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If anyone was thinking the Kentucky Wildcats would not take this Arkansas Razorbacks team seriously, I think they are officially disabused of that risible notion after that half of basketball. Kentucky was ice cold from the outside, and they still brutalized the Hogs, going into the half with a 16-point lead that should be easily ten points bigger.
To be fair, Arkansas shot the ball very badly from the outside. Some of that was due to Kentucky’s defensive effort, but some of it was just Arkansas missing open shots. Sometimes it’s hard to tell what a good shot is for the Razorbacks, because they throw up some wild ones.
First half stats
HALFTIME: #Kentucky 42, Arkansas 26. Lyles with 12, Andrew Harrison with 11 to pace Cats. pic.twitter.com/HH2aTHXMzx
— Jeff Drummond (@JDrumUK) February 28, 2015
I don’t think there’s any doubt that Trey Lyles has arrived. Like most freshmen, he has had ups and downs getting to this point, but now he’s literally oozing confidence and with his combination of size and skill, the Razorbacks simply have nobody big enough to guard him.
Kentucky missed way too many free throws in the first half, and that could come back to haunt them. The Razorbacks are not going to just come out, salute the big "K" flag, and lay down for Kentucky. The Wildcats must come out with the same chip on their shoulder that they apparently had in the first half, because the Hogs are more than capable of coming back from this.
Let’s get this done. Go, ‘Cats!