On Tuesday, Kentucky went to Oxford and faced off against a quality Ole Miss team in desperate need of a win, with the opportunity to prove that Saturday was a fluke. Despite not playing their best defense and some poor mistakes down the stretch, the Cats proved just that with an 80-76 win.

On Monday, Immanuel Quickley talked about the importance of coming out with energy and a “sense of urgency”, and that was on full display against the Rebels. The Rebels played one of their best games of the season in front of a very rowdy environment, but the Cats were able to feed off that energy and punch back on offense. Lets take a closer look at the Cat’s statement win.

Keldon Johnson and Tyler Herro Bounced Back

After each playing their worst game of the season on Saturday, Herro and Johnson had a BIG bounce back game and were the source of most of Kentucky’s offense. After combining for 8 turnovers and 13 points on 20% FG against Tennessee, they responded by combining for 42 points on 57% FG, 12 rebounds, five assists, and four steals.

Herro regained his road-warrior persona but it was an even better sign going forward that Johnson was as aggressive as he has been all season and was finally able to see the ball go through the hoop efficiently.

Herro and Johnson also bounced back on the defensive end with a much-improved intensity and were able to make an impact by being able to get into passing lanes and not giving up the straight-line drives they did against Jordan Bone.

Mean Muggin’ PJ Is Back

Reid Travis’ absence has affected PJ Washington a lot, as opponent’s defenses can put more pressure and more focus towards PJ. In last week’s match-ups, PJ averaged some underwhelming numbers with 11 points, 4.5 rebounds, 31% FG, 0% 3P.

In the first half, PJ struggled with foul trouble and didn’t even score. The second half was a different story as dominant PJ made a return, finishing with 13 points, 54.5% FG, four assists, and two blocks. PJ’s right hand hook is as money as a Tyler Herro free throw.

EJ Montgomery and Sophomore Nick Richards

With Reid out, Montgomery and Richards have had to try to pick up the slack and together they have been able to match Travis’s numbers.

EJ finished with 2 points (1-4 FG), 6 rebounds, and 4 blocks and was absolutely crucial down the stretch. During the final 10 minutes Ole Miss was making runs and trying to make it a one possession game, but Montgomery had different plans. Montgomery recorded three of his blocks in the last ten minutes, including two crucial blocks in the final two minutes. Montgomery’s defense definitely helped cover some of the Cat’s late mental errors in route to a win.

Sophomore Nick Richards made a solid appearance and in just 18 minutes, finished with 6 points (2-3 FG), 4 rebounds, 1 block. Richards still has hands of rock and makes mental mistakes, he was able to make plays when it mattered most. Richards fouled out with 2:36 left, but was consistent and gave an energy boost when was on the floor.

Tweaks

Get yer ‘Tweak’ shirts back out guys. In the post-game press conference Calipari said he made two tweaks following the 19-point loss to Tennessee.

1.More Movement for PJ

“We’ve got to get PJ on the other side of the floor. So, instead of just the left side facing, I wanted him on the other side. So, we did something to get him over there. Now, if you go back and watch the tape, you’ll know what I did and had the players do.”

In the second half, it was noticeably more apparent that PJ put himself in different positions and got the ball a lot more in the high, left, and right posts, giving him more freedom to score and to pass out for better looks. 2Small Ball Lineup.

2. Small Ball Lineup

While Calipari didn’t specifically mention this in the press conference a small ball lineup was definitely implemented on Tuesday night. With PJ going to the bench with foul trouble and with Reid still out this game, Kentucky was given the perfect opportunity to test it out. While the lineup wasn’t the best defensively, the Cats, and more specifically Keldon Johnson were more aggressive and drove it to the basket more frequently. “We worked on it in practice,” Keldon said after the game.

Naps

During the telecast, ESPN sideline reporter Laura Rutledge made a note that Kentucky players are now taking “30-minute naps” to recover from the gruesome schedule. “Trying to deal with it, they’ve all decided they need to sleep a little bit more,” said Rutledge, late in Tuesday night’s game. Ashton Hagans responded, “I never really took naps until I got to college, but I’ve learned that any type of rest is helpful.”

With the good win against Ole Miss, Calipari reached 300 wins and will look to make 301 on Saturday against the Florida Gators on Senior Day. Let’s home the Cats take a quality nap and get a good win in the last game of the regular season.