This Week in Kentucky Basketball: Resting Up After Foreign Travels

On3 imageby:Brandon Ramsey12/05/22

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The Kentucky Basketball team plays just once this week and once next week. In the next 23 days the Wildcats will only play three games. The extra rest, and practice time, comes at a perfect point in the season leading up to the start of Southeastern Conference play on December 28th. Coach Calipari still has plenty to figure out with this team and just three opportunities for competition before the games start to matter even more.

Kentucky came away with a 73-69 win over Michigan at the Basketball Hall of Fame London Showcase. Closing out a close game against a good team the proverbial monkey off of the ‘Cats back. It also made the long flight home to Lexington much more enjoyable for everyone involved. Cason Wallace shot 4-4 from beyond the arc to share team-high honors with Jacob Toppin with 14 points. All five starters were in double-figures as Oscar Tshiebwe finished with 13 points and 14 rebounds while both Sahvir Wheeler and Antonio Reeves each scored 11 points. However, there were still some negatives from the Wildcats win across the pond. Namely, shooting 10-20 from the free throw line and turning it over 14 times against a non-pressuring defensive team. You can expect a lot of free throws to be shot over the next few weeks in the Kentucky Basketball practice facility.

It is Monday which means it is time to preview the upcoming week as it pertains to Kentucky Basketball. We will take a look at the top storyline surrounding the program, preview the Yale Bulldogs who the ‘Cats host on Saturday, and take a look the Southeastern Conference as a whole. Let’s dive on in.

Top Kentucky Basketball Storyline: Winning a Close Game Shows Progress

Coaches, players, and fans alike needed Sunday’s win over Michigan. It might not be a Top 25 team, but the Wolverines are a good ball club that will compete towards the top of the Big Ten this season. Lately, winning close basketball games hasn’t come easily for the Kentucky Wildcats. Notre Dame, Saint Peter’s, and Michigan State are among the games that come to mind recently were UK came up on the wrong end of a close one. However, the ‘Cats closed it out in London with a 73-69 win over the Wolverines.

The execution still wasn’t always there down the stretch, but it was good to get a win. Aside from leading the country in free throw shooting in 2020, Coach Calipari’s teams have generally not been great from the charity stripe in Lexington. That appears to be a real problem again this season which will make it hard to win close games. Through eight games, the Wildcats are shooting just 68.4% from the line which is 238th national. That is going to have to improve if Kentucky wants to close out other games as the competition continues to get tougher and tougher.

This Week in Kentucky Basketball: Yale Bulldogs

Kentucky will host the Yale Bulldogs on Saturday for their only game of the week. The Ivy League opponent may not draw a ton of excitement from the common fan, but this is a good basketball team coming to Lexington on Saturday. Yale actually is ahead of the ‘Cats in the first edition of the NET Rankings, 36th versus 42nd, and is currently 90th in KenPom.

We will get a look at Coach James Jones’ squad on Tuesday night when they take on Butler in what will be a big game for both programs. Yale lacks size and hasn’t been great from beyond the arc this season, but they are excellent from two-point range. Junior Matt Knowling is an undersized forward averaging a team-leading 17.3 points on incredible 68% shooting. He is a load to handle around the basket despite being just 6’6″. What shooting the Bulldogs have comes almost exclusively from two sources, John Poulakidas and August Mahoney. Those two are 23-48 and 17-36 respectively on the season from three-point range.

Especially at Rupp Arena, this obviously should be a win for Kentucky Basketball. However, it will be a solid test against a good team who ultimately could play in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season.

Around the Southeastern Conference

There are still three undefeated teams in the SEC as we enter the fourth week on the schedule. Missouri is out in front setting the pace at 9-0 while Auburn and Mississippi State are both 8-0. Missouri’s schedule hasn’t been very good at all, but they did survive their first real test with an overtime win at Wichita State last week. Now they have another big matchup this week when they host Kansas on Saturday. Coach Dennis Gates will have the place rocking for that rivalry game.

Auburn survived a couple of ugly offensive performances in recent wins over Northwestern and Saint Louis, but then broke out scoring 93 points in Friday’s win over Colgate. They will play Memphis on a neutral floor on Saturday. As for Mississippi State’s squad, they are getting the job done with one of the best defenses in college basketball. Under head coach Chris Jans, the Bulldogs have yet to allow more than 55 points in a game this season. They are set to travel to Minnesota on Sunday of this week.

Alabama, who sits at 7-1, has a marquee matchup to look forward to this week as they head to Houston on Saturday to face the #1 ranked Cougars. Can Coach Nate Oats’ fast-paced, three’s and free throw’s offensive approach take down arguably the best defense in college basketball? We will find out soon enough. LSU and Florida have big games coming up this week as well with matchups against Wake Forest and UConn respectively.

National Games to Watch

Monday, December 5th

#18 Gonzaga vs. Kent State @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time

#22 San Diego State vs. Troy @ 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Tuesday, December 6th

#2 Texas vs. #17 Illinois @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) at Madison Square Garden

#9 Arkansas vs. UNC Greensboro @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (SEC Network)

#1 Houston vs. North Florida @ 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

#3 Virginia vs. James Madison @ 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ACC Network)

#12 Baylor vs. Tarleton @ 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

Wisconsin vs. #13 Maryland @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2)

#15 Duke vs. Iowa @ 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN) at Madison Square Garden

Wednesday, December 7th

#4 Purdue vs. Hofstra @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time

#7 Tennessee vs. Eastern Kentucky @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (SEC Network)

#14 Indiana vs. Nebraska @ 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

Florida @ #5 UConn @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2)

Thursday, December 8th

#25 Ohio State vs. Rutgers @ 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2)

Iowa vs. #23 Iowa State @ 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time (FS1)

Friday, December 9th

#18 Gonzaga vs. Washington @ 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Saturday, December 10th

#17 Illinois vs. Penn State @ Noon Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

#5 UConn vs. Long Island @ 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time (FS1)

#2 Texas vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff @ 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (Longhorn Network)

#9 Arkansas vs. Oklahoma @ 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2)

#16 Kentucky vs. Yale @ 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (SEC Network)

Nebraska vs. #4 Purdue @ 2:15 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

#1 Houston vs. #8 Alabama @ 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ABC)

#19 UCLA vs. Denver @ 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (Pac 12 Network)

Saint Mary’s vs. #22 San Diego State @ 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+) in Phoenix

Memphis vs. #11 Auburn @ 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN2) in Atlanta

Missouri vs. #6 Kansas @ 5:15 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN)

#15 Duke vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore @ 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time (ACC Network)

#14 Indiana vs. #10 Arizona @ 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time (FOX) in Las Vegas

BYU vs. #21 Creighton @ 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time (FS1) in Las Vegas

Sunday, December 11th

#7 Tennessee vs. #13 Maryland @ 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time (FS1) in Brooklyn

#20 Iowa State vs. McNeese @ 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ESPN+)

Minnesota vs. #23 Mississippi State @ 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time (Big Ten Network)

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2024-03-27