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Roundtable: Thoughts on the new UK-Notre Dame series

Just a couple of weeks ago the basketball programs at Kentucky and Notre Dame announced a three-game series that begins this year and lasts through the '22-23 season.

There will be a game in Lexington, a return trip to South Bend, and a neutral site meeting.

Jeff Drummond: I like it. There's a nice (and somewhat underrated) history between Wildcats and Fighting Irish on the hardwood. I grew up during the Joe B. Hall vs. Digger Phelps era when some classic matchups occurred. Many of those games used to be played at a neutral site, Louisville's Freedom Hall, and they were dates that fans always had circled on the schedule. There were also some good matchups in the Big 4 Classic held annually at the old Hoosier Dome. During Kentucky's memorable 2015 season, one of the most intense games I have ever covered in person was the Midwest Regional final between UK and Notre Dame.

Justin Rowland: Kentucky and Notre Dame have played some memorable games over the years, including that fantastic Elite Eight game in 2015, which sent the Wildcats to the Final Four. I must say that I wasn't around and watching for a lot of this series' history. In doing a bit more reading about it, I didn't realize that at one point the Irish had a huge series advantage head-to-head against Adolph Rupp when he was at Kentucky. So there's some history here. The ND basketball brand is not close to its football brand but it's still a reputable program a name in its own right. I prefer this to Kentucky taking on Georgia Tech. It's a series that Kentucky has really dominated in my lifetime, notwithstanding a couple of games over the last decade against mediocre UK teams. This is a game that means a lot to Digger Phelps and he's usually unhappy with the result, so that alone makes the series somewhat fun for Kentucky fans.

This is a game that should be played. I'll go so far as to say that. My preferences for yearly series are Louisville, Indiana, North Carolina, and Notre Dame. UK and ND have played so frequently over the last 40 or 50 years, it just seems right that this should happen.

Travis Graf: I think this is a quality series. Notre Dame has been pretty pedestrian on the court since the 2017 season, but Mike Brey always gets his players to play hard and that could lead to some very fun matchups over the next few years. Many Kentucky fans have been clamoring for more high profile home games for the last handful of seasons, and while the Irish aren’t world beaters, they provide a step in the right direction with that crowd. They’re not a team that Kentucky will ever be able to look past and they’re one of the most realistic home-and-home options available from teams that don’t play in the Champions Classic or CBS Sports Classic.

David Sisk: A few weeks ago on the Sources Say broadcast we were asked which program we would like to see Kentucky pick up a home and home series with. The first one I mentioned was Notre Dame. For starters, I see it as John Caliapri's way of thumbing his nose at the University of Indiana. Play a team in that state on the national stage. I also would have been fine with a Purdue series.

I can still remember in the Digger Phelps era when Notre Dame was a magical name even in the college basketball world. They were loaded with great players. They had great series with Bill Cartwright's San Francisco teams as well as when Ralph Sampson was at Virginia. The games with UCLA were also as big as any in the country. Don't forget that Joe B. Hall and Phelps didn't exactly exchange Christmas cards. Let's face it. We all want to see high profile programs come to Rupp. I have to think the atmosphere in Rupp will be electric when the Irish show up. But seeing Kentucky play at the Joyce Center is special. It is a trip that I want to make. I guess it is easy to tell that I am thrilled about this addition to the schedule for a number of reasons.

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