KSR Today: Kentucky in the Garden, Cloudflare in the gutter

by: Drew Franklin16 hours agoDrewFranklinKSR

madison-square-garden — Jan 17, 2014; New York, NY, USA; A general view outside Madison Square Garden prior to the start of the game between the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Clippers. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Good morning, Big Blue Nation. We’re experiencing technical difficulties at KentuckySportsRadio.com this morning due to a Cloudflare outage that’s disrupted parts of the internet today, including Twitter/X and KSR. Hopefully it’s resolved soon, because it’s a big day for us and the Big Blue Nation. In the meantime, I’m up early with a cup of coffee, trying to write through the chaos and keep the morning rolling. Let’s get you ready for the day as best we can.

Kentucky plays No. 17 Michigan State in the Garden tonight

Kentucky returns to the Champions Classic tonight at Madison Square Garden, opening the doubleheader before Kansas–Duke. The Wildcats (3-1) bring five double-figure scorers into the matchup, led by Denzel Aberdeen‘s 15.3 points per game. Aberdeen also has a new role as the team’s lead point guard with uncertainty around Jaland Lowe.

Michigan State enters at 3–0 with wins over Colgate, No. 14 Arkansas, and San Jose State. The Spartans lean on senior forward Jaxon Kohler, averaging 14.3 points and 13.3 rebounds, and point guard Jeremy Fears Jr., who leads the nation with 9.3 assists per game.

Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Kentucky opened as a 5.5-point favorite.

Kentucky’s record in the Champions Classic

Kentucky enters Tuesday’s Champions Classic meeting with Michigan State fresh off a much-needed breakthrough in the event. Last season marked Mark Pope’s first appearance in the Champions Classic, and he delivered immediately, coaching the Wildcats to a 77–72 come-from-behind win over Duke in Atlanta. Pope’s impressive debut snapped Kentucky’s four-game Champions Classic losing streak, giving the program its first win in the showcase since 2019 and only the second win over Duke since the 1998 Elite Eight.

11/12/2024 – Duke: W 77–72 (Atlanta, GA)
11/14/2023 – Kansas: L 84–89 (Chicago, IL)
11/15/2022 – Michigan State: L 77–86 (2OT) (Indianapolis, IN)
11/9/2021 – Duke: L 71–79 (New York, NY)
12/1/2020 – Kansas: L 62–65 (Indianapolis, IN)
11/5/2019 – Michigan State: W 69–62 (New York, NY)
11/6/2018 – Duke: L 84–118 (Indianapolis, IN)
11/14/2017 – Kansas: L 61–65 (Chicago, IL)
11/15/2016 – Michigan State: W 69–48 (New York, NY)
11/17/2015 – Duke: W 74–63 (Chicago, IL)
11/18/2014 – Kansas: W 72–40 (Indianapolis, IN)
11/12/2013 – Michigan State: L 74–78 (Chicago, IL)
11/13/2012 – Duke: L 68–75 (Atlanta, GA)
11/15/2011 – Kansas: W 75–65 (New York, NY)

Denzel Aberdeen and Malachi Moreno preview the trip

Ahead of the trip to New York, Denzel Aberdeen and Malachi Moreno sat down for a Monday press conference to preview tonight’s matchup. Aberdeen discussed settling into his new role as Kentucky’s lead point guard, while Moreno talked about his early-season growth as an emerging true freshman in the rotation. You can watch both of their full interviews here. (I can’t embed the video due to our circumstances.)

Mo Dioubate’s homecoming game

Tonight is a special one for Mouhamed Dioubate, who returns to his hometown for his first collegiate game in New York. The junior forward from Queens expects a big crowd of family and friends in Madison Square Garden, calling it a “full-circle moment” and a dream to finally play on the Garden floor.

Dioubate is coming off his best performance as a Wildcat, a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double against Eastern Illinois.

The KSR Pregame Show begins at 4 p.m.

We’ll have everything you need to get ready for Kentucky and Michigan State when the KSR Pregame Show hits the air at 4 p.m. from right here in Lexington. Tune in for updates, predictions, and whatever silliness Ryan Lemond brings to the table before the Cats take the stage in Madison Square Garden.

The Cats dropped out of the Top 10 while Kentucky WBB climbed three places

In this week’s AP Poll, Kentucky slipped from No. 9 to No. 12 following last week’s loss to Louisville. On the women’s side, Kenny Brooks’ team continued its early-season climb, moving up from No. 23 to No. 20 after a strong start to the year.

Kentucky WBB hosts Purdue in Lexington

No. 20 Kentucky Women’s Basketball is back home tonight, hosting Purdue at 7 p.m. inside Historic Memorial Coliseum, the team’s last home game until December 7. Fans are encouraged to wear blue, with several student giveaways on tap, including clear bags, student “Basketball Heaven” shirts, pom-poms, and prizes like AirPods and men’s basketball tickets.

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On the court, unbeaten Kentucky enters the game averaging 85.2 points per game while holding opponents to just 45.2, thanks to elite rim protection and a nation-leading 10 blocks per game. Clara Strack leads the country with four double-doubles, and Tonie Morgan ranks second nationally in assists. Purdue (2–1) comes in off a one-point loss at Purdue–Fort Wayne and will face its toughest defensive test yet against the Wildcats’ length and pressure.

Deron Rippey cut Kentucky from his top five

Four-star 2026 point guard Deron Rippey Jr. trimmed his list on Monday, and Kentucky did not make the cut. Rippey, a top-30 national prospect, had included UK early in his recruitment, but the Wildcats were ultimately left off his updated group. He’s the player who walked past a live KSR broadcast on his visit to campus a couple of months ago.

Governor’s Cup kickoff time announced

In football news, we learned the kickoff time for this year’s Governor’s Cup. Kentucky and Louisville will kick things off at noon ET on ACC Network, giving the rivalry an early start on the final Saturday of the regular season. Not exactly a national spotlight, but it’s a chance for the Wildcats to close the year with a win over the Cards, and bowl eligibility could be on the line in the season finale.

Cutter Boley named SEC POTW yet again

Kentucky quarterback Cutter Boley picked up SEC Freshman of the Week for the third straight week after another efficient performance in Saturday’s 42–10 win over Tennessee Tech. Boley completed 18 of 21 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown, added a 30-yard rushing score, and posted an 85.7% completion rate, the best by a UK quarterback with at least 20 attempts since 1986.

Boley has now thrown a touchdown in four straight games, led the offense to six touchdowns on eight drives, and is completing nearly 69% of his passes this season. Over the last three weeks (Auburn, Florida, Tennessee Tech), he’s combined for three SEC weekly honors by playing the best football of any freshman quarterback in the conference.

Writing this with busted internet is hard

Thank you for reading this, assuming it ever made it online in the first place. Hopefully, the internet gods cut us a break soon, because the day deserves to get a whole lot smoother before Kentucky takes the floor tonight.