Kentucky Fights Hard, But Loses to Tennessee, 27 February 2010

Kentucky came in on an 8-game win streak while the Tennessee Volunteers had been sliding lately.  The game started off with Kentucky scoring the first 4 points, but that’s when it all started to turn around.  Tennessee went on a run and found themselves up by double-digits for most of the half.  The score at half-time was 40-29 in favor of the Tennessee Volunteers.

Tennessee started the second half maintaining and eventually building their lead.  The Tennessee Volunteers went up by as much as 19 points before Kentucky made their run.  Kentucky was able to tie the game at 65 in the late minutes of the game, but couldn’t get another point the rest of the way.  Tennessee won the game by a score of 74-65 over the Number 2 ranked Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
John Wall - 19 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists (5 turnovers)
DeMarcus Cousins - 15 points, 14 rebounds, 2 blocks
Patrick Patterson - 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks
Eric Bledsoe - 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist (3 turnovers)
Darius Miller - 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 1 assist

The refs didn’t help the Cats out much with some of their bad calls, but the main reason Kentucky lost this game was their poor field goal shooting.  The Cats only shot 35% from the field, including a meer 9% from 3-point land (2 of 22).   This is not a huge loss for the Cats, they are still good for a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament.  Especially if they can finish the rest of their season strong.

The Cats’ next game is on the road again, against the Georgia Bulldogs at 8:00p.m. on March 3rd, 2010.

Kentucky Gets Revenge Against South Carolina, 25 February 2010

The South Carolina GameCocks have been the only team able to beat the Kentucky Wildcats so far this year, but that was in South Carolina.  Tonight’s game was held in Rupp Arena, so could Kentucky get their revenge?

The basketball game started with the Kentucky Wildcats on a mission.  The Wildcats were able to get a small lead and carry that all the way to half-time.  The lead would have been 14 points at half-time by the Cats, but Devan Downy (SC) was able to hit a deep 3-pointer as time expired in the first half.  Patrick Patterson and DeMarcus Cousins were leaders for the Cats at half-time.

Kentucky started the second half holding strong, but Devan Downey started to get hot.  Downey had a stretch where he scored 7 straight points for the South Carolina GameCocks.  The GameCocks were able to get back in the game behind Downey.  Kentucky let the lead dwindle to 6 before they went on a spurt to put the game away with about 7 minutes left in the game.  The Wildcats cruised the rest of the way through the game.  The final score of the game was 82-61 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
Patrick Patterson - 23 points, 8 rebounds, 4 blocks, 2 steals
DeMarcus Cousins - 19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists
John Wall - 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals (6 turnovers)
Daniel Orton - 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals
Eric Bledsoe - 8 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks
Darius Miller - 7 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks
DeAndre Liggins - 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 assist

The Kentucky Wildcats looked good in their revenge against South Carolina.  The Cats shot 50% from the field and 75% from the free throw line in an easy win against the GameCocks.  Devan Downey (South Carolina) was still able to get 26 points in the game, but it didn’t matter.  The Wildcats go to 27-1 overall and 12-1 in the SEC.

The Wildcats next game is at Tennessee against the Volunteers on Saturday, 27 February 2010.  The game is set to kick-off around 12:00p.m. (EST).

Another Tough Game for Kentucky at Vanderbilt, 20 February 2010

The Kentucky Wildcats came into Vanderbilt after a huge scare against the Mississippi St. Bulldogs on Tuesday night, but the Cats were able to survive in that game.  The Wildcats are on a 6-game winning streak after their first loss of the season in South Carolina, but hardly any of the games have come easy.  Would this game be another tough game for the Wildcats?

The first half of the game was horrendous for both teams on the offensive end.  Kentucky only shot 40% from the field, while Vanderbilt only shot 29% from the field.  With all those misses, surprisingly enough, there wasn’t that many rebounds for both teams, Kentucky only grabbing 12 rebounds while Vandy pulled down 19 rebounds.  Kentucky only shot 50% from the free throw line in the first half, going 5-10 from the stripe, but amazingly, the Cats led at half-time by 2 points.  The score at half-time was 27-25 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

The second half would be much of the same.  Neither team was able to gather more than a 4-point lead in the second half.  The game was close all the way to the end.  Kentucky was up by 1 point with less than 10 seconds left, but Vanderbilt had the ball.  Vandy dribbled the ball down the court and attempted a 3-pointer, but John Wall was there for the defensive stop, getting the block, grabbing the ball, and getting fouled with only 2.5 seconds left.  John Wall couldn’t get the first free throw to go down, but did get the second.  Now, Kentucky had a 2-point lead, but the Commodores had another shot.  Vanderbilt was able to throw the ball down the court to Ogilvy cleanly. Ogilvy headed to the goal, shot a floater, but missed it as time expired.  Kentucky came away with the win by a final score of 58-56 in what was a thriller of a game.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
DeMarcus Cousins - 19 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 block (5 turnovers)
Patrick Patterson - 13 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists
John Wall - 13 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block
Eric Bledsoe - 8 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds
Darius Miller - 3 points, 2 rebounds, 1 block

Patrick Patterson came through in this game, not only getting a double-double, but also hitting a clutch 3-pointer in the final minutes.  This was a very sloppy and physical game, but Kentucky was able to come away with another win.  Hopefully, the next game won’t be so dramatic, but teams are getting more competitive with only a few games left before the tournament starts.

Kentucky’s next basketball game is at home against the South Carolina Gamecocks, the only team to beat the Wildcats so far this year.  The game is Thursday, 25 February 2010 at 9:00 p.m.(EST).

Kentucky Slips by Mississippi State in Overtime, 16 February 2010

The Kentucky Wildcats came into Mississippi St with a 24-1 (9-1 SEC) record on the season.  Mississippi State looked to knock off the Wildcats to build their resume for the NCAA Tournament.  The game started physical and continued that way throughout the first half.  The game was back and forth and Kentucky finished the half with a 32-29 lead.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs came out strong in the second half, but Jarvis Varnado (Miss St) picked up two quick fouls back-to-back to cause Mississippi St to go small, giving Kentucky the advantage inside the paint and on the rebounds.  The game would remain close throughout the rest of the game.  Mississippi State held a 7-point lead with only a few minutes left, but Kentucky was able to push the game into overtime.  The score at regulation was 67 apiece after DeAndre Liggins missed a last-second 2-point shot to send the game into overtime.

The overtime belonged to the Kentucky Wildcats.  The Wildcats outscored the Bulldogs 14-8 in the overtime.  The final score of the basketball game was 81-75 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
DeMarcus Cousins - 19 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block (5 turnovers)
Patrick Patterson - 19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 steal
John Wall - 18 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks (3 turnovers)
Darius Miller - 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 assist
Eric Bledsoe - 7 points, 1 block
DeAndre Liggins - 6 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
Daniel Orton - 2 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks

Some Mississippi State fans, in a classless act at the end of the basketball game, started throwing water bottles on the floor while the players were still on the floor.  Luckily, no player from either team was hit with the water bottles.  The Kentucky players and coaches were able to get off the floor with no incidents.

Kentucky was able to get a balanced scoring contribution from the Wildcat players.  Although the Cats didn’t shoot the ball well from behind the 3-point line, the Wildcats were able to dominate on the boards, out-rebounding the Bulldogs by 21 rebounds.

Kentucky’s next game is on the road against the Vanderbilt Commodores.  The game is scheduled on the 20th of February, 2010, at 6:00 p.m. (EST).

Kentucky Outlasts Tennessee at Home, 13 February 2010

It’s rivalry week in college basketball and there’s no bigger rivalry than the Kentucky Wildcats and the Tennessee Volunteers.  College GameDay (ESPN) found their way into Rupp Arena today and over 22,000 fans showed up for the occasion.  Over 24,000 fans found their way to the basketball game and most of them were wearing “blue” in support of the Big Blue Nation.

The game started with a series of mini-runs by both teams.  Kentucky was unable to get much going due to Tennessee’s 3-2 zone defense.  Tennessee used most of the shot clock on almost every one of their possessions in an attempt to slow the game down.  The game plan worked well as Kentucky was only able to get 30 points in the first half.  The score at half-time was 30-29 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.  John Wall had 9 points, but did not have any assists in the first half.  DeMarcus Cousins only had 4 points, but was able to pull down 7 rebounds in the first half.  The game was fairly even across the board at half-time.

Tennessee came out in the second half and executed their half-court game, continuing the 3-2 defense and holding the ball late within the shot clock on offense.  Tennessee’s strategy worked for about 32 minutes of the game, but the Kentucky guards, John Wall and Eric Bledsoe, started to come alive with about 8 minutes left in the game.  Kentucky went on a 16-4 run behind Bledsoe and Wall to seal the win for the Kentucky Wildcats.  DeMarcus Cousins was unable to get anything going on the offensive end and didn’t get his 8th straight double-double, but the Cats didn’t need him to produce to take the game over.  The final score of the basketball game was 73-62 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
John Wall - 24 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal (4 turnovers)
Eric Bledsoe - 16 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
Patrick Patterson - 10 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist
DeAndre Liggins - 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
DeMarcus Cousins - 5 points, 12 rebounds, 1 steal
Darnell Dodson - 5 points, 1 steal
Daniel Orton - 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks

DeAndre Liggins gave the Kentucky Wildcats good minutes off the bench.  Liggins is showing great hussle on the defensive end and contributing on the offensive end.  Bench play will become important for Kentucky to make a deep run in March.

The Wildcats’ next game is on Tuesday, 16 February 2010, at 9:00 p.m.(EST) against Mississippi State in Mississippi.

Kentucky Beats Alabama at Home, 9 February 2010

The Alabama Crimson Tide came into Rupp Arena on a 3-game skid while the Kentucky Wildcats have won their last 3 in a row.  Alabama jumped out to an early lead for about half of the first half, but Kentucky eventually took the lead.  The Wildcats were not able to put Alabama away in the first half, but did lead the rest of the half.  The score at half-time was 31-24 in favor of the UK Wildcats.

The second half started at a slow pace just as the first half had ended.  The Wildcats were able to maintain the lead throughout the rest of the basketball game, but Alabama made several mini-runs to get close.  Alabama was not able to sustain a good enough run to get them over the hump.  John Wall had a big scoring game, but had a lot of turnovers as well.  The final score of the basketball game was 66 to 55 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
John Wall - 22 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals (6 turnovers)
DeMarcus Cousins - 16 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
Patrick Patterson - 9 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
DeAndre Liggins - 8 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist, 1 block
Eric Bledsoe - 8 points, 4 assists (3 turnovers)

This was just one of those ugly basketball games that could easily be forgotten in the near future.  Both teams were not very impressive, but Kentucky was able to pull off the win.  There will be games like this and it is important that Kentucky comes out on top.

Kentucky’s next basketball game is on 13 February, 2010 at 9:00 p.m. (EST) against the Tennessee Volunteers in Rupp Arena.

Kentucky Blows Out LSU Behind DeMarcus Cousins, 6 February 2010

The LSU Tigers (9-13, 0-8 SEC) have not won a basketball game in the SEC this year and today did not look to be their first win.  The Kentucky Wildcats (21-1, 6-1 SEC) started the game slowly, but quickly turned it around and exploded against LSU.  DeMarcus Cousins (UK) continued his dominance in the paint, scoring 15 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in the first half.    Patrick Patterson added 8 points and 3 rebounds in the first half as the Wildcats dominated the paint and had a +17 rebounding advantage at half-time.   LSU could only muster up 14 points in the first half on 6 of 32 shooting for a field goal percentage of 19%.   The score at the half was 42-14 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

The LSU Tigers started the second half strong, but was unable to do any damage and could not cut into the lead by any significant amount.  The Wildcats held a comfortable lead the whole game, but did slack off a bit in the second half.  The final score of the basketball game was 81-55 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
DeMarcus Cousins - 19 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block
Patrick Patterson - 16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks
Eric Bledsoe - 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals
John Wall - 6 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds
Darnell Dodson - 8 points, 2 blocks, 1 rebound
DeAndre Liggins - 7 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 assist (4 turnovers)
Daniel Orton - 5 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block
Ramon Harris - 5 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 assist

The Kentucky Wildcats finished the game with a +24 rebounding edge, including +10 rebounding on the offensive end.  The Wildcats also had 12 assists, 8 steals, and 7 blocks, but did turn the ball over 15 times.  Overall, a good performance for the Kentucky Wildcats.  The Wildcats’ next game is on Tuesday, 9 February, 2010 at 9:00 p.m. (EST) against the Alabama Crimson Tide in Rupp Arena.

Kentucky Gets by Ole Miss at Home, 2 February, 2010

Ole Miss came into Kentucky ranked just outside the top 25 at number 26.  The Kentucky Wildcats looked to get their streak of consecutive wins back going for their 2nd win in a row.  The first half belonged to Kentucky early, but Mississippi was able to pull within 9 at half-time after Kentucky pushed the lead out to 18.  DeMarcus Cousins continued his consecutive double-double streak, now 8 in a row, after almost getting a double-double in the first half (11 points, 8 rebounds).  The score at half-time was 46-37 in favor of UK.

The Ole Miss Rebels made a few more runs in the second half, but was unable to pull within more than three points.  The Cats kept answering their run and were never really threatened throughout the basketball game.  DeMarcus Cousins, John Wall, Darnell Dodson, and Patrick Patterson led the way for the Wildcats, all scoring in double-figures for the game.  The final score of the game was 85-75 in favor of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Top Performers for Kentucky were:
DeMarcus Cousins - 18 points, 13 rebounds, 4 blocks
John Wall - 17 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block (4 turnovers)
Darnell Dodson - 14 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist
Patrick Patterson - 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks
Eric Bledsoe - 8 points, 8 assists, 4 steals, 3 rebounds (7 turnovers)
DeAndre Liggins - 5 points, 5 rebounds
Darius Miller - 5 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist
Daniel Orton - 4 points, 5 rebounds

Kentucky was able to break this game open early, but let Ole Miss hang around for the whole game, just winning by 10 points.  Kentucky had 21 assists on 31 field goals made, shooting 50% for the game.  The Cats also had 8 blocks and 6 steals, but finished the game with 17 turnovers (11 of them coming from Wall and Bledsoe).  This was a good win, but the Wildcats are still not where they want to be on the offensive and defensive end.  Look for them to pick it up as March rolls around.  Kentucky’s next basketball game is on Saturday, 6 February, 2010 at 4:00 p.m. (EST) at the LSU Tigers.