NASHVILLE, Tenn. (REUTERS) ? Kentucky has been unbeatable the last three months. And the Wildcats never lose to Utah at tournament time.
Keith Bogans and Marquis Estill scored 18 points apiece, and top-seeded Kentucky cruised into the round of 16 for the ninth time in 11 years, routing Utah 74-54 in the second round of the Midwest Regional.
Kentucky (31-3) stretched its winning streak to 25 games, a run sparked by an 18-point loss to rival Louisville on Dec. 28.
Making the day complete for Wildcat fans, the Cardinals were knocked out of the tournament earlier Sunday, upset by Butler at the East Regional.
It wasn’t a shock at all that No. 9 Utah (25-8) had its season end at the hands of Kentucky. The teams were meeting in the tournament for the fifth time in 11 years ? the Wildcats have won each time, including a victory in the 1998 national championship game.
That year, the Utes squandered a 10-point halftime lead and lost 78-69. They haven’t been close in the other meetings, going down by an average of 21 points.
Kentucky advanced to meet Wisconsin in the regional semifinals at Minneapolis Thursday. The Wildcats were knocked out in the round of 16 the last two years, but it will take a major upset by the Badgers to make it three in a row.
The Wildcats are firmly focused on a return trip to New Orleans, where they won the Southeastern Conference tournament a week ago. They’re two victories away from going back to the Big Easy for the Final Four.
Kentucky’s winning streak is now the fourth-longest in school history, and the Wildcats have rarely been tested while putting it together. Of the 25 victories, only seven have been decided by fewer than 10 points.
The Wildcats didn’t waste any time taking control in this one, pounding the ball inside for their first five baskets, three of them by Estill. That opened up things on the outside, allowing Bogans to sink a 3-pointer on Kentucky’s first jumper of the night.
Cliff Hawkins followed with a 15-footer to complete a 9-0 spurt that gave the Wildcats their first double-digit lead, 17-7. The game, barely seven minutes old, was essentially over.
Kentucky stretched the lead to as much as 18 points and settled for a 37-23 advantage at halftime.
The Utes had a glimmer of hope when Tim Frost swished a 3-pointer with 10:46 remaining, cutting Kentucky’s lead to 51-42.
Ho hum. The Wildcats scored the next 11 points while the Gaylord Entertainment Center rocked with cheers of, “Go Big Blue!”
Without Britton Johnsen, Utah couldn’t match up with Kentucky on the inside. The 6-foot-10 senior watched from the bench, sidelined by infectious mononucleosis.
The Wildcats dominated the boards, 35-22, and outscored the Utes 38-24 in the paint. Marc Jackson led Utah with 19 points.
The crowd, nearly all of them wearing blue, included Kentucky graduate actress Ashley Judd. Her husband, Dario Franchitti, was racing in Phoenix and the Academy Awards were being held in Hollywood, but her beloved Cats came first.
Judd sat next to Tubby Smith’s wife, Donna, most of the game, but had no reason to stay till the end. She left with about three minutes remaining, waving her blue-and-white pom on the way out the door.