NCAA Final Four: Kentucky Basketball Takes Unlikely Tournament Road

This wasn't supposed to happen.

Not this way.

Even the most optimistic among the diehard Kentucky faithful will tell you this 2010-11 Wildcats team was not supposed to be headed to Houston for Final Four weekend.

Even the most blue-blooded Kentucky natives know this was meant to be a "bridge year"—a season sandwiched between two of the most talented freshmen classes the University of Kentucky, or the NCAA for that matter, has ever seen.

Sure, the Kentucky basketball program has been revived with the arrival of head coach John Calipari. Despite the upswing, however, it was well understood that this team had a ceiling. 

The Final Four was the expectation last year.

Last year's squad was one win away from just that before it ran into a scrappy West Virginia team. The Mountaineers combined to form the perfect storm against Calipari's young 'Cats—a bothersome blend of length and athleticism that Kentucky hadn't seen all season long. WVU head coach Bob Huggins had gotten the best of John Calipari yet again.

After dynamic point guard John Wall, one of the most captivating figures to ever don a Kentucky jersey, announced his decision to enter the NBA draft, the rest fell like dominoes.

Wall would go on to become the only UK player ever to be selected first overall in the NBA draft. The Washington Wizards now hope he can become the face of the franchise and the foundation of the organization.

Freshman phenom DeMarcus Cousins, possibly the most dominant inside force in all of college basketball last year, entered the draft and was taken fourth overall by the Sacramento Kings.

The only Wildcats upperclassman to enter the draft, Patrick Patterson, was selected by the Houston Rockets. The anchor of the Kentucky basketball program through the much-maligned Billy Gillespie era, Patterson was the heart and soul of the Wildcats for three years. Suddenly, he was gone. 

Several picks later, point guard Eric Bledsoe, who played out of position for the majority of the season due to Wall's presence, was picked up by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Daniel Orton, a reserve big man drafted based on potential alone (he averaged only 3.4 points and 3.3 rebounds per game), went to the Orlando Magic with the 29th overall pick.

The University of Kentucky became the only school in history to produce five NBA first-round draft picks, losing a ton of talent and star power along the way. Unprecedented in his recruiting ability, however, Calipari did what he does best: recruit and reload.

Lacking John Wall's top-end speed, but an elite point guard in his own right, in came Brandon Knight.

Along with him, one of the top forwards of the 2010 class, Terrence Jones, and a sharpshooting guard in Doron Lamb.

Throw in the crown jewel of this recruiting class—Turkish big man Enes Kanter, an inside presence with the size, skills and physical tools that already had NBA scouts salivating—and things were suddenly beginning to look up again in the Commonwealth. 

However, questions began to linger with Kanter, forcing the NCAA to investigate. When details emerged that he reportedly received approximately $33,000 in educational expenses while playing for a professional Turkish team, Kanter became nothing more than the best practice player in the country. The NCAA would eventually rule him ineligible. 

On January 7, 2011, the NCAA rejected Kentucky's appeal to this ruling, upholding that Kanter is permanently ineligible.

That was it. Season over.

The interest of Kentucky fans quickly shifted to the 2011-12 season when four of the nation's top recruits—Anthony Davis, Marquis Teague, Michael Gilchrist and Kyle Wiltjer—will set foot on Lexington's campus.

With no Kanter, it seemed the Wildcats would lack the legitimate inside force they needed to stay physical and competitive on the boards and in the paint.

Early on, the concerns of the Kentucky faithful would not be eased. In November, the Wildcats got wiped out by Connecticut in the EA Sports Maui Invitational, 84-67. Before the rise of Kemba Walker, the Huskies failed to have their name called on Selection Sunday the previous year and were projected to finish sixth in the Big East.

In December, a two-point loss to North Carolina in Chapel Hill left the young 'Cats scratching their heads. Despite the addition of arguably the best freshman in the country, Harrison Barnes, this was a Tar Heels team that was greatly underachieving at the time and had yet to find its rhythm. 

It all came tumbling down when the Wildcats hit the trail in the SEC. Playing away from Rupp Arena without the backing of the Big Blue Nation, the team struggled, losing six of eight conference road games. 

The question echoed not only all throughout the Bluegrass State, but the nation as well: how could the 'Cats win an NCAA tournament game in March when they can't win a road game in the less-than-impressive SEC?

However, after a disappointing loss at Arkansas, Kentucky would close out the regular season with three quality wins against Florida, Vanderbilt and Tennessee. That momentum would keep the Wildcats rolling into SEC tournament play.

While taking down Ole Miss, Alabama and Florida, respectively, to win the SEC championship in Atlanta, a number of things happened along the way. Something "clicked" with this young team.

Calipari eased his stance on his patented dribble-drive approach and assembled an offensive attack more suitable for the personnel he had in his arsenal. Also, with only six players who earn meaningful minutes, Calipari needed someone to provide an emotional spark for the team. That leadership didn't come from his heralded freshman class, but largely from his three upperclassmen.

Junior forward Darius Miller, who was nothing more than serviceable last year, showed flashes and, at times, completely took over games and looked like one of the better players in the country.

Junior guard DeAndre Liggins, a 5-star recruit out of high school who never lived up to his potential or found regular playing time, went from reserve last year to the unsung hero of this year's squad.

Liggins is willing to do the dirty work that doesn't necessarily show up in the stat sheets. Regularly drawing the assignment of blanketing the opposing team's best scorer, Liggins has become one of the premier defensive stoppers in the nation.

However, the true emergence came in the form of center Josh Harrelson, arguably the most underrated player in all of college basketball.

Many believed Harrelson was fortunate to remain a Wildcat when Calipari cleaned house after becoming Kentucky's head coach in 2009. Nonetheless, he captured the hearts of the Bluegrass forever on New Year's Eve 2010 against the in-state arch-rival Louisville Cardinals.

At the new KFC Yum! Center during their heated yearly meeting, the Cardinals based their game plan around taking away opportunities from Terrence Jones. They paid for it, surrendering 23 points and 14 rebounds to Harrelson.

Though he doesn't put up those numbers every night, Harrelson consistently provides the charisma and intensity this team desperately needed to push itself late in the season and through conference tournament play.

The late surge from the 'Cats landed them a No. 4 seed in the NCAA tournament. Many believed they earned a higher seed. Others argued it was more than generous.

In the opening round, it took Brandon Knight's lone basket of the game, which came in the closing seconds, to lift Kentucky over Princeton. Despite a forgettable NCAA tournament debut, the freshman rescued his team from the jaws of a monumental upset.

Despite trailing at halftime in the second round of the tournament, Kentucky, fueled by a career-high 30 points from Knight, rallied to take down the team that eliminated the Wildcats from last year's tournament—the West Virginia Mountaineers. Calipari had finally removed the thorn in his side that was Bob Huggins.

In the East regional semifinals in Newark, New Jersey, the Wildcats upended the No. 1 seed in the entire NCAA tournament, the Ohio State Buckeyes, in an instant classic. Knight's heroics continued as he sank the game-winning shot with just seconds left in the game. Not too shabby for a freshman dealing with the pressure of carrying one of college basketball's most storied programs on his shoulders in the midst of March Madness.

More sweet revenge came in the Elite Eight when the 'Cats avenged yet another tough loss. In another grueling battle, Kentucky sent the two-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels home to earn a trip to Houston.

Despite a grueling journey along the way, the Kentucky Wildcats have resurfaced in the Final Four for the first time in 13 years—the longest drought in school history.

Critics have long claimed that Calipari is solely a recruiter and motivator. The controversy surrounding him is well documented. Both of his previous Final Four appearances, one at UMass and another at Memphis, have been "vacated." Though he was never implicated in either case, Calipari remains a lightning rod for swipes from critics and the media.

Calipari lost nearly as many conference road games (six) this year as he did first-round draft picks to the NBA (five) last year. However, despite regularly starting three freshmen, he has coached his way back into the Final Four.

Next up? The "Payback 'Cats" get another shot at redemption. They meet with Jim Calhoun and the University of Connecticut Huskies. The winner goes to the national championship game to take on either Butler or VCU.

This is certainly a different Kentucky Wildcats basketball team than the one UConn saw in Maui in November. Nonetheless, this is still a Kentucky Wildcats team that wasn't supposed to be here.

The critics will be quick to tell you this wasn't supposed to happen.