# 1996–97 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represented University of Kentucky in the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by Rick Pitino in his eighth, and final, season at Kentucky as members of the East division of the Southeast Conference. They played their home games at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky. They finished the season 35–5, 13–3 in SEC play to finish in second place in the East division. They defeated Auburn, Mississippi, and Georgia to win the SEC tournament. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the West region. They defeated Montana, Iowa, Saint Joseph's and Utah to return to the Final Four for the second consecutive year. In the Final Four, they defeated Minnesota to advance to the National Championship game against Arizona. Looking to repeat as NCAA champions, the Wildcats lost in overtime to Arizona 84–79.
Following the season, head coach Rick Pitino left the school to take the head coaching job for the Boston Celtics.

## Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 1995–96 season 34–2, 16–0 in SEC play to win the SEC regular season championship. They defeated Florida and Arkansas in the SEC tournament before losing to Mississippi State in the championship game. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region. There they defeated San Jose State, Virginia Tech, Utah, and Wake Forest to earn a trip to the Final Four. In the Final Four, they defeated UMass in the National semifinal game and Syracuse in the championship game to win the tournament championship.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| 11/4/1996* | | Athletes in Action | W 79–62 | | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| 11/20/1996* | | Australia | W 84–51 | | Rupp Arena Lexington, KY |
| Regular season ||||||
| 11/15/1996* | No. 3 | vs. No. 20 Clemson BCA Classic | L 71–79 $^{OT}$ | 0–1 | RCA Dome (32,250) Indianapolis, IN |
| 11/28/1996* | No. 8 | vs. No. 12 Syracuse Great Alaska Shootout | W 87–53 | 1–1 | Sullivan Arena (8,285) Anchorage, AK |
| 11/29/1996* | No. 8 | vs. Alaska Anchorage Great Alaska Shootout | W 104–72 | 2–1 | Sullivan Arena (8,285) Anchorage, AK |
| 11/30/1996* | No. 8 | vs. College of Charleston Great Alaska Shootout | W 92–65 | 3–1 | Sullivan Arena (8,285) Anchorage, AK |
| 12/3/1996* | No. 8 | vs. Purdue Great Eight | W 101–87 | 4–1 | United Center (20,171) Chicago, IL |
| 12/7/1996* | No. 6 | vs. No. 8 Indiana | W 99–65 | 5–1 | Freedom Hall (20,074) Louisville, KY |
| 12/9/1996* | No. 6 | Wright State | W 90–62 | 6–1 | Rupp Arena (23,127) Lexington, KY |
| 12/14/1996* | No. 3 | Notre Dame | W 80–56 | 7–1 | Rupp Arena (24,152) Lexington, KY |
| 12/21/1996* | No. 3 | vs. Georgia Tech Delta Air Lines Classic | W 88–59 | 8–1 | Georgia Dome (27,842) Atlanta, GA |
| 12/23/1996* | No. 3 | UNC Asheville | W 105–51 | 9–1 | Rupp Arena (23,891) Lexington, KY |
| 12/28/1996* | No. 3 | vs. Ohio State Rock and Roll Shootout | W 81–65 | 10–1 | Gund Arena (20,562) Cleveland, OH |
| 12/31/1996* | No. 3 | at No. 16 Louisville | W 74–54 | 11–1 | Freedom Hall (20,075) Louisville, KY |
| 01/04/1997 | No. 3 | Tennessee | W 74–40 | 12–1 (1–0) | Rupp Arena (24,091) Lexington, KY |
| 01/07/1997 | No. 3 | Mississippi State | W 90–61 | 13–1 (2–0) | Rupp Arena (24,038) Lexington, KY |
| 01/09/1997* | No. 3 | Canisius | W 68–45 | 14–1 | Rupp Arena (22,883) Lexington, KY |
| 01/11/1997 | No. 3 | Ole Miss | L 69–73 | 14–2 (2–1) | Tad Smith Coliseum (8,195) Oxford, MS |
| 01/14/1997 | No. 3 | at No. 24 Georgia | W 86–65 | 15–2 (3–1) | Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) Athens, GA |
| 01/18/1997 | No. 5 | Auburn | W 77–53 | 16–2 (4–1) | Rupp Arena (24,169) Lexington, KY |
| 01/22/1997 | No. 3 | vs. Vanderbilt | W 58–46 | 17–2 (5–1) | Riverfront Coliseum (17,121) Cincinnati, OH |
| 01/26/1997 | No. 3 | at Arkansas | W 83–73 | 18–2 (6–1) | Bud Walton Arena (20,320) Fayetteville, AR |
| 01/29/1997 | No. 3 | at Florida | W 92–65 | 19–2 (7–1) | Stephen C. O'Connell Center (11,629) Gainesville, FL |
| 02/01/1997 | No. 3 | Georgia | W 82–57 | 20–2 (8–1) | Rupp Arena (24,197) Lexington, KY |
| 02/04/1997 | No. 3 | at No. 25 South Carolina | L 79–84 $^{OT}$ | 20–3 (8–2) | Frank McGuire Arena (12,575) Columbia, SC |
| 02/06/1997* | No. 3 | Western Carolina | W 82–55 | 21–3 | Rupp Arena (22,134) Lexington, KY |
| 02/09/1997* | No. 3 | No. 18 Villanova | W 93–56 | 22–3 | Rupp Arena (24,277) Lexington, KY |
| 02/12/1997 | No. 4 | LSU | W 84–48 | 23–3 (9–2) | Rupp Arena (23,981) Lexington, KY |
| 02/15/1997 | No. 4 | Florida | W 85–56 | 24–3 (10–2) | Rupp Arena (24,191) Lexington, KY |
| 02/19/1997 | No. 3 | Alabama | W 75–61 | 25–3 (11–2) | Coleman Coliseum (13,736) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| 02/22/1997 | No. 3 | at Vanderbilt | W 82–79 | 26–3 (12–2) | Memorial Gymnasium (15,311) Nashville, TN |
| 02/25/1997 | No. 3 | at Tennessee | W 74–64 | 27–3 (13–2) | Thompson-Boling Arena (20,241) Knoxville, TN |
| 03/02/1997 | No. 3 | No. 6 South Carolina Homecoming | L 66–72 | 27–4 (13–3) | Rupp Arena (24,326) Lexington, KY |
| SEC Tournament ||||||
| 03/07/1997 , JPS | (E2) No. 6 | vs. (W3) Auburn Quarterfinals | W 92–50 | 28–4 | The Pyramid (20,000) Memphis, TN |
| 03/08/1997 , JPS | (E2) No. 6 | vs. (W1) Ole Miss Semifinals | W 88–70 | 29–4 | The Pyramid (20,000) Memphis, TN |
| 03/09/1997 , CBS | (E2) No. 6 | vs. (E3) No. 24 Georgia Championship | W 95–68 | 30–4 | The Pyramid (19,423) Memphis, TN |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| 03/13/1997* | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (16 W) Montana First Round | W 92–54 | 31–4 | Huntsman Center (13,832) Salt Lake City, UT |
| 03/15/1997* | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (8 W) Iowa Second Round | W 75–69 | 32–4 | Huntsman Center (14,387) Salt Lake City, UT |
| 03/20/1997* , CBS | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (4 W) No. 12 Saint Joseph's Sweet Sixteen | W 83–68 | 33–4 | San Jose Arena (18,543) San Jose, CA |
| 03/22/1997* , CBS | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (2 W) No. 2 Utah Elite Eight | W 72–59 | 34–4 | San Jose Arena (18,543) San Jose, CA |
| 03/29/1997* , CBS | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (1 MW) No. 3 Minnesota Final Four | W 78–69 | 35–4 | RCA Dome (47,028) Indianapolis, IN |
| 03/31/1997* , CBS | (1 W) No. 5 | vs. (4 SE) No. 15 Arizona National Championship | L 79–84 $^{OT}$ | 35–5 | RCA Dome (47,028) Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||

## Team players drafted into the NBA

| Year | Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1997 | 1 | 6 | Ron Mercer | Boston Celtics |
| 1997 | 1 | 13 | Derek Anderson | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 1998 | 1 | 29 | Nazr Mohammed | Utah Jazz |
| 1999 | 1 | 28 | Scott Padgett | Utah Jazz |
| 2000 | 1 | 19 | Jamaal Magloire | Charlotte Hornets |