Kentucky basketball: 5 best seasons in Wildcats history, ranked

NEW ORLEANS, LA - APRIL 02: The Kentucky Wildcats celebrate after defeating the Kansas Jayhawks 67-59 in the National Championship Game of the 2012 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on April 2, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images) /

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Kentucky basketball celebrates. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images) /

Ranking the best Kentucky basketball seasons in Wildcats history.

By most measures, Kentucky basketball is the most successful program in college basketball. Sure, the Wildcats may only have the second-most National Championships in the NCAA Tournament era to UCLA with eight, they have the most wins and the highest all-time winning percentage in college basketball history. So yeah, winning is the way of Big Blue Nation.

Whether it’s been Adolph Rupp, Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith or John Calipari, Kentucky basketball has always been in great hands and, of course, has always stayed winning. Each of those coaches won a National Championship while at the helm of the Wildcats. But which teams in program history were the absolute best?

That’s a tough distinction but one we are prepared to make. These are the five best Kentucky basketball teams to every lace them up on the hardwood.

5. 1977-78 Kentucky basketball season

Final Record: 30-2 | Finish: National Champions (def. Duke, 94-88)

Though it had been 20 years since Kentucky basketball had captured a National Championship as they came into the 1977-78 season, they were among the favorites to eventually win the title that year. The Wildcats began the campaign as the No. 2 ranked team in the country and, throughout a remarkably dominant year, they only were below No. 1 for two weeks after the preseason poll.

One of the trademarks of this team was the balance throughout the experienced roster. Jack Givens, Rick Robey, Kyle Macy, James Lee and Mike Phillips all averaged double-digit points per game with Givens leading the way at 18.1 points per contest. That showed throughout the year as they went unbeaten in non-conference play and suffered just two losses in SEC competition in the regular season.

Once in the NCAA Tournament, Kentucky looked dominant as they handled one ranked opponent after another. They first matched up with Arkansas in the Final Four and eeked out a 64-59 victory to set up a date with Duke for the National Championship.

Though Robey would go on to be the higher pick in the NBA Draft, Givens was the star for the Wildcats when the title was on the line. His 41-point outburst on 18-of-27 shooting in the National Championship Game against Duke is regarded as one of the greatest title game performances of all time. When you take that into account with the overall success and, of course, the hardware this team won, how do that not sneak into the top five?