Good teams win on the road, plain and simple. Every elite team you will watch this season has the ability to win on the road and shut the crowd up during a big run. Kentucky just doesn’t have that this year and really has only won one true road game. I’m not counting Portland here because the line on the game may have been like six points in the Cat’s favor but Portland did not have the talent to handle the Cats. I’m also not counting the Maui games because Kentucky had the home court advantage in every game. In three true road games the Wildcat’s are 1-3 and something about that has got to change, because the road just doesn’t get easier from here. Let’s take a look at the remaining road games for Kentucky.
South Carolina: This team has the recipe for disaster for Kentucky, and has something in common with the rest of the teams it plays, a good athletic front court which isn’t exactly dominate, but can block shots and score. Sam Muldrow has had big games against Kentucky in the past, but they don’t have a guy like they did last year like Devan Downey who could single handedly beat Kentucky. Along with the athletic Muldrow, they have a very talented backcourt with two guards named Ramon Galloway and Bruce Ellington who each shoot around 40 percent from three. Kentucky could very well get surprised two years in a row against the Gamecocks in Colombia. This one is a MUST WIN for the Wildcats.
Ole Miss: I think this one game or the Arkansas game may be the easiest for Kentucky, but Ole Miss has one of the best scorers in the SEC right now in Chris Warren, the kid is a stud. Scoring about 18 points a game he can fill it up against the Wildcats. As team they don’t do anything particular well as only one guy blocks more than one shot per game and only two guys get over five rebounds per game. You shut Warren down and let the other guys beat you. They lack the athletes that the other teams have had that have beaten Kentucky this season.
Florida: If Kentucky can win this game then this will define their season on the road. Sure they would have dropped two early games to Alabama and Georgia, but Florida, on the road not to mention it is a college game day coverage game which will mean the crowd will be rocking. The Gators have four very good players and they have the starting five that is just as good, if not better than Kentucky’s. Vernon Macklin will absolutely give Kentucky fits if they let him because he is a load inside, and I’ve given the statistic that big men against Kentucky have averaged 22 points 10 rebounds and three blocks against Kentucky and I’ve watched Macklin a few times this year, he has the chance to double those numbers if Kentucky plays poorly. We all know Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton can score at will, we saw that last year and probably the x-factor in all this, Chandler Parsons and Alex Tyus are both solid. This will be the toughest game of the season to date for Kentucky, despite the effort that Florida had against Auburn tonight…They only scored 45 points tonight.
Vanderbilt: This will be the next toughest road game for Kentucky in my opinion. John Jenkins is one of the best players in the conference and shoots the three ball at over 40 percent. The biggest problem for Kentucky will be Festus Ezeli who has established himself as one of the best big men in the conference. Plain and simple, Vanderbilt has the same roster that it takes to beat Kentucky this year, and on the road it’s going to be tough for Kentucky to win. Plus we ALWAYS have problems at Vanderbilt, I can’t remember the last time we won big there.
Arkansas: The fighting Rotnei Clarke’s aren’t very good and seem to live and die by weather Clarke has a good game or not and he has never really had a big game against Kentucky yet. That being said, he may be one of the best shooters in the conference, behind John Jenkins, it’s probably up in the air of which one of these is actually the better shooter, but you’ve always got to keep him in check, because if he is in the game, then Arkansas is most likely in the game.
Tennessee: I’m going to be honest I’ve watched the Vol’s play on several occasions this year and even when they are playing good basketball and winning by doing it, I’m not worried about them at all. They have Brian Williams who is a bum inside and Scotty Hopson has a big game every now and then for them and they have freshman Tobias Harris who may have a big game or two in a row, but the way the Vol’s play isn’t like the UT teams we have seen in recent years. They try and attack the basketball relentlessly and haven’t been able to find their three point stroke against poor teams. I like us to win in Knoxville and win big, I think this is the third easiest road game for the Cat’s.
There’s a look at the rest of the road games for Kentucky, Calipari better hope that his Cat’s don’t get homesick.
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