LEXINGTON, Ky. — For the Big Blue Nation, Kentucky's 79-71 men's basketball loss to Duke on Tuesday night in the State Farm Champions Classic carries implications both positive and negative.
On the plus side, there is all but no reason to think that UK's defeat to the Dookies in the first game of the 2021-22 regular season foretells anything meaningful about the Wildcats' ultimate fate this year.
Consider:
— The last time Kentucky played Duke in the Champions Classic to start the 2018-19 season, UK absorbed an absolute bludgeoning at the hands of Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils.
In the college debuts of then-Duke "super-freshmen" Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish, Kentucky took a 118-84 beating in a game that, frankly, didn't "feel" that close.
In the aftermath, the predominant question was how Kentucky could ever hope to narrow such a massive gap on Duke?
Yet, once March Madness arrived, both UK and Duke produced the exact, same result: The Dookies lost in the NCAA Tournament East Region finals by one point to Michigan State, while the Cats fell to Auburn in overtime in the Midwest Region finals.
— Going big picture, the Champions Classic began in 2011-12 with traditional college hoops titans UK, Duke, Kansas and Michigan State annually squaring off in early-season doubleheaders in which the four teams rotate playing each other.
In that time, seven teams that played in the event have subsequently gone on to the Final Four.
Of those seven Final Four participants, three — Kansas in 2011-12, Kentucky in 2013-14 and Michigan State in 2018-19 — lost in the Champions Classic.
For UK backers in 2021-22, that qualifies as good news.
What is less happy for Kentucky fans is the status of the men's college basketball all-time wins race.
UK's loss to Duke coupled with the 87-74 Kansas victory over Michigan State at Madison Square Garden in Tuesday's Champions Classic first game narrowed UK's wins lead over KU to three.
Going into Friday night, when Kentucky plays host to Robert Morris and Kansas will get a visit from Tarleton State (coached by old friend Billy Gillispie), the victories race stands:
1. Kentucky 2,327;
2. Kansas 2,324.
The Big Blue Nation may as well brace itself: While it is not set in stone, the chances look strong that Kansas is going to pass Kentucky this season.
Even though UK has watered down its non-league schedule, it still looks tougher than the one KU is playing.
The Wildcats have a true-road game at Notre Dame; Kentucky has lost the past two times it has played in South Bend.
UK has a neutral-site tilt with Ohio State in Las Vegas in the CBS Sports Classic. That is likely a pick 'em affair at best.
Kentucky also has its annual intrastate Armageddon with Louisville, this year slated for Rupp Arena.
Meanwhile, Kansas could face rising SEC power Alabama and expected ACC also-ran Miami in an ESPN-sponsored three-day tournament in Orlando, Fla.
The Jayhawks have road games at Big East foe St. John's and Pac-12 opponent Colorado. KU will also play host to SEC antagonist Missouri as "The Border War" at long last recommences.
Meanwhile, Kentucky also appears to be playing more road games vs. SEC foes that have a realistic chance to beat it than Kansas faces against Big 12 opponents.
That Kansas has attained such a threatening position in the battle to be the all-time wins leader is a tribute to the consistent, regular-season excellence of the Bill Self coaching era.
When Self inherited the Jayhawks head-coaching position in 2003-04 after Roy Williams exited for North Carolina, Kansas was 47 wins behind Kentucky and seven victories to the rear of UNC in third place.
Now, on the strength of nine different seasons of 30-plus wins, Self has the Jayhawks on the verge of overtaking the Wildcats.
(Those UK backers counting on the allegations of NCAA rules violations lodged against Self and KU to lead to vacated wins that will save Kentucky at No. 1 all time are putting an awful lot of faith in one of the most unpredictable processes known to mankind.
That is even more true because the Kansas case is being adjudicated in the NCAA's new "Independent Accountability Resolution Process" — a system that no one has a clue how it will perform.)
If the worst happens in the all-time victories race for Kentucky backers, they can at least draw comfort from UK's basketball past.
On March 17, 1990, North Carolina passed UK for number one in all-time men's hoops wins.
Yet when Kentucky vanquished Tim Duncan and Wake Forest on March 23, 1996, in the NCAA Tournament round of eight, UK also had wrested the all-time wins lead back and has held it ever since.
Of course, UK and KU are slated to meet head-to-head this season on Jan. 29, as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, in Allen Fieldhouse.
It is at least possible that game could be for the all-time wins lead — and wouldn't that be something?
