Kentucky Wildcat Basketball Preview: Non-Conference Schedule Edition
The Cats will embark on their journey to the Final Four this Friday night when they take on Marist for the first official game of the season. I have broken down the 15 non-conference games into three sections of five and I have highlighted the marquee games in that section.
No doubt the Wildcats have one of the toughest schedules in the country to start the season. After all, they play Kansas in only their second game.
11/11- vs. Marist- Lexington, Kentucky
11/15- vs. #15 Kansas- New York City, New York
11/19- vs. Penn State- Ucannsville, Connecticut
11/20- vs. Old Dominion/South Florida- Ucannsville, Connecticut
11/23- vs. Radford- Lexington, Kentucky
Kansas is the obvious standout in the first five games for the Wildcats in this part of the breakdown. The Jayhawks check in at #13 in the preseason AP top 25. This looks to be a bridge year for KU, as the Morris twins have both departed for the NBA and Brady Morningstar finally graduated. Jordan Juneman is the only senior that is returning to the team. Kansas pulled in the 29th ranked recruiting class according to Rivals but did not land a player in the top 20. Kansas will be trying to find itself and might be running into a buzz-saw as the Cats look to have found some intensity and grit.
The talent and experience is clearly in favor of Kentucky, but the bright lights of Madison Square Garden can intimidate younger players. But don’t forget, John Calipari likes the big stage and MSG was where John Wall announced his greatness to the world in a stunning game against UConn two years ago. The Jayhawks will be overwhelmed with the overall ability that the Wildcats bring to the table.
Prediction: 5-0 in this section of the schedule
11/26- vs. Portland- Lexington, Kentucky
12/01- vs. St. John’s- Lexington, Kentucky
12/02- vs.#1 North Carolina- Lexington, Kentucky
12/10- at Indiana- Bloomington, Indiana
12/10- vs. Chattanooga- Lexington, Kentucky
This is the toughest portion of the non-con schedule as three teams are highlighted here, North Carolina being the standout.
St. John’s- This game was originally thought to be a showcase of young talent as the Red Storm compiled the third ranked recruiting class according to Rivals. Coach Steve Lavin successfully recruited four four star forwards with Domonique Pointer, Amir Garrett and Jakarr Sampson. But, unfortunately for St. John’s, Sampson, Garrett and five star center Norvel Pelle did not clear NCAA academic eligibility and have been declared ineligible for the entire season. Six out of the 10 players for Lavin are freshmen. I know the Wildcats are loaded with freshmen, but luckily they have elite upperclassmen to compliment them, the Johnnies do not. Look for experience to overcome in this match up.
#1 North Carolina- If there is a basketball equivalent to the Alabama/LSU Game of the Century, this is it. The Tarheels are loaded with freshman talent as well as returning superstars, just like the Wildcats. They rank one spot ahead of Kentucky in the preseason polls and I cannot argue that too much.
UNC is returning a fearsome front court with Harrison Barnes, Tyler Zeller and John Henson, three guys that skipped out on the draft in order to return. Sophomore point guard Kendall Marshall turned it on last season after liability Larry Drew II left the team. Throw in freshman phenom James McAdoo and a very good supporting cast, then you have what might be UK’s toughest game all season long.
But the game is in Lexington and John Calipari does not lose in Lexington. NBA scouts will be drooling over the wealth of talent on the floor and the game will be evenly matched for the most part. Terrence Jones is better than any forward the Tarheels have and, in my opinion, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is better than Barnes. Barnes was almost a flop last season after foolishly being picked as a preseason All American as a freshman. He did have some outstanding games as the season wore on, but I’m still not believing the hype when it comes to Barnes.
The match up that will decide the game will be between the guards. Can Marquis Teague match Marshall point for point and move for move? If UK pulls this one out, then they set themselves up as heavy favorites to win it all.
Indiana- This once great rivalry game is on the verge of becoming irrelevant as the Cats have dominated the series as of late, having won the last three in a row by dominating fashion. IU does have the 27th rated recruiting class, the crowning jewel of the bunch being Cody Zeller.
But Zeller can not do it all by himself, and Maurice Creek and Christian Watford will not be enough help for the Hoosiers to win this one. The only danger I see here is if the Cats have a letdown on the road after the North Carolina game. I don’t think that will happen, but you never know.
Prediction: Cats again go 5-0, squeaking one out against North Carolina and winning the rest quite handily.
12/20- vs. Samford- Lexington, Kentucky
12/22- vs. Loyola (MD)- Lexington, Kentucky
12/28- vs. Lamar- Lexington, Kentucky
12/31- vs. #9 Louisville- Lexington, Kentucky
1/03- vs. Arkansas-Little Rock- Lexington, Kentucky
The only game on this portion on the schedule that will pose an iota of a problem will be Louisville. Obviously we know that the game against the Cards is going to be one of the most highly anticipated games of the year, only behind North Carolina.
I’m not focusing on the rivalry between Pitino and Calipari, that’s been well documented by most bloggers and media outlets already, I want to focus on the players. Louisville is returning most of their team and have added Wayne Blackshear, Chane Behanana and Kevin Ware to the team as major recruits. The problem is only one out of those three looks like he will play. Ware is currently academically ineligible and Blackshear is out until February with a recurring shoulder injury.
I think the Cards #9 ranking is a bit overzealous. They overachieved all last year and it showed as they were ousted in the first round of the tournament. Senior Preston Knowles provided the bulk of the scoring for the Cards, and when he went out against Morehead State in the tourney, we all saw what happened. Louisville does not have any one player that can pick up his scoring slack.
Pe
yton Siva is much smaller and less tenacious than Teague, Gorgui Dieng might be the most overrated player in the country, and Kyle Kuric is, well, Kyle Kuric. He is OK but he will have Miller or Kidd-Gilchrist to contend with, which will be too much for him to handle. Behanan is the real deal but Terrence Jones’ athleticism and experience will overshadow anything Chane will try and do.
I look for the Cards to have a couple of losses before they meet the Cats. The atmosphere in Rupp will be electric and I don’t think the Cards will be able to handle it. I look for a comfortable UK win, as John Calipari will have this team ready to eat bullets before this game. And I’m not talking about the Elisha Justice variety either.
Prediction: Again, the Cats are 5-0 with this schedule.
Recap:
I see the Cats as being 15-0 after the non-con games. The only games that I see the Cats maybe losing is against Kansas because it is a very early and much hyped game somewhere other than Rupp; and against North Carolina because of the above mentioned reasons. The rest of the games I see as being rather lopsided, even the Louisville game.
South Florida may be able to give them a bit of a scare and the Hoosiers may catch them on a let down, but don’t expect it. The intensity level with this bunch seems to be unwavering.
Anytime the Cats play this year will be must see TV for college basketball fans.
Top 5 most difficult:
1. UNC
2. Kansas
3. Louisville
4. St. John’s
5. Indiana
Top 5 most anticipated:
1. UNC
2. Louisville
3. Kansas
4. St. John’s
5. Indiana
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