Kentucky will be playing in a road game type of environment against Illinois

There will be a lot of Illinois fans in attendance when they take on Kentucky on Sunday.

Mar 20, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope speaks during an NCAA Tournament First Round Practice press conference at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images / Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

It is very rare for Kentucky to play a game in the NCAA Tournament where Big Blue Nation is outnumbered in the stands but there is a chance that is the case on Sunday.

Kentucky is starting off the NCAA Tournament in Milwaukee, and after beating the Troy Trojans, they will take on the Illinois Fighting Illini, and there will be a lot of Orange in the building.

It sounds like there were a lot of Illinois fans in the building for their matchup with Xavier, and likely, more can be expected for the matchup on Sunday.

There is also going to be a lot of blue in the stands but knowing that this game is being played awfully close to where a lot of Illinois fans live, the Wildcats can expect a tough crowd.

The good news for the Wildcats is that if they take down Illinois, they will play the Sweet 16 in Indianapolis, which means Big Blue Nation will come in droves.

There will be a lot of Illinois fans on Sunday but there also should be enough Kentucky fans in the stands that the crowd noise shouldn't have too much of an effect on the Cats.

Pope's team has a lot of players who have played in some of the toughest environments in college basketball, so the noise won't be a big deal. Kentucky and Illinois play similar styles of basketball, but if the Wildcats are hitting their shots, they will win this game and make it to the Sweet 16.