“So, coach, tell me what you like about this team?”
“Well, we have a nice mix of older players and younger players that should help to make us successful.”
Many say it, but it’s likely that few are convinced it actually will make a difference in results.
Perhaps Kentucky coach Craig Skinner said words of that ilk during the preseason when talking about his team. Whatever the case, the Wildcats proved that, indeed, a blend of savvy, battle-tested upperclassmen and eager, talented freshmen can make a successful team.
Even a title contender.
The Wildcats (21-7) are in their ninth NCAA Tournament round 16 since 2009 and face SEC rival Arkansas (27-5), which has advanced this far for the first time since 1998. The teams square off at 3:30 p.m. Central Thursday at Nebraska after the Huskers (30-1) play Georgia Tech (24-6)
Kentucky and Arkansas faced each other twice this season, with the Wildcats winning a five-setter in October and then sweeping the Hogs to clinch at least a share of the SEC title in the penultimate match of the regular season.
It was the seventh consecutive conference title for Skinner — one of four SEC co-coaches of the year — and his program. Kentuck, which has won 18 in row, swept Wofford and Baylor in the first two rounds of the NCAA…
