UK Wildcats Basketball: Good, Bad, & Ugly vs Miss. St.

Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky picked up its 8th conference win, and 18th overall, today in Starkville, beating Mississippi State 69-59. With that win, the Wildcats have now won 3 straight; 6 of their last 7; and 10 of their last 12. A matchup with SEC leading Florida looms next Saturday night in Rupp but first, Kentucky must travel to Auburn next Wednesday night and take on a Tigers team that has won 3 of their last 4 since dropping their first 6 conference games. But there will be plenty of time to worry about both Auburn and Florida. For now, let’s review the good, the bad, and the ugly versus Mississippi State.

The Good: Jon Hood. I tweeted back in October/November that before season’s end Jon Hood would make a major contribution in a game and save UK’s rear. Today, that prediction came true. His stat line would appear mediocre, at best: 13 minutes, 1-4 shooting for 3 points, 2 rebounds. But this is an example of where his contribution to the game isn’t necessarily reflected in the box score. To anyone who watched the game, it was impossible not to recognize how important his 13 minutes were to Kentucky leaving Starkville with a victory. On an afternoon when James Young was mostly ineffective, Hood was able to come in and provide some much needed stability. Revealing Jon Hood Stat of the Day? According to Brett Dawson, Hood’s +/- for the game was +15, the highest of any guy on the team today. Jarrod Polson deserves recognition as well for his play. Without him and Hood, UK likely loses to the Bulldogs, virtually eliminating their chances of winning the SEC.

The Bad: Most of the starters seemed to be simply going through the motions today, an observation made by Calipari following the game. Maybe they were still asleep (it was a 12:30 tip in Starkville today). Maybe they all had something on their mind. Maybe they just underestimated Mississippi State. Whatever it was, another game where Kentucky could have—should have—put their opponent away but instead allowed them to hang around. On a positive note, the Bulldogs never got within seven points. As close as the game seemed, the result wasn’t ever really in doubt.

The Ugly: Andrew Harrison played 15 minutes. In those 15 minutes, he picked up 5 fouls. And although he scored 5 points, had 3 assists, and turned the ball over twice, his was largely a non-factor thanks to being in foul trouble all afternoon. When Andrew plays well, the team plays well and unlike at the other 4 positions on the court, Calipari doesn’t have the luxury of subbing him out and replacing him with an elite pro prospect. That isn’t intended to be an insult to Polson or Hawkins, both of whom have been excellent options off the bench. But the truth is if Kentucky is to make that late season run everyone believes they are capable of making, Andrew simply has to be on the court, giving 100% effort, directing this team. He is the only guy on the team to have a either negative +/- or 0 in all 5 of UK’s losses and a positive +/- in their 18 wins. If Andrew has a game against Florida like he had today, UK will struggle to beat the Gators.

What was the good, the bad, and the ugly for you? Sound off in the comments or tweet me @couch_dad