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Men's Basketball

Kentucky vs Georgetown: TV/Streaming Info, Keys to the Game, and Predictions

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3 years ago

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Jordan Burks goes up for a layup against Justin Edwards at Kentucky Basketball's annual Blue-White scrimmage.
UK Athletics | Tyler Ruth

As the weather gets colder and the leaves start to change, Kentucky Wildcats men’s basketball season is nearly here.

With Big Blue Madness and the Blue-White game now behind us, the Wildcats will finally get the opportunity to play against someone other than themselves for the first time since July at GLOBL JAM, as they take on in-state Georgetown College in a preseason exhibition on Friday.

Coming off a successful season in 2023, which included a 24-4 regular season and an NAIA Final Four appearance in 2023, the Tigers will provide Kentucky with ample competition ahead of their season opener on November 6th.

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Let’s take a look.

Experimentation

In the history of Kentucky basketball, the Wildcats have never lost an exhibition game to a non-professional team. In three exhibitions against Georgetown College, the Wildcats have won by an average of 39.3 points. So don’t expect Kentucky to lose on Friday, but do expect a lot of experimenting.

Kentucky hasn’t played an opponent since July at GLOBL. Since then, a little bit has changed. Kentucky has had nearly a full month of practice, added another seven-footer in Zvonimir Ivisic, the freshmen have matured more, and Rob Dillingham has added 20 pounds to his frame.

With that said, Friday’s exhibition likely won’t be extremely entertaining in terms of score, but it should be entertaining to see what the staff experiments with ahead of the season with lineups, actions, and more.

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Frontcourt

Less than two weeks out from the season opener, not one of Kentucky’s three seven-footers has appeared in any game action for fans to see. Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso are still recovering from foot injuries, while Zvonimir Ivisic is still awaiting on the NCAA to approve his eligibility while trying to make up ground in practice.

Given the lack of depth, look for Kentucky to continue to develop their small ball game plan and lineups, which will be beneficial early in the season while the bigs get up to speed. This will consist of a lot of Tre Mitchell, Jordan Burks, Adou Thiero, and Justin Edwards playing in the 4 and 5 spots, and in turn, a more modern playstyle.

While Kentucky doesn’t play a Power Five team until Kansas on November 14th, the Wildcat frontcourt will be tested in their season opener against New Mexico State, as they will match up against multiple bigs measuring 6-foot-10+. So with limited opportunities, it will be key to find ways to still be effective with limited size, specifically in rebounding and post-defense.

Antonio Threeves

In his last two games in the United States, Antonio Reeves has shot a combined 2-19 from three (1-10 vs Kansas State, 1-9 Blue-White game). That’s not good. However, Reeves did shoot an unreal 56.3 percent (18-32 3P) from three at GLOBL JAM in Canada this summer.

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So, does Kentucky need to move this season’s games to Canada? No, but Reeves does need to take advantage of these confidence-building opportunities, especially as a shooter. Fortunately, Kentucky has the personnel this season not to be as reliant on Reeves, but he is certainly expected to carry a lot of the scoring load.

Another key to watch for in this game is Reeves’ defense. While he wasn’t terrible last year, it was far from being a strength, so he made it a point to improve on the defensive end this offseason.

Will be interesting to see if Reeves can shine on both ends of the floor Friday.

Given this is an exhibition, there are no official lines or predictions. However, given the talent disparity in this exhibition, expect Kentucky to win by 25+.

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That said, at times in the past, Kentucky has gotten carried away with experimenting, only beating D2 Miles College by nine points in 2021.

And with Kentucky still down Aaron Bradshaw, Ugonna Onyenso, and likely Zvonimir Ivisic, don’t expect Kentucky to win by 50+, but it will still be fun to see most of that team finally face a real opponent at Rupp Arena, which is what matters most.

Kentucky Basketball vs. Georgetown Tigers

Time/Date: 7:00 pm ET on Friday, October 27th, 2023
Location: Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY
TV Channel: SEC Network
Online Stream : WatchESPN, ESPN+, SEC Network+ or ESPN app
Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens have the UK radio network call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
Replay: WatchESPN and SEC Network (check local listings).
Rosters: UK | GC

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Men's Basketball

Star Forward Milan Momcilovic Chooses Kentucky Over Louisville and Arizona

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1 day ago

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June 1, 2026

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Photo via AOL

The wait is over BBN!

Milan Momcilovic has officially announced that he will be playing his senior year of college basketball at Kentucky, suiting up in the blue and white for Mark Pope and the Wildcats!

The 6-foot-8 wing averaged 16.9 points per game in the 2025-26 season, leading the nation in 3-pointers made (136) and percentage from deep (48.7%).

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Momcilovic is mostly ranked as No. 2 in most portal rankings, but ESPN has the former Cyclone as the No. 1 overall player. With that being said, this technically serves as Pope’s first No. 1 transfer during his tenure at Kentucky.

Pulling his name out of the 2026 NBA Draft on Wednesday, May 27, Kentucky was seemingly the favorite to land the wing during the entire sweepstakes due to positional need, scheme fit and money available to spend. He could even play another year with the Kentucky Wildcats if the “5-in-5” rule is passed and he forgoes the draft again.

Putting Pat Kelsey in a locker and outbidding him on a recruit is always great for morale, but this fills the much-needed star spot for next year’s roster. Pope and his staff have shaped the team with plenty of skilled players, but Momcilovic adds that extra layer of shooting and will serve as the go-to guy when a game may be on the line.

This will be the final player added to the 2026-27 team, with an insert at the starting small forward position in Momcilovic’s future. Pope and the Big Blue Nation have their guy, and soon enough, we’ll see the Pewaukee, Wisconsin native on Rupp Arena’s court.

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Men's Basketball

National Reporter Matt Norlander Chooses Kentucky as Landing Spot for Star Forward Milan Momcilovic

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6 days ago

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May 28, 2026

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Photo via Imagn Images

The Milan Momcilovic sweepstakes is underway, with multiple teams involved in the No. 2 overall transfer player’s recruitment. It is believed that Kentucky and Louisville are the top candidates after his decision to pull out from the 2026 NBA Draft on Wednesday, May 27.

Along with the in-state rivals, Arizona and St. John’s are both very well still in the mix, but the Red Storm are slowly falling out of contention after landing Baylor’s Tounde Yessoufou.

On May 28, national reporter Matt Norlander cleared the air on CBS Sports’ Eye On College Basketball podcast, stating that he believes Kentucky will land Momcilovic by the end of the weekend or Monday.

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“My prediction right now is that Milan Momcilovic will go to Kentucky,” Norlander said. “My understanding is that decision is going to come in the next one, two, three days, four days max.”

He would go on to talk about the other top programs involved, stating why he thinks they will be working in an uphill battle in this bidding war.

“My forecast is that it’s Kentucky, but you know, we’ll see if Louisville can get in there,” he continued. “Arizona I don’t think has the money to contend, like I think Kentucky and Louisville just have more money to play with.”

For the worried members of the Big Blue Nation, this is certainly good news to be put out by one of the most trusted college basketball reporters at the national level.

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Going by this report and Adam Zagoria’s from NYT Sports, it shouldn’t be long until a commitment decision for Momcilovic is announced publicly.

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Men's Basketball

BREAKING: No. 2 Ranked Transfer Milan Momcilovic Removes Name From 2026 NBA Draft

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6 days ago

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May 27, 2026

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Kamil Krzaczynski | Imagn Images

Milan Momcilovic has officially removed his named from the 2026 NBA Draft and will return to college for his senior season.

Kentucky leads in his recruitment, followed closely by St. John’s, Louisville and Arizona. A backdoor to Iowa State is also still open.

The No. 2 ranked transfer would be a huge addition to Kentucky’s 2026-27 roster if he committed, averaging 16.9 points per game on 50.6/48.7/87.8 shooting splits last year. Funny enough, in the current world of college athletics that we live in, Momcilovic was responsible for eliminating the Wildcats from the NCAA Tournament, dropping 20 points in the Round of 32.

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He would go on to lose to Tennessee in the Sweet 16 with Iowa State, so at least we know that there’s some inner-hatred for a long-standing rival if he ends up a Wildcat.

He made the most three-point shots in Division I basketball and is a versatile 6-foot-8 wing, which would fit perfectly into Mark Pope’s offensive system. He completed workouts with the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves during the draft process.

Now, the bidding war for the top dog begins, with some of the most prestigious programs in the sport placing their bets on the star forward.

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