KSR Gameday: 'Cats take on Michigan in London

On3 imageby:Zack Geoghegan•12/04/22•

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It’s gameday in the UK for UK.

In just a few hours, Kentucky men’s basketball (5-2) will go head-to-head against the Michigan Wolverines (5-2) at the famous O2 Arena in London, England. Tipoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. EST and will be broadcast live on ABC. Jay Bilas and Karl Ravech will be on the call. This will be just the eighth matchup in history between these two programs.

With the England men’s national soccer team kicking off against Senegal in the FIFA World Cup’s Round of 16 just an hour after Kentucky’s game begins, it’ll be quite interesting to see how many fans step into the 20,000-capacity arena.

KSR has boots on the ground across the pond as our big boss, Tyler Thompson, has been enjoying plenty of warm beers while soaking in the British atmosphere over the last couple of days. KSR’s videographer, Steven Peake, also made the trip and got to work the moment he touched down.

Even on the other side of the world, blue still got in…

Ahead of Sunday’s game, the select media that made the trip were allowed a brief interview session with a couple of players to talk about everything surrounding the trip. Redshirt senior CJ Fredrick and freshman Chris Livingston broke down their experience so far in England along with what they expect out of Michigan later today.

A win today for Kentucky would push the program to 6-1 all-time in regular-season games played on foreign soil. It would also be the program’s first-ever victory in the United Kingdom.

Numbers to know

According to the numbers, Kentucky is coming into this one as a significant favorite. The betting odds are siding with the ‘Cats as the line is currently set at -9 in favor of UK. ESPN Analytics gives Kentucky a whopping 85.4 percent chance to beat Michigan while KenPom has the ‘Cats coming in with a 78 percent chance to secure the win.

Michigan is coming off a tight two-point loss to No. 3 Virginia earlier in the week, but the Wolverines haven’t done much to impress so far this season. Arizona State dominated UM by 25 and the Wolverines needed overtime to beat the Ohio Bobcats just a few days after that. Michigan also needed a full 40 minutes to take down Emoni Bates and Eastern Michigan by a final score of 88-83 early in the year.

All that being said, Hunter Dickinson is still playing like an All-American. The 7-foot-1 big man is averaging 19.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks for Michigan through seven games played while shooting over 58 percent from the floor. 6-foot-8 freshman guard Jett Howard, son of Michigan head coach Juwan Howard, is another player to watch closely. The younger Howard is averaging 15.1 points this season on 50.7 percent overall shooting and a 43.8 percent mark from long range.

Kentucky football will learn its bowl game fate

Football’s version of Selection Sunday has arrived, as all 41 postseason bowl games will be unveiled throughout the day as conference championship games wrapped up across the country.

For Kentucky, it’s sounding as though the Liberty Bowl (Memphis) or Music City Bowl (Nashville) are at the top of the list.

On paper, Music City is a bit of a predicament for the Wildcats, as that matchup is at the exact same time as Kentucky’s home basketball game vs. Louisville on New Year’s Eve (12 p.m. ET). According to KSR’s Matt Jones, though, UK may actually favor Nashville even through the scheduling conflict, assuming it is out of the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.

Looking at the latest national bowl projections and matchups, Nashville appears to be the likely spot, potentially against Illinois.

We’ll find out soon enough…

WBB takes on UNC Greensboro

For what feels like the millionth time this season, Kentucky women’s basketball will play a game on the same day as the men. In this instance, the two games actually tip off at the exact same time. What terrific planning!

Kentucky (5-1) is hosting the UNC Greensboro Spartans (4-3) inside Memorial Coliseum at 1:00 p.m. EST on the SEC Network+. The first 1,000 fans in attendance will receive a free pair of Kentucky-themed socks to celebrate National Sock Day — not a bad deal. Kentucky is returning from a 10-day break after a two-game trip to the Bahamas. In the escapade, UK narrowly fell to No. 9 Virginia Tech but responded with a blowout win over Dayton.

Check out Grant Grubbs’ full preview of today’s action here.

6 new state champions have been crowned

Late Saturday night, the sixth and final Kentucky high school football state champion — Frederick Douglass — was crowned to cap off a busy weekend at Kroger Field. It was the first state title for Douglass, which had been to the finals multiple times before but failed to win it all. The Broncos’ win put a bow on a thrilling two days that saw a historic upset, a couple of blowouts, and continued success from powerhouse schools.

KSR was on site for all six games to bring you immediate and top-tier coverage. Check out our full recaps from this weekend below.

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2024-04-23