The 2011 NCAA Tournament Bracket has its first rematch of the 2010 NCAA Tournament: Kentucky vs. West Virginia in the South Region. Thanks to West Virginia’s 84-76 win over Clemson and Kentucky’s gutty victory against Princeton, we will see a repeat of a game from the 2010 Elite Eight on the 2011 NCAA Tournament schedule. The Kentucky vs. West Virginia matchup will be the first Third Round game of the 2011 NCAA bracket, will tip off from Tampa at 12:15 p.m. Saturday, and will be televised on CBS with Ian Eagle and Jim Spanarkel on the call and David Aldrige serving as the sideline reporter.
NCAA Bracket 2011: No. 4 Kentucky Vs. No. 5 West Virginia
Kentucky’s struggles in its first NCAA Tournament game against Princeton had a lot to do with rhythm. The Wildcats couldn’t leverage their superior athleticism against the Tigers, forcing just six Princeton turnovers and failing to capitalize in transition. Between that and Brandon Knight’s struggles — the freshman star didn’t score until his eventual game-winner — the Wildcats had to rely on a surprise contributor: senior center Josh Harrellson. Harrellson had 15 points and 10 rebounds against the Tigers, and while he might not be so effective against the slightly bigger West Virginia front line, his play has to be seen as a plus.
West Virginia used a 28-7 run that spanned the end of the first half and beginning of the second to open up a big lead against Clemson in its first 2011 NCAA Tournament game, but did not clinch a berth in the Third Round until reserve guard Dalton Pepper forced three consecutive steals to short-circuit a late Tigers comeback attempt. The Mountaineers’ Kevin Jones thrived against Clemson, pouring in 17 points and pulling down nine rebounds, but West Virginia’s superior offensive rebounding didn’t show until their run. If the slow start that bogged down West Virginia versus Clemson recurs against Kentucky, Bob Huggins’ team may be in too deep a hole to recover from before the first half is even over.
Star Watch: Knight’s puzzling no-show against Princeton is even less understandable when you learn that the Tigers’ lockdown defender, Kareem Maddox, was actually matched up on Terrence Jones more often. Knight will need to find his shot to advance against West Virginia.
Prediction: The bruising Mountaineers take an early lead, but Kentucky’s Knight and Jones both produce enough to bring Kentucky back, and the Wildcats lead throughout the second half en route to a 78-74 victory..
More Reading: SB Nation’s Kentucky blog A Sea of Blue is your fan community for everything Big Blue, while our West Virginia blog, The Smoking Musket, has plenty more on the Mountaineers.
Need help picking your bracket? Check out SB Nation’s full 2011 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions, picking every game of March Madness, or our region by region breakdowns for the East Region, West Region, Southeast Region, and Southwest Region.
Did your team miss the 2011 NCAA Tournament? We have you covered: check out the 2011 NIT bracket.
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