The University of Kentucky – the team of Jamaican standout Nick Richard – occupies the no.8 spot on the final release of the Associated Press rankings of the top 25 teams in the NCAA Men’s College Basketball competition.
The Wildcats went 25-6 overall and 15-3 in the Southeastern Conference where they were crowned regular season champions for a record 49th time.
The team in its regular season finale recorded an epic come from behind 71-70 win on the road against Florida.
Richards, who earned Player of the Game accolades in that contest, finished with a game high 19 points and 7 rebounds. He was later named to the All-SEC First and All-Defensive Teams after a spectacular campaign during which he led the Wildcats in rebounding (8.2.) and blocks (2.2) while being the team’s second leading scorer with 14.5 points per game.
😤 @iamnickrichards took over in the second half 😼@Wendys Player of the Game 🤩#PickNick ‼️ https://t.co/5lGhCXG0MM pic.twitter.com/q45AhhuG5H
— Kentucky Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 7, 2020
Top spot on the AP Men’s Basketball Top 25 Poll is held by Kansas (28-3) followed by Gonzaga (31-2) and Dayton (29-2) with Florida State (26-5) and Baylor (26-4) completing the top 5.
The final rankings were based on play through March 11, when the outbreak of the coronavirus brought the sport to a halt.