Kerr Kriisa's pregame dance before beating Duke is all of BBN today

Kerr Kriisa isn’t the only reason there’s more energy than usual around the Kentucky men’s basketball program, but he certainly knows how to ramp up the excitement a few notches. The Big Blue Nation was treated to the full Kriisa experience on Tuesday night in Atlanta. They’ll be hoping it’s a season-long show.

Looking at the box score of Kentucky’s 77-72 upset win over Duke, Kriisa’s numbers don’t exactly stand out. Six points on 2-9 shooting (including a 2-7 clip from deep) and two rebounds in 17 minutes. No assists after racking up a dozen of them in the previous game against Bucknell. But Kriisa’s value and impact can’t be quantified by simple counting stats.

You must account for the aura.

We should have known Kentucky was in for a special night at the Champions Classic when Kriisa was dancing around pregame, looking loose as a goose ahead of a massive, primetime matchup. I’ve watched this video upwards of 45 times already this morning. I’ve scheduled myself to watch it again every five minutes over the course of the next 6 hours. You should do the same.

Kerr Kriisa 🤣 https://t.co/SyRT4qX303 pic.twitter.com/moI5kL8vQc

— Rare Rookies #BBN (@rarerookies) November 13, 2024

Kriisa was being everything we were told he was when he initially committed to Kentucky by way of the transfer portal — before, during, and after the Duke win. He was doing the John Wall dance in the pregame tunnel. He was firing off finger guns during the game, clapping in the face of Duke players (while adjusting his mustache), and hitting timely shots. Kriisa’s three-pointer with 5:28 left in the game put Kentucky down just one, the closest UK had been since the 8:23 mark of the opening half.

After the game was over, Kriisa brought out the claw celebration while assistant coach Cody Fueger hugged him from the side. He pumped his fist to the crowd all the way to the locker room. He even tried to go see the Duke fans trash-talking his mustache after the final buzzer, but they were nowhere to be found.

“The ‘stache did the work,” Kriisa said on the Field of 68.

Keep the celebration going, BBN. Kriisa would want you to.

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