Early gripes about Kentucky‘s coaching hire came down to two simple facts: Mark Pope had never recruited a five-star recruit and he’s never won a game in the NCAA Tournament. How could he lead the greatest tradition in the history of college basketball back to greatness with no prior March Madness success or the experience to bring in players good

Sunday night was the most highly anticipated evening in college basketball as the bracket for the NCAA Tournament was announced. Kentucky ended up being the third seed in the Midwest Region, and they will get things started with a matchup against the Troy Trojans on Friday.

Mark Pope's first season guiding Kentucky, his alma mater, always will be viewed through the prism of how the Wildcats fare in the NCAA Tournament.