SEC Weekly Wrap Up
I have to say that I thoroughly enjoy watching those Kentucky Wildcats more than the ones we saw a week ago. Kentucky got back to what they are great at, defending with energy. It is known that the Wildcats are not only the biggest team in the SEC, but the biggest in the country making it tough to score on them. When they are playing full throttle for the four to five minutes that they are in, this team is unbeatable. Kentucky held Missouri to just 37 points, and on the road held a (12-4) Alabama team to just 48 points!
What the staggering defense did was lead to great offense. Often times this season Kentucky has struggled to score the basketball and needed their defense to bail them out. This week in the SEC the Wildcats scored a combined 156 points while holding their opponents to a combined 85 points. That is 1 point less than the Cats scored on Tuesday against the Tigers of Missouri. Credit a lot of the offense to a much improved Dakari Johnson, and the .507 percent 3 point shooting Devin Booker.
“It’s like I’m shooting into the ocean now,” said Booker, who made 3 of 6 from long range. “It’s really coming easy for me.”
Around the league in the SEC there were a few upsets in the action of play. There are a few teams who as Kentucky Fans were hoping could stay strong during SEC play to make the conference look better. Outside of the SEC many just think the conference is weak, but the reality is that the conference is on the rise and the worst team can beat anyone at any time.
Just this week Florida lost on the road to Georgia, while LSU was not able to get a home win against Texas A&M. The worst thing that happened was Arkansas dropping two games this week. One was a significant loss to an Ole Miss team who pushed Kentucky to the limit. Like it or not for the SEC, Kentucky will be the only ranked team heading into Monday’s Top 25 poll.
Jan 13, 2015; Lexington, KY, USA; The Kentucky Wildcats bench celebrates during the game against the Missouri Tigers in the second half at Rupp Arena. The Kentucky Wildcats defeated the Missouri Tigers 86-37. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports
Next up for the Kentucky Wildcats is the Vanderbilt Commodores who are currently sitting at (11-6) and (1-3) in conference play. The game will take place in Rupp Arena where the Cats have not lost this season… oh wait they haven’t lost all year. The game is at 9 p.m. eastern time and with the way Kentucky is playing now, I don’t like Vanderbilt’s chances. Kentucky takes this one easily 74-46.
After their home stand in Lexington, the Cats will travel to South Carolina to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Gamecocks are (10-6) this season and (1-3) in conference play. One of their losses was a close one at home to the Florida Gators that could have gone either way. Under Head Coach Frank Martin, the gamecocks were able to beat a top ten team in Iowa State. Expect Colonial Life Arena to be sold out next Saturday when the Wildcats come to town. It will be close early, but Kentucky will pull away in the second half, Kentucky 66 South Carolina 50.