Kentucky basketball: Game preview, 3 keys vs Florida
By Drew Koch
The Kentucky basketball team wraps up the regular season against Florida in Gainesville on Saturday afternoon. Can the Wildcats keep their winning streak alive against the Gators?
The Kentucky basketball team is looking to close out their 2017-18 regular season on a high note. The Wildcats have won 4 straight games and go on the road to face Florida on Saturday afternoon. The Gators squeaked out a 66-64 win over UK earlier this season and the Cats will be looking for revenge this weekend.
John Calipari has talked repeatedly this season about how young this Kentucky basketball team. Now while Coach Cal has been accurate in his assessment, this is nothing new for the UK coach. Every year Calipari brings in top talent and molds them into a great team. Up until about 2 weeks ago, this year’s team was looking at a first-round exit in the NCAA Tournament.
Now, 4 games and 4 wins later, Calipari has these kids peaking at just the right time. Calipari has shortened his rotation, has his guys playing hard-nosed man-to-man defense and the offense is finally clicking. The Cats are averaging 87.8 points in their last 4 games. During the 4-game losing streak, which is now a distant memory, UK was only scoring 64.8 points per game. That’s an astounding 23 points per game difference. Wow!
This is not the same Kentucky team that fell to Gators at Rupp Arena earlier this season. Jarred Vanderbilt was playing in only his second game and played only 13 minutes. Also, Quade Green had missed the previous 3 games with a back injury. Green was a paltry 1-of-8 in the game.
With revenge on the minds of the Wildcats, nothing would please Big Blue Nation more than ruining Florida’s Senior Day. Can Quade Green stay hot? Are the Cats ready for a hostile road game? Check out our game preview.
Date – Saturday, March 3, 2018
Time – 12:00 PM ET
Location – Gainesville, Florida
TV – CBS
Radio – UK Sports Radio
Live streaming – CBS Sports