Saturday Headlines: Beat A&M Edition

Good morning and happy Saturday BBN!

The Kentucky Wildcats are coming off of two straight victories and looking to push that winning streak to three games. They have a tough task ahead of them welcoming a hot red Texas A&M Aggies team into Rupp Arena.

After a rocky start that included losses to Wofford, Colorado, Murray State, Boise State and Memphis, Buzz Williams’ team has won seven straight and are 5-0 in the SEC. They’ve blown out Missouri, LSU, and South Carolina and beat Florida twice by a total of five points. It seems like A&M have found their calling card and it’s on the defensive side of things.

While Kentucky earned a Quad I win against Tennessee and had arguably their best half of the season outscoring Georgia 51-29 in the second half, Kentucky fans decided to find something to argue over rather than enjoying the wins.

Point guard Sahvir Wheeler became the center of the argument as it looked evident that the team operates better when he plays reduced minutes. Some fans decided to bash the kid while other fans, including myself, took up for Wheeler. His teammates even had to make public statements in his defense.

I’m not going to deny that I think this team is at it’s best when Cason Wallace is running the show. But Wheeler has a role and he absolutely has value on this team. He makes mistakes, but who on this team doesn’t? And it’s a nice luxury to have an SEC starting caliber guard ready to go in reserve. There are many teams that would LOVE to have this problem: ask our “friends” down the road in Louisville about not having enough guards.

I feel like Kentucky wins the game but I haven’t bought into this team lock, stock and barrel quite yet. There is some improvement and Oscar looks back to form but I need to see more of it before I make any bold proclamations.

Tweets of the Day

Sharpe had to be separated from Tee Morant... Ja Morant’s dad. The two hugged it out after the game.

John Calipari has taken a lot of heat from fans this season and some of it is understandable. It’s nice to see some good feelings from both sides for once.

Headlines

Know your opponent: Texas A&M Aggies | Cats Pause- The numbers say this will be a Quad II win and the Cats need to start piling this up.

UK vs. A&M predictions | Cats Illustrated- BBN is back on the good feelings bus for the time being.

10 facts about Buzz Williams | KSR- Buzz has always been a different kind of dude and I’ve always liked him as a coach.

A&M arrives and Kentucky revives | SDS- People are ready to start buying into Kentucky. Imagine if the Cats welcome the Jayhawks to Rupp next Saturday after winning four in a row? That crowd will be insane.

Cason Wallace emerging as the team leader | Vaught’s Views- Cason Wallace is the second best player on the team, an NBA lottery pick and had the keys to the starting point guard position flipped to him so this is a great development.

Big Blue Preview: Cats vs. Aggies- A companion guide if you are heading to Rupp Arena this afternoon. 2:00 PM is the ideal tipoff for a basketball game, right?

Mel Kiper comes out swinging in defense of Will Levis as a top ten draft pick | Barstool Sports- I loved what Will Levis did at UK as a QB and he’s the best talent that the Cats have had at the position since Andre Woodson. But I’m one that is skeptical of him being a first round draft pick. He has the physical tools but his decision making was extremely poor at times.

Notre Dame coaching candidates | CBS- Say what you want about Rick Pitino, and let me say I totally get it, but his name should absolutely be on this list.

Divisional round picks and predictions | ESPN- Give me Bengals over Bills in an epic game; Niners over Cowboys big; Chiefs over Jags big; and Eagles over the Giants in one too close for comfort for Philly fans.

Join me on an abbreviated edition of the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife UK Postgame Show on ESPN 680. We have Bellarmine basketball at 4:45 so we will go about 30 or 40 minutes to break down the game and take your calls and texts.