Kentucky and Mississippi Valley State: Post game wrap up

Sean Woods received a huge ovation from the Rupp Arena crowd when he was announced as head coach for the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils, but that’s about all he got. The reception he received on the court was not as friendly as the Kentucky Wildcats cruised over the Delta Devils 85-60 in Rupp Arena tonight.

The game wasn’t a blow out all night though in a game that was close in the first half. The Cats opened up in a press and worked it a few times, causing some turnovers and making some easy baskets, but they also had some lapses on defense that can’t be there against a top caliber opponent. The Delta Devils worked the clock when they broke the press and waited for the UK defense to make a mistake, and when they did they pounced, after the first media timeout it was a 10-10 tie.

The game remained the same over the next few minutes, the teams traded baskets and it was a three that Darius Miller gave up because he didn’t close out when Calipari called a timeout with 13:53 left in the game, shortly after Kentucky would begin their run.

With the score tied 20-20 with 7:43 left in the first half, Brandon Knight cut to the basket and got a layup, and it was all Wildcats from there until the end of the half. Kentucky got several turnovers off the press that led to easy buckets in transition for Doron Lamb and Knight.

To cap off the 24-4 run by the Wildcats, with time winding down in the first half Josh Harrellson grabbed a rebound with seconds ticking off the clock and tossed the ball to mid court where a waiting Knight was standing. Knight heaved the ball up right at center court and the ball banked off the backboard and went in as time expired.

The second half started with much of the same from Kentucky except they began to pound it inside with Terrence Jones, who left the game with nine minutes remaining in the first half due to two inexcusable fouls. Although Jones finished with a team high 19 points, he never really found his spots on the floor and Coach Calipari in his post game press conference said that the points that Jones had scored was “not real” and he needed to show up and play earlier in the game instead of going out with foul trouble.

Jones would leave the game with 16 left to play when he picked up his third foul, and the Cats would play a sloppy stretch of basketball until Darius Miller stepped up and nailed a floater in the lane, then the Wildcats grabbed a loose ball, tossed it out to Knight who tossed it to Miller for a huge three followed by a charge on the other end put the Cats up 57-31 with 12 minutes to play.

Although Miller’s stat line showed he played well with 14 points, five assists, two blocks and three rebounds. Coach Calipari after the game said the stats were good but Miller was STILL A BETTER PLAYER. It’s obvious Coach wants more out of Miller, and who could blame him, in the first half the defense literally was playing off in the paint on Miller begging him to shoot.

After a quick 7-0 run by the cats led by Deandre Liggins, with 6:44 remaining in the game, the action was on the other end of the floor opposite of the Kentucky bench when Coach John Calipari was busted with a technical foul for being out of his coaches box, the crowd rained boos down on the referee but they would have a lot more to boo for in less than 20 seconds.

As soon as the ball crossed back over half court from the previous technical foul on Calipari, he got ANOTHER one called on him for the same thing. As the referee ejected Calipari, Coach went to the scorer’s table and gave the referee an ear full before leaving to a standing ovation from the crowd at Rupp Arena.

After the game Calipari said it was the first time he had ever been ejected from a game and that he was surprised he was tossed since he had “said no more than two words to the referees all game.”

The tossing of their head coach did not have a “Hoosier” like ending to it, but with a block by Knight on a fast break attempt and an outlet to Miller, he lobbed it up to Jones for a monster jam that put a stamp on the game and the Cats roll 85-60

Leading scorers for the Cats was Jones with 19, Miller and Knight both with 14, Liggins with 16, Harrellson with 4, Eloy Vargas with 2 and Lamb with 16 off the bench.

Leading the way for the Delta Devils was D’Angelo Jackson with 17, Jason Holmes and Kevin Burwell with 10 a piece, Orlando Smith with 4, Falando Jones with 6, Terrence Joyner with 2, Mark Holmes with 3 and Paul Crosby with 8.

Interesting notes:

Randall Cobb and Danny Trevathan came out during a time out to a tremendous applause, as they left the crowd chanted “one more year”

The crowd went BESERK when Calipari left the arena after being ejected, I mean it was loud.

Joe B Hall’s ceremony was really cool, Hall brought a couple of players out on the floor and looked around and said. “I should have won more games”

That’s all from Rupp Arena. Have a good night.

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