UK is usually ranked higher by the AP than by Ken Pom, but that's not the case now. UK is number 11 on Ken Pom, but number 18 in the AP Poll. The Cats are 26-9 when ranked number 18. The best win they ever had in that slot took place on March 16, 1972, when the number-18 Cats stunned number-7 Marquette 85 to 69 in the Mideast Regional Semifinals in Dayton, Ohio. That was also the last game Adolph Rupp won as coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. Two days later, on March 18, 1972, number-10 Florida State blitzed the Cats 73 to 54 to end Coach Rupp's career. Rupp's last trip to the Final Four took place in 1966, but he reached the Elite Eight in 1968, 1970, and 1972, losing each time. Basketball is hard.
Here is Ken Pom's top 10:
ReplyDelete1. Gonzaga: 10-2 (4 in the AP)
2. Baylor: 11-0 (1 in the AP)
3. Purdue: 11-1 (3 in the AP)
4. Houston: 11-2 (12 in the AP)
5. Kansas: 9-1 (6 in the AP)
6. Duke: 11-1 (2 in the AP)
7. Arizona: 11-1 (9 in the AP)
8. UCLA: 8-1 (5 in the AP)
9. Tennessee: 9-2 (14 in the AP)
10. LSU: 12-0 (16 in the AP)
The AP Top 10 features three teams outside of Ken Pom's top 10:
ReplyDelete7. USC: 12-0 (Ken Pom has them at 21)
8. Iowa St: 12-0 (Ken Pom has them at 45)
10. Michigan St.: 10-2 (Ken Pom has them at 17)
I'm preparing for UK's first conference game of the year by listening to "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" by Darrell Scott.
ReplyDeleteI think "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" should be another state song for Kentucky. I like pairing it with "My Old Kentucky Home." Together, they show that whether you go or whether you stay, life as a Kentuckian is not easy.
DeleteThey're showing Arkansas at Mississippi State on the SEC Network, and they just showed these two boys sitting up in the stands in Starkville. They were probably about 10 years old, and one of them was wearing a Mississippi State 2021 College World Series Champions baseball cap. I was happy for him, but sad for Vandy.
ReplyDeleteTwo very cool things about Mississippi State's gym: (1) in the end zones, they have painted the word "STARKVEGAS," and (2) all around the floor, they have painted the names of every county in Mississippi.
ReplyDeleteI have never been to Starkville, and I would love to go.
DeleteWith 16:29 left in the game, Mississippi State leads Arkansas 44-38. Ben Howland is doing a solid job in Starkvegas.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the home court advantage like in the SEC? Out of 32 Conferences, here's how the SEC ranked in home team winning percentage from 2010 to 2020:
ReplyDelete2010: 10th
2011: 20th
2012: 2d
2013: 4th
2014: 2d
2015: 28th
2016: 2d
2017: 18th
2018: 5th
2019: 27th
2020: 7th
For the most part, these numbers are too high -- they indicate that, as most of us suspect, the officials are helping with "home cooking." In 2015, 2017, and 2019, the winning percentage of the home teams was pulled down by some really horrific teams -- such as Vandy's 0-18 conference record in 2019. And of course, UK's nine road wins in 2015 also pulled down the home teams' winning percentage. But the bottom line is this: Unless you're really great, or your opponent is really bad, it's harder to win on the road in the SEC than in other conferences. And that's on the officials.
DeleteWith 9:48 left, Mississippi State leads 61-49. Arkansas started out at 15 on KenPom and won their first 9 games. Now they're at 44 and dropping.
ReplyDeleteKen Pom has the SEC as the third-strongest conference, behind the Big 12 and the Big 10. The SEC hasn't finished higher than 4th in Ken Pom's conference rankings since 2007, when it was second.
ReplyDeleteKen Pom has UK beating Missouri 79-60 tonight. I hope that UK wins and that no one gets hurt. In 2019, UK was on a tremendous roll when it went to Missouri on February 19. The Cats looked awesome, and led 48-28 early in the second half. But Reid Travis got hurt in that game, due in large part to Mizzou's usual physical tactics, and that team was never quite right again.
ReplyDeleteArkansas has fallen apart -- MSU leads 72-57 with 4:11 left. Ken Pom thought MSU would win 74-70. Something's wrong with the Hogs, but my guess is that they'll figure it out before they play UK.
ReplyDeleteMississippi State wins 81-68, and does so in less than two hours, meaning that UK fans can see the entire UK-Mizzou game, which is coming up next on the SEC Network. That almost never happens. Thank you Mississippi State!
ReplyDeleteUK jumps out to an 11-2 lead with 17:35 left in the first half. Mizzou calls time.
ReplyDeleteCats lead 14-4 with 15:48 left in the first half. Brooks and Wheeler each have four points, Washington and Grady each have three. They look very sharp.
ReplyDeleteAnd then Mizzou goes on a 12-0 run. The Tigers now lead 18-17 with 12:15 left, and Cal has to call time. Missouri is red-hot right now.
ReplyDeleteCats lead 21-18 with 7:52 left in the half. Cuonzo Martin is home with COVID, but this is turning into a typical Cuonzo Martin-type game. Missouri just throws itself all over the floor and is out-hustling UK everywhere. The Cats have already made six turnovers and are taking too many jump shots.
ReplyDeleteCal's angry with everyone, and keeps switching the roster around, which always messes up the offense.
ReplyDeleteCats now on an 18-4 run of their own, and now lead 35-22. Here's how you have to play a Cuonzo Martin team. First, wait 20 seconds while they dribble the ball. Second, don't let them get offensive rebounds. Third, work the ball inside and get fouled. Fourth, make free throws. Cats now 10-12 from the line and looking about as good as you can look against a Cuonzo Martin team.
ReplyDeleteCats lead 44-27 at the half. Brooks has 11 points and 4 rebounds. Washington has 10 points and 3 rebounds. Wheeler has 7 points and 6 assists. Tshiebwe has 6 points and 8 rebounds. Cats go 11-21 from 2-point range, 4-10 from three-point range, and 10-12 from the line. Mizzou goes 9-24 from 2-point range, 3-11 from three-point range, and 0-1 from the line.
ReplyDeleteMissouri has outrebounded the Cats 20-19, which is disappointing but not surprising, given how physical they are. But they have committed 12 turnovers to 6 for UK.
ReplyDelete44 points is a lot against a team as slow as Mizzou.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, Auburn leads LSU 32-21 at the half in Auburn. If that continues, it would be a very solid result for Auburn.
ReplyDeleteUK comes out flat, misses two dunks, and generally looks out of sync. Grady hits a very pretty three, but that's about it. Cats lead 48-36 with 15:29 left.
ReplyDeleteRemember, though: We have two goals tonight: (1) Win, and (2) no injuries. There's never much beauty or glory in a Mizzou game.
ReplyDeleteCats lead 55-43 with 12 minutes left. It's just a long grind, and UK's big guys are not sufficiently talented to score inside against Missouri's bruisers without being fouled.
ReplyDeleteKansas scored 102 points in 72 possessions against Mizzou. They made 14-27 three-pointers and 22-32 free throws, which is extremely impressive.
ReplyDeleteWheeler is carrying UK right now. He's the only one who knows what to do against this defense -- he just keeps driving the ball over and over. He scores on one drive and sets up Brooks for a dunk on another. UK leads 59-45 with 9:15 left.
ReplyDelete63-50 with 7:09 left. UK isn't going to get the 19-point win Ken Pom projected, so they'll be falling in the rankings.
ReplyDeleteWhat this game shows is that UK's half-court offense still doesn't work all that well. They can't get the ball to Washington (10 points) and Grady (6 points) as often as they should. On the other hand Mintz and Brooks have combined for 17 shots, which is too many for those two.
ReplyDeleteAnd there we go -- the Cats put on a 10-0 run, and they lead 73-52 with 4:03 left. Tshiebwe has had a very frustrating night -- he's 2-10 from the field, but he has 13 points and 18 rebounds. Washington got more active, and he now has 14 points. Brooks has been popping in his old-school jumpers -- he's 7-10 from 2-point range, and he has 17 points and 8 rebounds.
ReplyDeleteI'm really proud of UK for grinding out this game. Now let's finish strong!
ReplyDeleteCats finish strong, and beat Missouri 83-56. Tigers were finally worn out down the stretch, and UK just kept playing hard. Tshiebwe finishes with 13 points and 20 rebounds. Brooks had 17 points and 8 rebounds. Washington had 14 points and 6 rebounds. Wheeler had 11 points and 9 assists. Grady had 8 points.
ReplyDeleteUK out-rebounded Mizzou 49-35, and the lead really opened up down the stretch when Missouri got tired and UK got all the rebounds. UK goes 23-48 from 2-point range, 5-17 from 3-point range, and 22-26 from the line. Mizzou goes 17-42 from 2-point range, 5-25 from 3-point range, and 7-10 from the line.
ReplyDeleteI'm really happy with this result. Ken Pom had us winning by 19, we won by 27, so we should be moving up.
ReplyDeleteSo the Cats play High Point (and Tubby Smith) on New Year's Eve, and then they head to LSU for a Huge Game on January 4.
ReplyDeleteLSU was the last undefeated team in the SEC, but they're going down tonight. Auburn leads LSU 64-50 with 2:45 left.
ReplyDeleteAlabama and Tennessee will only play each other once in the regular season, and that matchup is tonight in Tuscaloosa.
ReplyDeleteAuburn rolls past LSU 70-55.
ReplyDeleteKen Pom had Alabama winning tonight 75-73, but the Vols lead 33-26 with 2:43 left in the first half.
ReplyDeleteAlabama comes back and ties the Vols 33-33 at halftime.
ReplyDeleteDown 63-57 with about 5 minutes left, Alabama outscored UT 16-5 the rest of the way. The Tide rolls 73-68, although they clearly benefited from being at home, and from the fact that UT had two starters out due to COVID.
ReplyDeleteKentucky moves up to number 9 on Ken Pom, while UT falls to number 11.
ReplyDelete