This Week in Kentucky Basketball: Moving On + Feast Week

Prior to the season, cautious optimism was abound throughout Big Blue Nation. We saw Kentucky Basketball run through their Bahamas trip and put together two impressive performance in preseason exhibition games. Then, they beat Howard 95-63 and Duquesne 77-52 in week one. Despite missing reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe, the Wildcats were playing very good basketball.

In week two, the schedule got much tougher. The ‘Cats made the trip to Indianapolis for the Champions Classic on Tuesday and lost a heart-breaker in double overtime to Michigan State 86-77. On Sunday night, Gonzaga got the best of Kentucky 88-72. A 106-63 win over South Carolina State sandwiched in between hardly even registers in the minds of fans at this point.

After a busy three-game week including two losses, the Kentucky Basketball program will get some deserved rest during the holiday week. A game against North Florida on Wednesday evening will serve as a bounce back spot for the ‘Cats. However, this week is more about moving on than anything else. Looking in the rearview mirror, beyond actual film study and breakdown, doesn’t really do any of us any good. Additionally, on a national level, Feast Week brings some of the best games of the entire season.

Top Kentucky Basketball Storyline: Finding Our Level on the Panic Meter

On one hand, losing a neutral site game in double overtime to Michigan State and a road game at Gonzaga is hardly cause for panic. However, Kentucky Basketball fans expect more. That is especially true after a 9-16 season followed by a catastrophic first round loss to Saint Peter’s. Many fans and media members point to offensive issues as the root of many current problems. Kentucky’s defense also allowed Gonzaga to shoot 56.4% from the field on their way to 88 points on Sunday night. Promises of improved shooting have been met with CJ Fredrick and Antonio Reeves going a combined 5-22 from three-point range in losses to the Spartans and Bulldogs.

It seems like finding optimism wouldn’t be that hard. Oscar Tshiebwe continues to be a dominant force inside. He has had 22 points and 18 rebounds followed by 20 points and 15 rebounds in the two losses. Cason Wallace continues to look like a potential star in the making. As a team, the Wildcats have blasted the three other teams they have faced this season. However, many Kentucky Basketball supporters will say that they have seen this song and dance before. Beat the people you are supposed to beat, win a couple big games to create some hope, lose a handful of close games to good teams, then suffer disappointment in March.

As with anything, different people will look at the current state of the Kentucky Wildcats in different ways. Some see a team still ranked #4 in KenPom with a pair of losses away from Rupp Arena against very good basketball teams. Others will see it as “here we go again” from the last two seasons. The answer is probably somewhere in the middle. The rest of the calendar year will answer a lot of questions. Kentucky still plays Michigan in London, UCLA in Las Vegas, and Missouri on the road to start SEC play in 2022. There is still time to get this all figured out before the grind of conference play begins in the new year.

This Week in Kentucky Basketball: North Florida Ospreys

This somewhat obscure Division I team should at least be somewhat familiar to Kentucky Basketball fans. The North Florida Ospreys came into Rupp Arena last season and lost 86-52 in game that featured 16 rebounds by Oscar Tshiebwe, 14 assists by Sahvir Wheeler, and team-leading 14 points from Dontaie Allen. North Florida went on to finish 11-20 last year, 7-9 in the ASUN.

The Osprey’s best player, a Mt. Sterling, Kentucky native, is back for his fifth season in Jacksonville. Cater Hendricksen is a versatile 6’7″ forward that has been named an All-ASUN performer twice in his career and amassed over 1,100 points. Unfortunately for Coach Matthew Driscoll, there isn’t much talent outside of Hendricksen in the North Florida locker room. So far this season they have lost 104-63 to Gonzaga, 75-67 to Washington, and beaten South Carolina State 72-66. We will get another chance to see them on Monday evening against a common opponent in Duquesne.

Around the Southeastern Conference

Half of the Southeastern Conference remains undefeated. Missouri leads the way with a 5-0 mark featuring their talented group of transfers. The Tigers non-conference schedule leaves a lot to be desired, but Coach Dennis Gates has his team playing an exciting brand of basketball. We likely won’t learn too much more about them this week either as they play host to Coastal Carolina and Houston Christian.

Mississippi State has arguably been the most impressive SEC team to date. Coach Chris Jans has the Bulldogs playing elite defense and senior big man Tolu Smith is playing at a very high level. They are 4-0 with an impressive neutral floor win over Akron and an absolute beatdown of South Dakota on Thursday. Their toughest test of the season thus far will come on Monday night as they play Marquette in the Fort Myers Tip-Off.

As part of Feast Week, several SEC teams will travel for tournament play this week. On Monday night, LSU tips off in the Cayman Islands Classic, Arkansas is in the Maui Invitational, and Georgia takes part in the Sunshine Slam. Auburn will begin play in the Cancun Challenge on Tuesday night against Bradley. Then, on Wednesday, Tennessee gets started in the Battle 4 Atlantis and Vanderbilt plays in the Wooden Legacy. Later in the week, Ole Miss will play in the ESPN Events Invitational and both Florida and Alabama participate in the Phil Knight Invitational.

National Games to Watch

Monday, November 21st

#10 Creighton vs. #23 Texas Tech @ 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Maui Invitational

#9 Arkansas vs. Louisville @ 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Maui Invitational

#7 Duke vs. Bellarmine @ 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ACC Network)

#11 Texas vs. Northern Arizona @ 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Longhorn Network)

#17 San Diego State vs. Ohio State @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Maui Invitational

#14 Arizona vs. Cincinnati @ 11:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Maui Invitational

Tuesday, November 22nd

#13 Auburn vs. Bradley @ 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time (CBS Sports Network) Cancun Challenge

Wednesday, November 23rd

#4 Kentucky vs. North Florida @ 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

#6 Kansas vs. NC State @ Noon Eastern Time (ESPN) Battle 4 Atlantis

#21 Dayton vs. Wisconsin @ 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) Battle 4 Atlantis

#5 Baylor vs. McNeese @ 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

#12 Indiana vs. Little Rock @ 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

#22 Tennessee vs. Butler @ 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Battle 4 Atlantis

#20 Michigan vs. Jackson State @ 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

#8 UCLA vs. Pepperdine @ 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Pac 12 Network)

Thursday, November 24th

#1 North Carolina vs. Portland @ 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) Phil Knight Invitational

#7 Duke vs. Oregon State @ 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) Phil Knight Legacy

#25 UConn vs. Oregon @ 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) Phil Knight Invitational

#18 Alabama vs. Michigan State @ 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) Phil Knight Invitational

Friday, November 25th

#2 Gonzaga vs. Portland State @ 12:30 a.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) Phil Knight Legacy

#12 Indiana vs. Jackson State @ 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

#16 Virginia vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore @ 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ACC Network)

#19 Illinois vs. Lindenwood @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time

#15 TCU vs. California @ 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time (CBS Sports Network) Emerald Coast Classic

Saturday, November 26th

#3 Houston vs. Kent State @ 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

#11 Texas vs. UT Rio Grande Valley @ 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (Longhorn Network)

Sunday, November 27th

#13 Auburn vs. Saint Louis @ 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (SEC Network)

#8 UCLA vs. Bellarmine @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time