Here. We. Go. Ian Eagle said it best: Anything can happen in March.
Kentucky enters the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed. Not what any of us expected, but in March, seeds do not matter. They matter in some regards, but in the overall grand scheme of things, they don’t. What matters is playing a better 40 minutes than your opponent, one game at a time, over six total games.
The Cats have the opportunity to salvage their season by making a run in the NCAA Tournament. It’s there for the taking, in a Midwest
Region that is wide open. Sure, Iowa State will likely be Kentucky’s Second Round opponent if both teams win in the First Round. But we have seen Kentucky beat some really good teams this season. They can beat anybody, and this Tournament can prove that.
But the NCAA Tournament doesn’t offer the opportunity to look ahead. It only offers the opportunity to survive and advance. Kentucky takes on Santa Clara Friday afternoon, a team that is versatile, solid, and battle-tested. This is the first time Santa Clara has been in the NCAA Tournament since 1996, and they’re a well-coached team that finished in third place in the West Coast Conference with two wins over Saint Mary’s and were leading for a majority of the West Coast Conference Tournament Championship against Gonzaga.
Let’s look at the players to watch on Santa Clara and the keys to Friday afternoon’s game in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament.
Players to watch on Santa Clara
1. No. 1: Christian Hammond — 6-4, 195 lbs. R-So. Guard; DENVER
Stats: 15.8 pts, 2.9 rebs, 49% FG, 40% 3-PT FG, 79% FT, 29.9 mpg
First-Team All-West Coast Conference
Hammond is a really good player. He has 10 games with 20+ points and three games in WCC play with four three-pointers.
After redshirting in 2024-25, Hammond is having the best season of his college career. He was a three-star prospect who participated in the Adidas All-American camp.
Christian’s brother, Julian, plays for Colorado, and his grandfather, Julian Sr., played five seasons in the ABA for the Denver Nuggets.
2. No. 8: Elijah Mahi — 6-7, 220 lbs. Sr. Forward; TORONTO
Stats: 13.9 pts, 4.7 rebs, 90 ast.-60 TO, 44.8 FG%, 33.6 3-PT FG%, 70.7 FT%, 30.2 mpg (West Valley College Transfer)
First-Team All-West Coast Conference
Also a member of the WCC’s Preseason Team, Mahi is in his second season with Santa Clara. After leading the Broncos in three-point shooting last season, Mahi has four games with 20+ points this season, including a 30-point game at San Francisco back in late February.
Mahi is one of three players leading the Broncos with 90 assists on the season, and he was their leading returning scorer coming into this season.
In addition, Mahi played for the Canadian U23 Men’s National Team in the Summer of 2023, averaging 11.7 points and five rebounds per game at the Global Jam, helping Canada advance all the way to the championship game against the United States.
3. No. 22: Allen Graves — 6-9, 225 lbs. R-Fr. Forward; PONCHATOULA, La.
Stats: 11.6 pts, 6.5 rebs, 67 stl, 51.7 FG%, 41.6 3-PT FG%, 73.6 FT%, 22.5 mpg
West Coast Conference Sixth Man of the Year
West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year
West Coast Conference All-Freshman Team
First-Team All-West Coast Conference
Graves is a player you cannot give an inch to. Otherwise, he’s going to shoot it. Not only that, he’s going to make shots. You have to limit how many he makes.
With 11 three-pointers in his last five games, Graves is showing he’s not afraid to let it fly in Tournament games. Remember, he’s still in his first season playing college basketball after redshirting last season.
In high school in Louisiana, Graves was named the 2023-24 Gatorade Louisiana Boys Basketball Player of the Year as a senior. He was also named the Max Preps Louisiana Player of the Year, Mr. Basketball, and Mr. Louisiana as a senior, averaging 20.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game.
4. No. 2: Sash Gavalyugov — 6-3, 175 lbs. R-Fr. Guard; BOTEVGRAD, Australia (Villanova Transfer)
Stats: 8.8 pts, 1.7 rebs, 90 ast.-48 TO, 40.1 FG%, 35.8 3-pT FG%, 72% FT, 19.8 mpg
After spending his first season at Villanova, a season cut short after just four games due to an ankle injury, Gavalyugov has three games with 20+ points in WCC play. That includes a 37-point performance against Loyola Marymount.
Gavalyugov played for the NBA Global Academy before being offered by Villanova, and he was the top scorer at the FIBA U18 World Championship.
5. No. 12: Bukky Oboye — 7-1, 220 lbs. R-So. Center; HOUSTON
Stats: 8 pts/gm., 4.2 rebs, 39 blk, 66.5 FG%, 25% 3-PT FG, 65.6 FT%, 17.8 mpg
Oboye has nine games with multiple blocks, leading the team with 39. He’s a player who will mainly live underneath the basket, but he can also step outside and shoot it from three-point range. This will be a tough cover for Kentucky.
6. No. 0: Brenton Knapper — 6-0, 175 lbs. R-Sr. Guard; CHARLESTON, W.Va.
Stats: 7.7 pts, 1.8 rebs, 39.3 FG%, 27.7 3-PT FG%, 79.2 FT%, 21.7 mpg
Knapper has a lot of games under his belt, with 118 to be exact, and he has started 49 of them. That’s a player that a team like Santa Clara will lean on in their first Tournament game in 30 years. A player like that, you’ll have a hard time shutting down, but you can still limit his impact.
7. No. 44: Jake Ensminger — 6-9, 215 lbs. R-Jr. Guard; ULM, Germany
Stats: 6.3 pts, 5.5 rebs, 90 ast.-29 TO, 53.6 FG%, 38.8 3-PT FG%, 63.6 FT%, 28.3 mpg
Ensminger also has a lot of experience, with 97 games and 52 starts. He has the fewest turnovers among the three Broncos each leading the team with 90 assists.
In Germany, Ensminger played for the German U20 National Team and helped the team finish sixth at the 2023 FIBA U20 European Championship.
Jake’s father, Chris, was a four-year star at Valparaiso who left the team in 1996 as the program’s all-time leading rebounder.
8. No. 15: Thierry Darlan — 6-8, 210 lbs. Jr. Guard; BANGUI, Central African Republic
Stats: 6.3 pts, 3.6 rebs, 39% FG, 34.2 3-PT FG%, 88.6 FT%, 18.2 mpg
Darlan played two seasons in the NBA G League, most recently for the Delaware Blue Coats in 2024-25 alongside former Bronco Jared Brownridge. He averaged 11 points, six rebounds, and two assists in 29 games for the Blue Coats.
9. No. 7: KJ Cochran — 6-5, 195 lbs. Fr. Guard; WEST CHESTER, Pa.
Stats: 4.8 pts, 1.4 rebs, 43.3 FG%, 27.1 3-PT FG%, 65.2 FT%, 12.1 mpg
A National Prep Third-Team All-American, Cochran has seven games with double-digit points in his first season with the Broncos.
Head Coach: Herb Sendek (10th Season, 187-128; 32nd Season Overall, 600-423) — 63 years old
2026 West Coast Conference Coach of the Year
One of only three head coaches to win four Conference Coach of the Year awards in four different conferences, Sendek has had quite a career as a head coach. An assistant on Rick Pitino’s staff at Kentucky for four years, including on their 1993 Final Four team, Sendek’s coaching tree includes Archie and Sean Miller, Thad Matta, and Eric Musselman.
Sendek has coached NBA players, including Jalen Williams, James Harden, and Wally Szczerbiak. It’s part of a career that has taken him to Miami (OH), NC State, Arizona State, and, now, Santa Clara. The Broncos are in their first NCAA Tournament since 1996, a testament to the culture Sendek has established. With six 20-win seasons, Sendek is tied for the most such seasons among any head coach in Santa Clara history.
A lot of times, you get to the First Round and may not recognize the names of the head coaches of the smaller schools in the NCAA Tournament. That’s not the case with Sendek. He’s carved out a very good head coaching career, and he’ll now face his former team in the Broncos’ first NCAA Tournament game in 30 years.
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Bet on Kentucky – Santa Clara and other March Madness games at FanDuel Sportsbook.
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Keys to the Game
1. Be active on defense
The Broncos have three players with 90 assists. That tells you they move the ball well. Three more players have 60+ assists. So, six players have really good passing abilities. Kentucky’s defense must be active in taking away the Broncos’ ability to move the ball and get high-percentage and open shots.
2. Rebounding
Santa Clara averages 35.7 rebounds per game. That’s not a number that should scare you. Rather, it’s a number that says Kentucky needs to impose its will on the glass. Do that, and that will swing the momentum of this game into the Cats’ favor.
3. 40 minutes
This is pretty straightforward. The Cats can’t have any lapses in this game. Santa Clara is a team that will take advantage of any lapses you have. Kentucky must keep the pressure on for 40 minutes. If they’re up by double-digits, keep the foot on the gas. Also, don’t fall behind early.
4. Make Santa Clara feel Big Blue Nation
Here’s the deal. Santa Clara has only played one game East of the Rocky Mountains. One. That was in November. In addition, they’ve played only six games outside California, Oregon, or Washington.
Big Blue Nation is going to show up in St. Louis. The Cats need to make sure they’re heard throughout the game. Santa Clara is not used to playing early in the afternoon or in time zones other than the Pacific or Mountain. There is an opportunity to really put the hammer down in this game. Kentucky must take advantage of that opportunity.
Score Prediction: Wildcats 82, Broncos 73
Look, at the end of the day, this is a game Kentucky should win. They have the more talented team, and I would argue the more battle-tested team. The Cats showed enough in the SEC Tournament that I’m confident they will win this game. Santa Clara will battle, but Kentucky will prevail with shot-making and free-throw shooting down the stretch.
