Nate Sestina picks a side in Kentucky vs. Bucknell

Nate Sestina was on the phone with his agent on Friday when he received a FaceTime call from Mark Pope ahead of Kentucky’s matchup vs. Bucknell on Saturday.

“The first thing he asked me was, ‘Who are you cheering for tomorrow?’”

Sestina started his career as a Bison and graduated from the school in 2019 before finishing as a Wildcat, heading to Lexington as a grad transfer for the 2019-20 season. He was a Second Team All-Patriot League selection as a senior at Bucknell before taking on a crucial bench role at Kentucky to wrap up his time in college, averaging 5.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while shooting 40.7 percent from three — a sniper reserve piece.

It’s a difficult question for a guy like Sestina, who got his start and made a name for himself at Bucknell before creating new blue-blood memories at Kentucky — his new home, living in Lexington with his fiancee Madison Lilley during the offseason when he’s not hooping professionally in Spain.

“I was like, ‘It’s a tough one.’ He’s like, ‘I know you’re a Bucknell guy, but you’re still Kentucky Wildcat.’ … It’s a win-win for me, you know?”

Bucknell head coach John Griffin III was an assistant there when Sestina was a Bison, someone who “changed my perspective and trajectory as a young man,” he said. The former Wildcat reached out to Griffin leading up to the matchup and told him to make the most of the opportunity — he knows from experience you don’t get to play at Rupp Arena every day. Go try to win the game, obviously, but soak up the moment, too.

He remembers being in the players’ shoes going into a matchup like this, also against a blue-blood with all of the bells and whistles.

“When I was at Bucknell and we played high-major schools, part of it is you get to go play in a cool arena. For us, we played North Carolina and they have all the Jordans on the wall when you go through the locker room,” he said. “You soak in the experience. But you also want to compete. These guys, looking at these high-major teams when you’re a mid-major guy, that’s where you want to be. That’s where you want to get to, those are your goals.

“Whoever my matchup was, that’s who I wanted to go after. I wanted to gun, prove that mid-major guys are as good as high-major guys, it’s just a matter of time. The team Coach Griffin has put together the last two years he’s been there, you’re gonna have a bunch of scrappy junkyard dogs — guys diving on the floor and taking charges, guys getting excited and cheering their teammates on. The approach is that you want to enjoy it.

“This is a cool opportunity, you get to play Kentucky. How cool is that?”

It’s why he celebrated the matchup when it was announced. He knew how difficult it’d be to pick a side, but he’s been in both of those locker rooms and remembers what life was like as a mid-major looking for a shot and as a high-major after earning one.

Now he gets to celebrate both parts of his basketball journey.

“When I first saw it, my words were, ‘Oh, hell yeah! Let’s go!’ Bucknell is one of the most special places and a special program, it’s near and dear to my heart,” Sestina told KSR. “It helped shape me into the player that I ended up becoming and being able to become when I came to Kentucky.

“It’s weird that I have to choose a side — maybe I have to split it half by half and go first half Bucknell, second half Kentucky. I’m not sure yet, but I’m really excited. This is an awesome opportunity for Coach Griffin to play against the juggernaut that is the University of Kentucky.

“It’s a good opportunity for Kentucky to play against another good mid-major school and good mid-major programs.”

But there can only be one. Who is it gonna be, Nate?

“It doesn’t hurt me, but it hurts me. I think Kentucky is gonna get ’em, but the score? I don’t know,” Sestina said. “If Kentucky is hitting threes, it could get — I don’t know what Bucknell’s 3-point shooting is like, but I know they’re solid and run great plays. I know Coach Pope is fast-paced with lots of threes, so playing the law of averages, I’m gonna say a 15-point win. I’ll go with 88-73 (Kentucky).

“If I’m right, when I come back to Lexington, you gotta take me to Tony’s.”

Deal.