Kentucky basketball: 5 best seasons in Wildcats history, ranked

1. 1995-96 Kentucky basketball season

Final Record: 34-2 | Finish: National Champions (def. Syracuse, 76-67)

While it can often be difficult to discern the No. 2-5 teams in a great program’s history for these types of rankings, in many cases, the top team is often quite clear. That is indeed the case when it comes to the 1995-96 Kentucky basketball team, a group better known — and aptly so — as “The Untouchables”.

One of the defining characteristics of this team was the elite level of talent the Wildcats had on the roster from top to bottom. Nine players on the roster, headlined by Derek Anderson, Tony Delk, Antoine Walker and Walter McCarty, among others, went on to be drafted or at least play in the NBA. Even in great programs and especially in the mid-1990s.

This team lost their second game of the season against No. 5 UMass but it wasn’t a tone-setter. The Wildcats went on to win their next 27 games before losing to Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament final. That earned them a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and they had to face a tough road — but they were unfazed.

They won every game in the first four rounds by at least 20 points and then got revenge against UMass in the first Final Four game. That put them up against Syracuse and, though it was a tough matchup for Kentucky, they handled it in a nine-point victory. With the talent and dominance of this team, there’s no questioning that they are the greatest in program history.

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