By Joshua Huff

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Stepping out of the shadow of a UK men’s team that seeks to become among the immortals of college basketball history is a challenge.

A challenge that has fallen on deaf ears of a Hoops team that has advanced to five straight NCAA Tournament appearances and three straight Sweet 16 appearances. After failing to make it to the SEC Tournament championship for the first time in three years, the Cats now prepare themselves for another run in the NCAA Tournament.

However, unlike the optimistic predictions of the men, the women face an arduous journey through their own tournament. A journey riddled with obstacles in the likes of UConn, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Maryland and Baylor. Realistically, another Elite Eight seems out of reach for a Hoops team that has fallen below preseason expectations.

Despite defeating Baylor, Louisville and South Carolina, the unpredictable nature of this team makes it difficult to determine exactly how it fairs against the increased pressures of the tournament. Losses to tournament teams during the regular season don’t bode well for a team that has yet to find its identity. If losses to Tennessee and Duke indicate anything, it’s that UK has not the talent, size and seniority to compete against upper echelon teams.

That doesn’t mean UK can’t defy expectations and make a deep run. Any team is capable of that. The four-guard compilation is dangerous when things go well. Struggles throughout the season by Linnae Harper and injuries to Janee Thompson and Bria Goss have put a damper on cohesion, but explosive games from Makayla Epps and Jennifer O’Neill have kept the ship upright.

It’s the lack of experience, however, from Kyvin-Goodin Rogers and Alexis Jennings that threaten to sink the ship. UK’s kryptonite are talented forward/guard combos. The inability to contain, on the perimeter and in the paint, a player with the size and speed to attack from all angles is going to be a problem.

The only counter UK has is to unleash the guards. In the win against Baylor it was O’Neill who stepped up in the second half; against Mississippi State it was Epps who went off for 42 points in the regular season matchup and 31 during the SEC Tournament. Against Vanderbilt in the tourney it was Harper, along with O’Neill, who took control. The running theme, UK’s place in the NCAA Tournament will be defined by how well the guards play.

Should they struggle, UK’s seniors’ swan song will be short and bittersweet. Should they win, then the postseason talk won’t just be about the men, but about how the women overcame bleak odds to achieve what even the harshest critics assume is the impossible: winning the championship.