No. 1 seed Kentucky opens NCAA Tournament against 16th-seeded ETSU

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

03/18/2010 - New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Kentucky Wildcats begin play in the 2010 NCAA Tournament with first-round clash against the 16th-seeded East Tennessee State Buccaneers in the East Region.

The winner of this clash will take on either eighth-seeded Texas or ninth- seeded Wake Forest in the second round.

ETSU enters this event on a major roll, as it has won its last six games and recently captured the Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament championship. The Bucs, who are 20-14 overall, are making their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance. They own a 2-9 record in the "Big Dance", and while no 16 seed has ever beaten a top seed, ETSU came as close as anyone has in 1989, losing to Oklahoma by one point.

As for Kentucky, it is making its record 50th NCAA Tournament appearance after capturing its 26th SEC Tournament title with a dramatic win over Mississippi State. The Wildcats, who are 32-2 overall, are led by many newcomers to the program, including first-year head coach John Calipari and a tremendous trio of freshmen. The No. 1 seed is the 10th in school history for Kentucky, and the squad has its 12th 30-win campaign. The 'Cats are 98-44 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and happy to be back in the "Big Dance" after appearing in the NIT a year ago.

Kentucky beat East Tennessee State in both previous meetings between the two programs, the most recent of which took place in 1985.

While ETSU is averaging 69.2 ppg this season, the team is limiting its opponents to 66.5 ppg on 41.5 percent shooting from the field. There are three double-digit scorers in the fold, and Tommy Hubbard leads the way with 14.1 ppg. In addition to his offensive ability, Hubbard also paces the squad with 8.3 rpg and 54 steals. Micah Williams checks in with 12.5 ppg, and Justin Tubbs provides 12.0 ppg. Tubbs scored 18 points to lead the way for his team in the A-Sun title game against Mercer, a contest that resulted in a six-point win. Prior to that tilt, Williams had led his team in scoring in three straight outings. The last time Hubbard paced the squad in scoring was 10 games ago, and he is the only player on the roster that has started all 34 games.

There is a wealth of offensive talent in the fold for Kentucky, which is averaging 79.2 ppg on 47.9 percent shooting from the floor. Fortunately, the team also excels at the defensive end, limiting foes to 65.3 ppg on 38.1 percent shooting. Point guard John Wall recently became just the second freshman in SEC history to earn that league's Playe of the Year award. He is averaging 16.9 ppg and has dished out 210 assists in the 33 games that he has played. Wall also has 60 steals to his credit and may only get one shot to win the national title if he answers the early call from the NBA. The same can be said of DeMarcus Cousins, a prototype power forward who provides 15.3 ppg and 10.1 rpg. Cousins, the 2009-10 SEC Freshman of the Year, has also blocked 62 shots for the Wildcats, and he gets help inside from junior Patrick Patterson, who brings 14.7 ppg and 7.3 rpg to the floor. Eric Bledsoe, the third standout freshman, adds 10.8 ppg to the mix.

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