Bluegrass battle not the better semifinal

We haven't yet heard of a dialysis clinic in Kansas or Ohio turning into an octagon featuring senior citizens with quality grappling skills. Twitter hasn't been flooded with posts about generations breaking apart up and down family trees depending on what color T-shirt one prefers in Lawrence or Columbus.

No one is dropping out of Grandpa's will because they prefer Jayhawks to Buckeyes.

It became obvious when Final Four matchups were set which semifinal the NCAA and TV executives believed to be the better game for college basketball's largest annual party Saturday, and it isn't the one that has EMTs on high alert across the Bluegrass State.

Kentucky and Louisville is personal. It runs through bloodlines that date to 1913, when Adolph Rupp was just 12 and probably wearing brown suits to church on Sunday.

Hide the women and children -- except for Ashley Judd, because why would anyone want the Wildcats' lovely follower out of sight? -- and point the National Guard toward Bourbon Street.

It's everything such a moment desires.

It's just not the best game.

Kansas against Ohio State will be shown second from the Superdome, and there is a reason for such prime-time placement. For as much hatred as fans of the Wildcats and Cardinals feel for each other, this still is about showing the premier matchup when most people are watching.

Kentucky-Louisville is about contempt. Kansas-Ohio State could prove to be a classic.

"If a Final Four game can kind of slide under the radar, us and Ohio State kind of is, in large part because of the civil war going on in Kentucky right now. It's great," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "It's a great field and one we're really proud to be a part of. We always think and dream and hope for this. When we started the year, I think the reality was, 'I hope we can get in (the NCAA Tournament).' "

You couldn't fill the French Quarter with the amount of drama and storylines that define Kentucky-Louisville, but it's not as if Kansas-Ohio State lacks for intrigue.

No other player here has endured the sort of emotional journey Thomas Robinson of Kansas has in the past year, from losing his grandfather, grandmother and mother within a month to becoming a unanimous first-team All-American this week, from returning to school while accepting the role as caretaker to his little sister to being the favorite of many for national Player of the Year.

No other player here has been more scrutinized than Ohio State sophomore Jared Sullinger, who passed on NBA riches to return for another run at the national title, missed the first game between these two earlier this season with an injury and now must prove his is a game good enough to have the Buckeyes still alive Monday evening and worthy of a top-10 NBA Draft pick.

"I appreciated everyone that doubted this basketball team, said we were the underdogs, weren't good enough, mentally strong enough, not physically strong enough, mentally immature, we heard it all," Sullinger said. "When we were going through a slump in February, everybody was saying this basketball team was kind of on a downhill. We heard negative comments. I want to thank y'all because through all the adversity, we constantly pushed through that. I mean, we came from nothing, according to y'all, to something now."

You have to love the oh-so-tired cliches of no respect from a player whose team never fell out of the top 10, one that was expected by most to finish its season here, among four teams with a chance to cut down nets.

If there is motivation for the Buckeyes, it should come more from Dec. 10 than any fictitious media slight. That's the day Kansas beat Ohio State 78-67 in Lawrence, where Sullinger sat out because of back spasms.

Ohio State gets its opportunity for revenge Saturday, and it shouldn't take an old man flipping the bird to another and getting punched in the nose for it between getting waste and water removed from their blood to create a memorable setting.

Kentucky-Louisville has dominated the headlines since the semifinals were set, a story of intertwined fan bases of schools not 75 miles apart that have took turns slashing tires and spray-painting cars and -- literally -- trading blows.

That's all well and gory.

It doesn't mean, however, such a clash will produce the best game.

Odds say it won't.

"It's a heavyweight group," Self said. "There's no question about that. There's 49 Final Fours between the four groups. That's a pretty good deal."

His is a pretty good game.

Without all the lunacy and, sadly, Ashley Judd.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from noon to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday on "Gridlock," ESPN Radio 1100 AM and 98.9 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.