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

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Kentucky Wildcats guard Rob Dillingham (0) smiles during the second half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Rupp Arena.
© Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

After a snowy week in the Bluegrass State, the Kentucky Wildcats will go up against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday in Rupp Arena. The Wildcats have won 16 of the last 18 meetings between the two teams, but those two losses have come in the last three seasons.

Under head coach Mike White, in his second season, the Bulldogs have surpassed expectations thus far this season. Picked to finish 12th in the conference, Georgia is 13-4 overall and 3-1 in SEC play, would be 4-0 if it had not been for a late-game collapse against Tennessee. That said, Georgia has played far from a difficult schedule with their best win coming against a Wake Forest team ranked 46th in the NET rankings.

Let’s take a look at the matchup.

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Force Turnovers

Georgia is not necessarily turnover-prone, but in three of their four losses they have had more turnovers than assists. Fortunately, Kentucky has been good at generating turnovers, forcing their opponent into double-digit turnovers in all but three games this season.

This will be a game Kentucky will look to get into passing lanes – cough cough, Reed Sheppard – and get some easy looks in transition.

Crash the Offensive Glass

Shooting nearly 40 percent from three on the year, 11th in the country, this Kentucky team could very well go down as one of the best shooting teams in program history. That said, they have been in a bit of a dry spell of late, shooting above 31 percent from three just once in the last four games.

On the other side, Georgia has been one of the nation’s best at defending the three this season, allowing opponents to shoot less than 30 percent. Over the season, they have allowed just two of their 17 opponents to shoot over 40 percent.

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If the threes aren’t falling, crashing the offensive boards will be important against a Georgia team that gives up nearly 10 per game, leading to extra opportunities.

Will the defense continue to show improvement?

“We told on ourselves. We can defend,” John Calipari said of Kentucky’s effort against Mississippi State, allowing just 29 points in the first half. He did note it wasn’t consistent and when that is the case, he is not going to accept that from his team, and will use the bench His message: “Don’t be mad at me, be mad at yourself.”

Against Georgia, Kentucky will be put in a lot of highball screens and will need to continue showing improvement in their pick-and-roll defense which they have been focusing on in practice.

Opposing Players to Watch

G Jabri Abdur-Rahim, 6-8, 215 lbs

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  • 12.8 PPG
  • 4.0 RPG
  • 39 3PM (5th in SEC), 41.5% 3P (11th in SEC)

G Noah Tomasson, 6-4, 210 lbs

  • 12.4 PPG
  • 3.1 RPG
  • 1.6 APG

C Russel Tchewa, 7-0, 275 lbs

  • 6.6 PPG
  • 6.2 RPG (13th in SEC)
  • 50.6% FG (7th in SEC)

Kentucky Basketball vs. Georgia Bulldogs

  • Time: 6:0 PM ET on January 20th
  • TV Channel: SEC Network
  • Announcers: Mike Morgan and Jon Sundvold will call the action.
  • Location: Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center in Lexington, Kentucky.
  • Online Stream: WatchESPN and ESPN app
  • Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens have the UK radio call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
  • Replay: WatchESPN and the SEC Network (check local listings).
  • Rosters: UK | UGA
  • Stats to Know: UK | UGA
  • KenPom: UK | UGA
  • Team Sheets: UK | UGA
  • Odds: DraftKings has Kentucky favored by 11.5 points. ESPN gives them an 84.6% chance of winning. Bart Torvik and EvanMiya are at 82% and 86.6%, respectively, while KenPom has it at 83%.
  • Predictions: Bart Torvik picks Kentucky to win 87-76, while Haslametrics has them winning 88-77. EvanMiya has it at 84-73 for the Cats. KenPom is going with an 85-75 victory, Kentucky!

Also published on a Sea of Blue.

Men's Basketball

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

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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”

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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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Men's Basketball

ESPN’s Jay Williams Gives Message to Kentucky Fans, “You’re Not Going to Like It…”

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ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Williams gives a message to Kentucky fans after the Wildcats win over Duke. "You won't like it."
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Back in April, opposing fanbases like Duke, told Kentucky fans to “cope with Pope” following the hire of Mark Pope and the corresponding initial shock. On Tuesday, those same fanbases had to watch as Mark Pope outcoached Jon Scheyer and Duke in the final minutes of the Champion’s Classic to get his first marque win in just his third game at Kentucky.

Of course, shortly after the game, Duke fans began to rationalize the loss by highlighting their team’s youth. While true, it sounded like an echo chamber of what Kentucky fans said for years under John Calipari. One notable example was former Blue Devil Jay Williams.

At halftime, while Duke was leading 46-37, Williams called this year’s Duke team the most talented since the 2001 team that he was a part of at halftime. To his credit, he complimented Kentucky on the comeback victory, specifically on their offense and maturity, but then 36 hours later he posted a message to Kentucky fans on social media.

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“Let me put you on to something,” Williams started. “Whether you like it or not, networks are going to sell Cooper Flagg. He’s going to be the number one pick in the draft. You’re going to talk about whether he won the or whether he lost the game, regardless of the outcome.”

“You’re not going to like it. There should be more kudos to Mark Pope and Kentucky,” Williams continued. “Regardless of whether you won the game or not, they’re still going to sell Cooper Flagg because he is selling the sport. Sorry.”

William’s statement is true. That said, it comes off as ‘sour grapes’ about losing. Cooper Flagg is a great talent and will likely be the first pick in the NBA Draft, but most Kentucky fans would say they would much rather have the win than the marketing.

Futhermore, Kentucky and its ‘brand’ has raised the level of multiple players and coaches, and will continue to do so. A deeper impact than Cooper Flagg will have on Duke in just one season.

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