Stanford sees ‘opportunity’ against UK

During his post-game radio interview after Stanford beat Virginia Tuesday night, Cardinal Coach Johnny Dawkins saluted Kentucky’s elite status.

The radio host noted that Stanford had not played UK since the 1998 Final Four. So, the host said, the game Wednesday night “carries a special cache with Stanford fans.”

Dawkins agreed, saying, “When you look at Kentucky, it’s a great program with amazing tradition. You have to give them a lot of respect for what they’ve accomplished. And it’s a great opportunity for our program. We’ve worked hard to give ourselves an opportunity to face a team of that caliber.”

Kentucky will play Stanford Wednesday night (9:30 p.m. EST tipoff) in the championship game of the Cancun Challenge.

Of course, Dawkins is no stranger to big games against Kentucky. As a former assistant at Duke, he witnessed many classic games, most notably the 1992 East Region final (the so-called Christian Laettner game) and the 1998 region final (UK won with a stirring comeback). Both games sent the winner to the Final Four.

“A lot of times it was basically for championships,” Dawkins said. “. . . It’s been an amazing rivalry.”

When asked if he aspired to make Stanford the Duke of the West, Dawkins smiled and said, “I’ll tell you what, if we can raise Stanford’s level to the program we’re going to face tomorrow (Kentucky) and to the level of a program like Duke, I think we’d be pretty proud. They’re some of the most elite programs in the country.”