Kam Williams thrives in new lineup as Kentucky rolls
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A breakout performance by Kam Williams gave No. 12 Kentucky a different look on Friday as the Wildcats bounced back from their disappointing effort earlier this week in the Champions Classic.
Williams, a sophomore forward who transferred to UK from Tulane, earned his first starting assignment with the Cats and responded with a stat-stuffing performance in an 88-46 win over Loyola (Md.) at Rupp Arnea.
The 6-foot-8 Williams stepped in at the 4 position after Mouhamed Dioubate rolled an ankle in the loss to Michigan State, recording 13 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals in the romp.
“He’s been interesting since the get-go in practice,” Kentucky head coach Mark Pope said of Williams. “His stat line has been really interesting. He just shows up in every category of the stat line.
“… He is a stat stuffer, and he does it quietly sometimes. We need him to be great. He’s going to be great by the end of the season.”
Williams said he has been working on expanding his game since arriving at UK.
“You can’t really limit yourself to one thing,” he said. “You know, not making shots doesn’t mean you just shut down and not do anything else. I want to play, so anything you tell me to do on the court, I’m going to do it because I want to play as much as I can.”
“I thought Kam was awesome tonight,” UK sophomore guard Collin Chandler said. “He played super-well. He just does so many things that a lot of guys can’t do with how athletic he is and how he can space the floor. He makes the game easier for everybody else because of the gravity he pulls on offense and his length and rebounding on defense.”
Added senior guard Otega Oweh: “He’s probably the second-best defender we’ve got, as far as athletic ability, and once he starts hitting shots, he’s going to be a matchup nightmare at the 4 spot… For our whole offense to really go the way it’s supposed to go and mesh and gel, he’s going to be big for that.”
Oweh also had a productive game, bouncing back from a rough night in New York City. He finished with 11 points, five rebounds, three steals, and two assists.
Three other Cats had double-figure scoring — Malachi Moreno (10), Denzel Aberdeen (11), and Chandler (13) — while Jasper Johnson and Andrija Jelavic each added nine on a balanced scoring night for Kentucky (4-2).
Moreno was the other change in the starting lineup for UK, replacing junior center Brandon Garrrison. Pope liked how both players responded.
“I’m not really a message guy,” Pope claimed. “Everything that we do is very direct and intentional…. Malachi has been playing well. Maybe the best story of the night, guys, the story you look for is BG’s response, he’s an 11 rebound guy, I don’t think he’s done that all season, has he?
“BG was an incredible example tonight of learning and holding onto that lesson at least for one night. Like, hey, coach decided not to start me, and I’m going to go be unbelievable in my 20 minutes off the bench. And he was. He wasn’t perfect, but his effort was great, especially in the second half. The starting change was all of those things.”
The Cats shot 48.7% from the field and knocked down 10 of 27 shots from beyond the arc. They also dished out 21 assists and held a 56-33 rebounding advantage.
Kentucky led 50-20 at halftime and by as many as 48 points on the night.
“I take my hat off to Kentucky,” Loyola head coach Josh Loeffler siad. “That’s a team that’s responded to a bit of adversity lately… That’s a heckuva basketball team that was locked in tonight.”
Loyola (2-5) was led by junior guard Tony Cicero Jr. with seven points off the Greyhounds’ bench. The visitors shot just 29% from the field and went 7-of-33 from the arc.
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In our regular postgame feature, Cats Illustrated touches on some quick-hitters from the UK victory…
GAME BALL:
Kam Williams, Kentucky — The sophomore transfer from Tulane responded to his first starting assignment for the Wildcats with his best peformance to date. He had a team-best +40 in the plus/minus column.
BY THE NUMBERS:
2-0 – Kentucky’s lead in the all-time series with Loyola (Md.).
9 – Players with six-plus points for the Cats.
10 – Three-pointers made by UK. The Cats are 18-4 under Mark Pope when reaching double-digit treys.
17:25 – Time played in the first half before a foul was called.
24-2 – Points off turnovers advantage for the Cats, who had 11 steals on the night.
33-3 – Fast-break points advantage for Kentucky.
46 – Points by Loyola were the fewest by any UK opponent this season.
QUOTABLE:
“I took it super-personal. That wasn’t the way we wanted things to go, so every time I get to play, it’s a new opportunity to change the script. It was really just trying to play flip the switch.” — UK senior guard Otega Oweh on wanting to make amends for a poor performance in the Champions Classic against Michigan State.
UP NEXT:
Kentucky returns to action on Wednesday against Tennessee Tech with a 7 p.m. ET tipoff at Rupp Arena on the SEC Network.