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Men's Basketball

Good and Bad from Kentucky’s 78-64 win over Vandy

Published

5 years ago

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It would’ve made sense if this was a trap game, but it wasn’t because Kentucky plays Ole Miss Saturday. The Cats came out flat and were down double digits for most of the first half. But came back and won 78-64.

The first half didn’t go Kentucky’s way, and as I said above, the Cats came out flat with no energy. I turned on the game about ten minutes in and was dumbfounded when they were down 25-15. The Commodores were hitting shots from everywhere and were playing some physical defense and the Cats simply couldn’t get anything going. But, they cut the deficit to nine going to halftime and had a little momentum.

In the second half, Kentucky came to life. They cut the deficit to six just a few minutes in and we were tied with just over ten minutes left. The Cats extended the lead to eleven and it was time to close them out but not so fast. Kentucky got really sloppy and Vandy cut the lead to five with just under five minutes left. The Cats woke up again and closed Vandy out, 78-64.

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Here are some good and bad things from the game.

Tyrese Maxey

Kentucky’s guards are just freakin studs and Tyrese Maxey is the best of them all. Maxey had 25 points, four rebounds, three 3’s, and was an efficient 10/17 from the field.

Nick Richards might be Kentucky’s most important player, but Tyrese Maxey is their best player. It is vital for him to play well in March if Kentucky wants to make a title run.

Three’s

Yeah, Kentucky was 6-9 from behind-the-arc, but that’s not the point. Kentucky allowed eleven three’s in the game and eight in the first half and got really lucky because Vandy missed several open three’s in the second half.

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Three point defense has been an issue at times this season and it was tonight. If Vandy stayed hot in the second half, this was a loss.

Nick Richards

No double-double tonight, but still a good game from the Jamaican stud. Richards had 12 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks.

Nick Richards has easily been Kentucky’s most consistent player this year, which is something I never thought I would say. If it wasn’t for him, where would we be?

Refs

It’ll go unnoticed, but the refs tonight were once again terrible. Bad calls both ways and Kentucky got called for four fouls in eight seconds at one in the second half. Read that a few times. That’s ridiculous.

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There was never a consistent flow in the game and they called a lot of touchy crap in the second half.

Ashton Hagans

Tonight, Ashton Hagans was two assists away from a triple-double. He had 11 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.

Kentucky’s only had three triple doubles in its history. Take a couple guesses at who they are.

It’s a win

After the way the game started, this win was big for Kentucky. I know it’s Vandy, but Kentucky was down by 14 at one point and won by 14.

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Coming back from double-digits and winning by double-digits on the road is impressive.

What now?

Kentucky’s win tonight moves them to 19-5 on the year and 9-2 in the SEC. It’s big because LSU is down at halftime against Missouri. If the Tigers lose and Auburn wins tomorrow, The Cats and Tigers will be tied for first place in the SEC.

But, the Cats have to handle business Saturday. Kentucky plays their first Saturday home game in six years against Ole Miss, tipoff set for 2 p.m. EST. Breein Tyree dropped 40 points against Mississippi State tonight, so we’ll see if the Cats can handle business.

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Men's Basketball

Kentucky vs. Jackson State: TV/Streaming Info, Keys to the Game, and Betting Odds/Predictions

Published

9 hours ago

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November 22, 2024

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Kentucky players encouraging each other at Rupp Arena.
Chet White | UK Athletics

The Kentucky Wildcats are back in action Friday to face the Jackson State Tigers in the second game of the BBN Invitational.

To put it simply, Jackson State is bad, very bad. Sitting at 0-5 and ranked 321st in KenPom, the Tigers will likely be the worst opponent Kentucky will play all season.

Coached by Mo Williams, one of LeBron James’ old teammates with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Tigers have only finished above .500 twice in the last decade. This season, Jackson State is predicted to finish fourth in the SWAC.

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Mark Pope recently said he wanted to build a standard, regardless of opponent and, and that will be tested on Friday.

Let’s take a look at the matchup.

More 3-Point Attempts

Admittedly nitpicking, one of the things that Mark Pope was not happy with in Kentucky’s win over Lipscomb was the amount of three-point attempts. While they shot nearly 50 percent from deep, going 12-25, Pope wants to see the number of attempts closer to 35.

The Tigers have allowed their opponents to shoot 47.8 percent from deep, the second-worst mark in the country. Pope and the staff will certainly generate a game plan to take advantage of this. Expect to see 30+ attempts.

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Ball Movement

Despite beating Lipscomb by 29 points, the Wildcats had a season-low in assists with just ten. For context, Kentucky had averaged more than 23 assists per game entering the matchup.

“That’s not us. That’s not who we are,” Pope said after the game.

While there wasn’t a lot of selfishness, the ball just wasn’t ‘flying’ as it has been early this season. This is a priority for the staff and this mature group, and they will aim for 25+ assists.

Keep JSU off the Free-Throw Line

Jackson State ranks in the top 100 nationally in one area: Free throws made per game. So, Kentucky, defend without fouling.

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Kentucky’s offense makes headlines, but the defense has played very well to start the season, holding all four opponents to under 73 points. Let’s see if they can get down in a stance and defend well for 40 minutes vs. a team that stresses contact and drawing fouls.

Opposing Players to Watch

C Shannon Grant 6-11, 290 lbs

  • 7.5 PPG
  • 4.8
  • Preseason All-SWAC First Team selection

G Jayme Mitchell Jr 6-5, 190 lbs

  • 15.0 PPG
  • 3.8 RPG
  • 44.4% 3P

F Romelle Mansel 6-9, 220 lbs

  • 10.8 PPG
  • 5.8 RPG
  • 31.7% FG (second most FG attempts on the team)

Kentucky Wildcats Basketball vs. Jackson State Tigers

Time: 7 PM ET on November 22nd
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV Channel: This game will not be on TV and is streaming only,
Online Stream: SEC Network+, ESPN+, and the ESPN app.
Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens have the radio call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
Replay: WatchESPN and SEC Network (check local listings).
Rosters: UK | JSU
Stats to Know: UK | JSU
KenPom: UK | JSU
Team Sheet: UK | JSU

Odds: FanDuel Sportsbook has yet to release the odds for the game, so check Thursday afternoon for an official spread. Multiple projections give Kentucky a 99% chance of winning: Bart Torvik (99%), EvanMiya (99.9%), and ESPN (99.0%). The exception is KenPom (92%).

Predictions: KenPom (93-63), Haslametrics (96-63), Bart Torvik (95-61), and EvanMiya (96-59) all are going with a 30+ point victory, Kentucky!

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Men's Basketball

Kentucky Basketball Players Say They Think About Winning National Championship “Every Second”

Published

4 days ago

on

November 18, 2024

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Kentucky basketball players celebrate after their big over Duke.
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The expectations at Kentucky are the highest of any school in the country, and there is good reason why. The winningest college program ever. Eight national titles, under five different coaches. Seventeen Final Four appearances. You get it, a lot of success.

Fans want the players to have those same expectations. Despite not having the elite talent or preseason hype of great Kentucky teams past, this year’s team still has their eyes set on doing something “people will remember forever”, winning a national championship.

Asked on social media, if hanging banner #9 was all the players thought about “every second”, Ansley Almonor had a response.

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“We do.”

It takes a lot to win a national championship, including some luck, but this team is certainly going to be loved for their desire to live out their dream of playing at Kentucky and their unselfishness. Those two things can take them a long way this season .

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Kentucky AD Mitch Barnhart Seemingly Takes Shot at John Calipari, “Anybody Can Recruit”

Published

6 days ago

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November 16, 2024

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Mitch Barnhart sitting next to basketball coach John Calipari.
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John Calipari and Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart had their differences over fifteen years, but success can hide a lot of things. Not that they hated each other, but they each had vastly different personalities. As that success weaned towards the end of Calipari’s tenure, those issues started to be noticed publically.

If you need evidence of that, despite their efforts to dispute it, there is the infamous press conference where Barnhart talked about “entitled” coaches, shortly after Calipari publicly called for a new practice facility. Then, there were multiple times when Calipari expressed that the administration was not on the same page and that he was facing “headwinds”.

That said, Calipari is now at Arkansas, but those differences and some disdain remain. During an interview on the Kentucky Football pregame show, Barnhart seemingly took a shot at Calipari when asked about Mark Pope’s recruiting philosophy and prioritizing fit.

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“I tell people all the time, ‘Anybody can recruit, not everybody can evaluate,’” Barnhart said. “You can recruit. You can be phenomenal at bringing people to your program. But if it does not fit you, it’s really not helpful.”

Of course, Calipari is one of the best, if not the best, recruiters in college basketball history. At times, he prioritized talent and athleticism over fit.

Quite the coincidence.

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