1991–92 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

1991–92 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
1991–92 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
SEC East and tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Elite Eight
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 9
AP	No. 6
Record	29–7 (12–4 SEC)
Head coach	Rick Pitino (3rd season);
Assistant coaches	Herb Sendek; Billy Donovan; Bernadette Locke-Mattox;
Home arena	Rupp Arena
	Seasons ← 1990–91 1992–93 →

1991–92 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
East
No. 6 Kentucky †	12	–	4	.750	29	–	7	.806
Florida	9	–	7	.563	19	–	14	.576
Tennessee	8	–	8	.500	19	–	15	.559
Georgia	7	–	9	.438	15	–	14	.517
Vanderbilt	6	–	10	.375	15	–	15	.500
South Carolina	3	–	13	.188	11	–	17	.393
West
No. 9 Arkansas	13	–	3	.813	26	–	8	.765
No. 25 LSU	12	–	4	.750	21	–	10	.677
No. 13 Alabama	10	–	6	.625	26	–	9	.743
Mississippi State	7	–	9	.438	15	–	13	.536
Auburn	5	–	11	.313	12	–	15	.444
Ole Miss	4	–	12	.250	11	–	17	.393

† 1992 SEC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll^[1]

The 1991–92 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represented the University of Kentucky in NCAA competition in the 1991–92 season. The team was coached by Rick Pitino.

This season's team is one of the most fondly remembered in UK's long basketball history. Due to major recruiting violations committed by Pitino's predecessor Eddie Sutton, the 1991–92 Wildcats were coming off a three-year postseason ban where the team was not allowed to compete in tournament play.^[2] (Note the NCAA did not find Sutton personally liable.) The violations had mainly centered on alleged cheating by 1987-89^[3] player Eric Manuel on the ACT college entrance exam and cash payments to the guardian of another former player, Chris Mills.

The 1991–92 season was the first year after probation when the Wildcats were allowed to compete and the only opportunity for the team's four seniors, who remained loyal to the program as opposed to transferring to teams allowed in the tournament. Three of these seniors were Kentucky natives. Together, all four would enter Kentucky basketball history as "The Unforgettables":

Richie Farmer, a 6'0"/1.83 m shooting guard from Manchester, a small town in the commonwealth's eastern coal fields.
Deron Feldhaus, a 6'7"/2.01 m forward from Maysville, a small Ohio River town in the Bluegrass region, about an hour's drive upriver from Cincinnati.
John Pelphrey, a 6'8"/2.03 m forward from another eastern coal town, Paintsville.
Sean Woods, the only non-Kentuckian "Unforgettable," a 6'2"/1.88 m point guard from Indianapolis.

Although the seniors were the heart and soul of the team, its biggest star was sophomore Jamal Mashburn, who would go on to become a consensus first-team All-American the following season and have a successful 12-year NBA career; he is now an NBA analyst for ESPN.

The Wildcats' run in the NCAA tournament would end in a regional final against Duke that is often cited as the greatest college game ever played. The heavily favored Blue Devils survived an overtime thriller on Christian Laettner's last-second shot at the buzzer.

Team legacy

The legacy of "The Unforgettables" was so great within the university that the UK program decided to retire the players' jerseys (but not their numbers) almost immediately after their final tournament game. (While jersey retirement is not uncommon, it is rare for a school to bestow this honor so soon after a player's career ends.) The team also went on a post-tournament all-county exhibition tour, where thousands of Kentuckians gathered in high school gyms across the commonwealth to meet and express pride in the team.

National and local sports news outlets continued to cover the players in "where are they now" and similar features for at least 25 years after the tournament.^[4]^[5]^[6] In 2005, a documentary film about the team, "Beyond the Glory," was released.^[7]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Regular Season
Nov 20, 1991*	No. 4	West Virginia	W 106–80	1–0	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Nov 22, 1991*	No. 4	Pittsburgh	L 67–85	1–1	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Dec 4, 1991*	No. 14	UMass	W 90–69	2–1	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Dec 7, 1991*	No. 14	vs. No. 9 Indiana Indiana–Kentucky rivalry	W 76–74	3–1	RCA Dome Indianapolis, Indiana
Dec 10, 1991*	No. 9	Texas State	W 82–36	4–1	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Dec 12, 1991*	No. 9	vs. Morehead State	W 101–84	5–1	Freedom Hall
Dec 14, 1991*	No. 9	Arizona State	W 94–68	6–1	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Dec 21, 1991*	No. 8	vs. No. 13 Georgia Tech	L 80–81	6–2	The Omni Atlanta, Georgia
Dec 23, 1991*	No. 17	vs. Ohio	W 73–63	7–2	Riverfront Coliseum Cincinnati, Ohio
Dec 28, 1991*	No. 17	No. 21 Louisville	W 103–89	8–2	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 2, 1992*	No. 17	Notre Dame	W 91–70	9–2	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 4, 1992	No. 17	at South Carolina	W 80–63	10–2 (1–0)	Carolina Coliseum Columbia, South Carolina
Jan 7, 1992	No. 15	Georgia	W 78–66	11–2 (2–0)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 11, 1992	No. 15	Florida	W 81–60	12–2 (3–0)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 15, 1992	No. 10	at Vanderbilt	W 84–71	13–2 (4–0)	Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, Tennessee
Jan 18, 1992*	No. 10	Eastern Kentucky	W 85–55	14–2	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 21, 1992	No. 8	at Tennessee	L 85–107	14–3 (4–1)	Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 25, 1992	No. 8	No. 9 Arkansas	L 88–105	14–4 (4–2)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Jan 29, 1992	No. 14	Ole Miss	W 95–78	15–4 (5–2)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Feb 2, 1992 ABC	No. 14	at LSU	L 53–74	15–5 (5–3)	Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Feb 8, 1992	No. 19	at Auburn	W 85–67	16–5 (6–3)	Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum Auburn, Alabama
Feb 12, 1992	No. 19	No. 16 Alabama	W 107–83	17–5 (7–3)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Feb 15, 1992* UKTV	No. 19	Western Kentucky	W 93–83	18–5	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Feb 19, 1992	No. 13	at Mississippi State	W 89–84	19–5 (8–3)	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, Mississippi
Feb 23, 1992	No. 13	at Georgia	W 84–73	20–5 (9–3)	Stegeman Coliseum Athens, Georgia
Feb 26, 1992	No. 11	South Carolina	W 74–56	21–5 (10–3)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Mar 1, 1992	No. 11	Vanderbilt	W 80–56	22–5 (11–3)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Mar 4, 1992	No. 10	at Florida	L 62–79	22–6 (11–4)	Stephen C. O'Connell Center Gainesville, Florida
Mar 7, 1992	No. 10	Tennessee	W 99–88	23–6 (12–4)	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
SEC Tournament
Mar 13, 1992* JPS	(2) No. 9	vs. (9) Vanderbilt Quarterfinals	W 76–57	24–6	Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, Alabama
Mar 14, 1992* JPS	(2) No. 9	vs. (3) No. 23 LSU Semifinals	W 80–74	25–6	Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, Alabama
Mar 15, 1992* JPS	(2) No. 9	vs. (4) No. 17 Alabama Championship game	W 80–54	26–6	Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Birmingham, Alabama
NCAA Tournament
Mar 20, 1992*	(2 E) No. 6	vs. (15 E) Old Dominion First round	W 88–69	27–6	Centrum in Worcester Worcester, Massachusetts
Mar 22, 1992*	(2 E) No. 6	vs. (10 E) Iowa State Second round	W 106–98	28–6	Centrum in Worcester Worcester, Massachusetts
Mar 26, 1992* CBS	(2 E) No. 6	vs. (3 E) No. 17 UMass East Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen	W 87–77	29–6	The Spectrum Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Mar 28, 1992* CBS	(2 E) No. 6	vs. (1 E) No. 1 Duke East Regional Final – Elite Eight	L 103–104 ^OT	29–7	The Spectrum (17,878) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

NCAA basketball tournament

East
- Kentucky (2) 88, Old Dominion (15) 69
- Kentucky 106, Iowa State (10) 98
- Kentucky 87, Massachusetts (3) 77
- Duke (1) 104, Kentucky 103 (OT)

^[8]

Rankings

Team players drafted into the NBA

Jamal Mashburn of the Wildcats was claimed in the 1992 NBA draft. ^[9]

References

^ sports-reference.com 1991-92 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
^ ASSOCIATED PRESS (May 19, 1989). "Kentucky Put on 3 Years' Probation : NCAA Bans Postseason Play 2 Years, Orders Limited Wildcat Scholarships". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 23, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
^ "UK Career Statistics for Eric Manuel". www.bigbluehistory.net. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
^ Howlett, Ken (March 28, 2012). "Kentucky Wildcat Basketball: The Unforgettables 20-years ago today". A Sea Of Blue. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
^ "From immortal to quite mortal, Kentucky's Unforgettables face midlife challenges 25 years after their greatest moment". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
^ "The Unforgettables 25 Years Later". www.on3.com. Retrieved September 16, 2021.
^ "Beyond the Glory" The Unforgettables (TV Episode 2005) - IMDb, April 3, 2005, retrieved September 16, 2021
^ "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More".
^ "1992 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2012.

[1] sports-reference.com 1991-92 Southeastern Conference Season Summary

[2] ASSOCIATED PRESS (May 19, 1989). "Kentucky Put on 3 Years' Probation : NCAA Bans Postseason Play 2 Years, Orders Limited Wildcat Scholarships". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 23, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2021.

[3] "UK Career Statistics for Eric Manuel". www.bigbluehistory.net. Retrieved September 16, 2021.

[4] Howlett, Ken (March 28, 2012). "Kentucky Wildcat Basketball: The Unforgettables 20-years ago today". A Sea Of Blue. Retrieved September 16, 2021.

[5] "From immortal to quite mortal, Kentucky's Unforgettables face midlife challenges 25 years after their greatest moment". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved September 16, 2021.

[6] "The Unforgettables 25 Years Later". www.on3.com. Retrieved September 16, 2021.

[7] "Beyond the Glory" The Unforgettables (TV Episode 2005) - IMDb, April 3, 2005, retrieved September 16, 2021

[8] "RotoWire Fantasy Football, Baseball, Basketball and More".

[9] "1992 NBA Draft on". Databasebasketball.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2012.

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v t e Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
Venues	State College Gymnasium (1903–1914) Buell Armory Gymnasium (1910–1924) Alumni Gymnasium (1924–1950) Memorial Coliseum (1950–1976) Rupp Arena (1976–present) Joe Craft Center (practice)
Rivalries	Centre (historical) Florida Indiana Louisville North Carolina Tennessee Transylvania (historical)
Culture & lore	History under Adolph Rupp Fabulous Five Point-shaving scandal Fiddlin' Five Rupp's Runts The Season Without Celebration "The Shot" Unforgettables Untouchables Comeback Cats John Wall Dance Tweakables Pursuit of Perfection 2011 Indiana game Basketbowl Champions Classic CBS Sports Classic The Rivalry: Red v. Blue The Wildcat Scratch Blue "On, On, U of K" "Kentucky Fight" Big Blue Nation Blue blood status
People	Head coaches Honorees NBA draftees Players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Helms and Premo-Porretta national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics; NCAA championships in bolded italics