Trend spotters, take note: Iowa has never lost a first-round NCAA tournament game under coach Tom Davis.
If eighth-seeded Iowa defeats Virginia on Thursday night in the West Regional at Salt Lake City, Davis will have eight straight opening-round victories with the Hawkeyes and 10 for his career.
But here’s a more discouraging trend for the Hawkeyes: They have been dismissed in the second round in their last five NCAA appearances. A victory over Virginia likely would pit Iowa against Kentucky on Saturday, assuming the Wildcats don’t become the first top seed to lose in the first round. And that’s highly unlikely: They open with Montana.
No wonder Davis wasn’t doing handstands when he saw his team’s draw. “From a coach’s point of view, I can’t ever remember getting a draw and liking it,” he said.
The Hawkeyes (21-9) thought they deserved a higher seed after finishing tied for second in the Big Ten. But their weak non-conference schedule hurt them in the eyes of the tournament committee.
Kentucky is the worst kind of defending champion–one with something to prove. The Wildcats spent a good portion of the season trying to find an identity. They’ve found it, just in time to make a run at another national title.
The Wildcats, with a No. 1 seed for the fourth time in five years, roar into the West after rampaging through the Southeastern Conference tournament. Kentucky didn’t trail in any of its three SEC tourney games–and after the first basket of each game, its opponents managed to keep the score tied for a total of 1 minute 10 seconds.
“I believe they can repeat,” Georgia coach Tubby Smith said after the Wildcats destroyed his Bulldogs–a No. 3 seed in the Southeast Regional–by 27 in the final. “Look around the country. They’re playing as well as anybody.”
Rick Pitino’s assessment had to be even more frightening for the West field: “Since I’ve been here, we have not played three games as well offensively and defensively, from an execution standpoint.”
The only question is whether the Wildcats peaked too soon. Last year, Kentucky lost the SEC final but rebounded to dominate the NCAA tournament.
In other action at Salt Lake City, 12th-seeded Valparaiso hopes its return to the tournament turns out better than its debut; the Crusaders lost to Arizona 90-51 last year in Tempe, Ariz. Valpo meets fifth-seeded Boston College, winner of the Big East tournament.
