Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Kentucky suffered a painfully excruciating loss on a big stage in Indianapolis. Oscar Tshiebwe was outstanding in his 2022-23 debut — 22 points, 18 rebounds, 4 blocked shots — but he fouled out near the end of the first overtime, ultimately costing the Cats. Late Michigan State heroics lifted Sparty to an 86-77 win in two OTs.
Winning Tuesday night was going to be a tall task for Kentucky. Michigan State already had a game against Gonzaga under its belt, while UK had two easy warm-ups without three key players consistently contributing.