their shooters are hitting. Vanderbilt is fueled by multiple 3-point marksmen, including star guard Tyler Tanner. If their jumpers are falling, they could go deep.
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Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's national college football columnist. John Adams is the senior sports columnist for the Knoxville News Sentinel. S ubscribe to the SEC Football Unfiltered podcast, and check out the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox .
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pressure on Kentucky basketball in March Madness? That's nothing new
