If you're wondering why Kentucky's next game will be played Wednesday night/Thursday morning, Utah Coach Larry Krystkowiak had a plausible answer.
"You know, it's all driven by what TV wants to do," he said.
ESPN2 will televise the UK-Utah game, which has an 11 p.m. EST starting time.
The next logical question is: Why would ESPN2 want to start the game so late?
Brooks Downing, whose Nicholasville-based sports marketing firm is staging the UK-Utah game, offered an explanation. The network is televising another game before UK-Utah. That game is North Carolina at Gonzaga, and it starts at 9 p.m. EST with Dave Flemming and Jay Bilas as the announcers.
"I'm sure they were trying to keep both games as evening tips," Downing wrote in an email.
Gonzaga, which is ranked No. 2 in The Associated Press top 25 poll this week, and a marquee program like North Carolina was deemed a more attractive game, he suggested.
But Downing, who formerly promoted Kentucky basketball while working in UK's sports information office, said the telecast of the game against Utah would be "pure entertainment," assuming the Big Blue Nation can stay awake.
"After all, Bill Walton is on the call along with Dave Pasch," Downing wrote.
Walton, the former UCLA All-American, is known for his colorful commentary and a fearless willingness to go off on a tangent.
For example, when Walton worked the recent Washington-Gonzaga game, he launched into a tribute to one of his basketball heroes, Bill Russell, for several minutes.
Krystkowiak said he would expect another marquee game on Wednesday bumped Kentucky-Utah to a later start time.
"I know they're getting into this doubleheader stuff ...," the Utah coach said. "It's not really designed for your audience. It's a West Coast deal."
For Utah, an 8 p.m. start time PST is business as usual, Krystkowiak said.
"Often times we end up playing past your bedtime," he said. "I talk to coaches around the country that get worked up and then they're not able to sleep at night. They stay up and watch our games."
