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Marquette faces Kentucky in NCAA Tournament-record matchup

Mar 20, 2008 - 11:55 AM No. 11 Kentucky (18-12) at No. 6 Marquette (24-9) 2:30 pm EDT

ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) - In the most frequent matchup in NCAA Tournament history, Marquette will see if one of its stellar guards can match the performance of the school's most famous alum.

The sixth-seeded Golden Eagles face No. 11 Kentucky for an NCAA-record 10th time when the teams square off in the first round of the South Regional on Thursday.

Marquette (24-9) holds a slight edge in the overall series with Kentucky, winning five of the previous appearances. The last occurred in a regional final in 2003, when Dwyane Wade carried the Golden Eagles into their first Final Four appearance since 1977, notching the third triple-double in NCAA history with 29 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Appearing in the "Big Dance" for the third straight year, Marquette would settle for just advancing out of the first round this season, after losing to Michigan State and Alabama each of the past two seasons.

To do that the Golden Eagles will need a strong effort out of one of their trio of outstanding guards, Jerel McNeal, Dominic James and Wesley Matthews.

McNeal appears to be the obvious choice after scoring a combined 45 points in Marquette's two Big East tournament games. The junior guard has also surpassed 20 points in three of his last four games, and leads the team in scoring with 14.3 points.

Last season, McNeal missed both the Big East tourney and the NCAAs due to a wrist injury.

A well-balanced squad, James and Matthews also average double figures with 13.0 and 11.2 points, respectively.

The Wildcats (18-12) are making a record 49th appearance in the "Big Dance" after rallying from a disastrous non-conference schedule that included a stunning loss to Gardner-Webb at Rupp Arena.

Despite extending their streak to 17 straight appearances, Kentucky will be severely shorthanded as outstanding freshman Patrick Patterson is out with a stress fracture in his left ankle. He is the team's top rebounder and second-leading scorer.

With the Wildcats lacking an inside presence, senior Joe Crawford has tried to carry the club, scoring 25.0 points over the last three games. He had 24 points in his last game, the Wildcats' 60-56 loss to Georgia in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern tournament.

The winner will face either third-seeded Stanford or No. 14 Cornell in the second round on Saturday.