Hey, Hampton fared better than some against Kentucky

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Kentucky takes easy win over Hampton, 79-56

LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — After midnight in a cramped and lighthearted locker room, Hampton University guard Breon Key looked into his phone, stood from his chair and began reading aloud a list that included Kansas, Texas, UCLA, Louisville, Providence, Buffalo . . .

Those would be the previous Kentucky opponents Hampton had outscored while taking their uphill turn against the mighty Wildcats on Thursday night in the round of 64 of the NCAA tournament. In fact, among the 35 games that have resulted in 35 Kentucky wins since Nov. 14, the No. 16-seeded Pirates had scored more than 20 Kentucky victims and tied one in their 79-56 first-round loss at the Yum! Center.

They had weathered the occasion with aplomb. They had trailed by 35 points midway through the second half, but they narrowed that considerably from there, and they didn’t suffer any outsized horror such as what happened on Dec. 20 to UCLA, which fell behind Kentucky 24-0 at the outset.

“A pretty great experience,” Hampton guard Brian Darden said. “The atmosphere. Playing against the number-one team. You get to test yourself, see how well you do.”

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