The Kentucky Wildcats, a fourth seed, would be a minor upset in last year's NCAA Tournament, but 2011 March Madness plays by different rules: They'll be playing against UConn in the 2011 Final Four for the chance to be the hated team going up against last year's famous four-seed, the Butler Bulldogs, or the 11-seed VCU Rams.That's their reward for beating the No. 2-seed UNC Tar Heels, the last high seed in the Elite Eight, 76-69. Brandon Knight scored 22 across all 40 minutes of Kentucky basketball to lead the way; remarkably efficient Tyler Zeller scored 21 on 12 shots to lead the Tar Heels.
Kentucky, now 29-8, was 10-6 in this year's SEC conference play. North Carolina finishes the season 29-8 with a 14-2 ACC record.
The mid-major side of the Final Four is a 64-team tournament first—it hasn't happened since Larry Bird took Indiana State to the Final Four along with Pennsylvania. Kentucky and UConn have a chance to finish off their NCAA Tournament schedule with a win, but they don't have a chance, alas, to do it as the People's Champion.