NCAA tournament preview: Kentucky vs. Hampton

No. 1 Kentucky (34-0) vs. No. 16 Hampton (17-17)

Time, TV: 9:40 p.m. ET, CBS

Where: Louisville

Why Kentucky will win: The Wildcats are too talented, too tall, too deep and too good defensively to lose to an inferior team. They might not lose at all this tournament, but surely not to the winner of a play-in game. Expect this to be a fairly routine thrashing for the No. 1 overall seed, led by the nation's best defense. There's a reason coaches were dreading getting sent to the Midwest Region.

Why Hampton will win: If the Pirates become the first No. 16 seed to beat a No. 1 seed, it will surely rank among the biggest surprises in sports — ever. The Wildcats are the overwhelming favorite to win this tournament and complete the first perfect season since 1976. On the other hand, Hampton finished sixth in the MEAC before winning the conference tournament to secure the league's auto-bid (then beating Manhattan in the First Four) — despite a losing record on the season.

History lesson: These two programs have never met. In fact, Hampton is just 0-1 all-time against teams currently in the Southeastern Conference, with the lone game coming against Vanderbilt in 2001.