In a night of craziness in college basketball, the Kentucky Wildcats Men’s Basketball team improved to 6-0 on Tuesday night after beating the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers 87-68. It was not the best performance the Cats have put up all season, but they found a way to continue to grind out points during their cold shooting night. The Cats are officially champions of the BBN Invitational, winning the matchup of remaining undefeated teams (Lipscomb and Jackson St. were also participating if this is the first you have heard of the BBN Invitational).
For the first time all season the Cats looked,,, human? Coming in as a 42.3% three-point shooting team, the 2-12 start from distance (finished at just 27.6%) caught everyone in Big Blue Nation by surprise. The mobility of Western’s undersized front court really bothered the Kentucky centers early, with the 5-spot accounting for five first half turnovers. Eight minutes into the game, WKU hit a three to cut their deficit to three, marking the first time the Cats did not roll over a mid-major team to start the game. From there, two blocks by Jaxson Robinson and an emphasis on getting to the rim led them to only allowing six points in a nine-minute stretch. The offense came alive for a quick run and the Cats took a twelve-point advantage into halftime despite the rough start offensively.
When the shots weren’t falling tonight, the Cats locked in on being disruptive defensively. Mark Pope has said he wants opponents anywhere under 40% from the field, something the team accomplished for the sixth consecutive game to start the season. The pace of both teams made the Hilltoppers total points look respectable, but the visiting team managed only 0.907 points per possession on 31.8% shooting. The Cats also had as many blocks (7) as WKU had assists on the night.
Otega Oweh and Andrew Carr led the way scoring wise for the Cats with 18 points each. Lamont Butler was the only other player to find the double-digit mark, finishing with 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists. Carr finished with 10 rebounds to secure the double-double, tying Amari Williams for the team high on the boards (Williams added four blocks as well).
Pope’s first squad finally slept-walked through a lower-level opponent. Despite the bad shooting night, the Cats managed to “grind” their way to 87 points, a number most teams only get to on their best days. The bounce-back opportunity comes Friday night as Georgia State travels to Rupp Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 7PM EST so get out and support the Cats if you find yourself getting tired of the family.
