A Sea Of Blue - Kentucky Wildcats Basketball vs Virginia Tech Hokies 2017Online Home of the Big Blue Nation: Kentucky Wildcats Sports for the Discerning Fanhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/46621/aseaof-fav.png2017-12-18T15:57:11-05:00http://www.aseaofblue.com/rss/stream/165258352017-12-18T15:57:11-05:002017-12-18T15:57:11-05:00The Good, The Bad and The Ugly vs Virginia Tech
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<img alt="Virgina Tech v Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/RnAnRJ0oByL_c9dZgGIlggB9XXo=/290x207:3112x2088/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58028091/893929324.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>A great win against a solid Hokies team could be the boost these Cats needed.</p> <p id="QMs6lM">The #8 <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a> improved to a record of 9-1 after their win this weekend against the (9-2) <a href="https://www.gobblercountry.com/">Virginia Tech Hokies</a>. The #8 Wildcats knew this would be a tough matchup against a strong outside shooting team, but the Cats kept it close by making 11 3-pointers of their own.</p>
<p id="EOt2Pk">These two teams are both top 25 worthy, and the Hokies proved that by pushing the Cats all night. With both teams going on multiple runs the Cats finished the game out going on theirs ending it 93-86. The Cats did play very well, but like always it wasn’t without some faults. With that being said let’s go over the good, the bad, and the ugly.</p>
<p id="QSeYOs"><strong>The Good</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="dJGHpV">
<strong>Defense- </strong>Virginia Tech is one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation, and the Wildcats held them to zero outside shots from the 1:48 mark in the 1st half until the 2:40 mark in the 2nd half. This dry spell from the Hokies gave Kentucky the opportunity to take command of the game, and they did not disappoint. This young team held the Hokies to 10 points below their nation-leading average of 96.2 ppg. The Wildcats also forced 19 turnovers leading to 36 points.</li>
<li id="4jwx8G">
<strong>3-Point Shooting-</strong> The Wildcats made a season-high 11 3-pointers, with six separate players making at least one each. In the first half alone the Cats made seven 3-pointers which is the most in a half this season. Coming into this matchup, these young players knew it would be a shootout and they stepped up to the occasion. <span>Hamidou Diallo</span> took Coach Cal’s advice to shoot more deep balls and went 4/7 from 3 for 12 points and made the game-clinching 3-pointer with 50 seconds left.</li>
<li id="78gCXa">
<strong>Playing Well from Behind-</strong> There were multiple instances, 11 lead changes to be exact, where Kentucky had to fight back from going down after just taking the lead and they didn’t lose confidence. For this young team to keep their heads up and push through is a great thing to see. Going into the 2nd half down 47-41 and then coming out hot for a 13-4 to take the lead. The game then got tied up only for UK to go on a 5-0 run and keep that lead for the rest of the game.</li>
<li id="Xfzpw1">
<span><strong>Kevin Knox</strong></span><strong>-</strong> Knox showed us again that he is the man that will lead this team in March. He led both team in points (21), 3rd in team rebounds, and 3rd in team assists. Knox shot 46% from FG, 83% from FT, and had two 3-pointers on the night. Knox’s two free throws with 8 seconds left sealed the outcome of the game & cemented his great night.</li>
</ul>
<aside id="lp7K1n"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"College Basketball 2017: AP Top 25 Poll and ESPN Power Rankings Updated","url":"http://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16790890/college-basketball-2017-ap-top-25-poll-espn-power-rankings-updated"},{"title":"John Calipari says Kentucky Wildcats will practice with same glasses as Quade Green","url":"http://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16792084/john-calipari-kentucky-wildcats-practice-glasses-quade-green"},{"title":"Hamidou Diallo wins weekly SEC Honor; Highlights of his big game vs Virginia Tech","url":"http://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16791766/hamidou-diallo-sec-honor-highlights-big-game-vs-virginia-tech"}]}'></div></aside><p id="PzPQmN"><strong>The Bad</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="ZVBJkY">
<strong>Shot Contesting-</strong> Although VA Tech was held to 86 points they still shot a very good 58.2% as a team. Their offense having 19 turnovers is the reason Kentucky walked away with a win.</li>
<li id="KXVG9X">
<strong>Rebounding- </strong>Kentucky out-rebounded VA Tech 33-30, but with UK being one of the tallest overall teams in the nation they need to be attacking the boards a lot more. A team like the Hokies shouldn’t be right there with them.</li>
<li id="zkw72o">
<strong>SGA’s Play as a Starter-</strong> <span>Shai Gilgeous-Alexander</span>, better known as SGA, normally comes off the bench to replace starter <span>Quade Green</span>. With Green’s recent eye injury, SGA was named the starter. SGA had 9 points, 0 rebounds, and one assist in 21 minutes as a starter. Quade Green off the bench, and wearing glasses, went for 17 points, one rebound, and five assists. This performance put a pretty big dent in Shai’s chances to take the starting position from Green permanently & made it hard for the starting good to get going in the 1st half.</li>
</ul>
<p id="dGDmrJ"><strong>The Ugly</strong></p>
<ul><li id="6KYvYI">
<strong>Early Perimeter Defense-</strong> Kentucky allowed VA to control the game early on letting them be the aggressors. The held the lead at the end of the half and kept Kentucky below 50% shooting in the 1st for the first time this season. Virginia shot 7/12 from behind the arc in the 1st half, but was then held to just 3/10 in the 2nd.</li></ul>
<p id="HpiX5I">The Wildcats next game will be against The <a href="https://www.bruinsnation.com/">UCLA Bruins</a> in the CBS Sports Classic. The game will be held on Saturday in New Orleans at the Smoothie King Center at 4 pm.</p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16791988/kentucky-basketball-good-bad-and-ugly-vs-virginia-tech-hokiesAlec Usleaman2017-12-18T14:43:06-05:002017-12-18T14:43:06-05:00Calipari says his team will practice with same glasses as Quade Green
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<img alt="Virgina Tech v Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oGDBmqPEEAqsy4YpqL2hV1ACICs=/134x259:2335x1726/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58026815/893929484.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Calipari even said he’ll petition the NCAA for it to happen. </p> <p id="z9UaOd">The Quade Green glasses fad is reaching new heights.</p>
<p id="dJwQfM">In case you missed it, Green donned a swaggy pair of protective eyewear during Saturday’s win over Virginia Tech, which had everyone abuzz for not just how crazy they looked, but also how well he played with them.</p>
<p id="Ixv017">In what was easily the biggest home game of UK’s season thus far, the freshman point guard played one of his best games of the season. Green finished with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including two critical baskets down the stretch, all while donning a pair of black glasses due to his eye injury.</p>
<p id="JJfNQa">That has inspired John Calipari and his Cats to start wearing those same glasses in practice from now on: </p>
<div id="BZzlJS">
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">In honor of Quade and how well he played with the sunglasses on Saturday, we’ve decided we’re going to practice the same way. We’re going to petition the NCAA to protect our eyes! <a href="https://t.co/BEcsWXnc6j">pic.twitter.com/BEcsWXnc6j</a></p>— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) <a href="https://twitter.com/UKCoachCalipari/status/942840263264874497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 18, 2017</a>
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<div id="HHzwoF">
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">If UK doesn't give the entire Student Section these glasses for the UL game, then I don't know what to tell them <a href="https://t.co/HuHKUVm3nD">https://t.co/HuHKUVm3nD</a></p>— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) <a href="https://twitter.com/KySportsRadio/status/942841448415801344?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 18, 2017</a>
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<p id="1crRw1">The movement has begun. </p>
<div id="Ij8Lcg"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.2493%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5Xc4-F-TOtw?rel=0&" style="border: 0; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div>
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https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16792084/john-calipari-kentucky-wildcats-practice-glasses-quade-greenJason Marcum2017-12-18T13:27:35-05:002017-12-18T13:27:35-05:00Diallo wins weekly SEC Honor; Highlights of his Virginia Tech outing
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<img alt="Virgina Tech v Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/U6h_SXlCmE5I94IBsg7lF5EYMZM=/0x0:3096x2064/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58025545/893929296.jpg.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Diallo is becoming a star, and he’s finally getting recognition for it. </p> <p id="6biz55">The <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a> have finally scored a weekly SEC award.</p>
<p id="utcDWs">On Monday, the league announced that <span>Hamidou Diallo</span> was named the SEC freshman of the Week after leading UK to a 93-86 win over Virginia Tech.</p>
<p id="UM1vBM">Diallo finished with 20 points, five rebounds, a team-high four three-pointers, and three steals. His four three-pointers and three steals were all career highs, but it was his big shots down the stretch that proved to be the difference in this contest. </p>
<p id="OQiefA">Ahead 75-71, Diallo made a three-pointer with 4:54 to go to give UK its then-largest lead of the game at 78-71. Then with UK leading 85-83 in the final minute, Diallo drilled another three-ball to secure the win. </p>
<p id="m4vZ5E">Diallo is averaging 20.3 points over his last four games and made 30 of 56 shots (53.6 percent) during that stretch.</p>
<p id="5GPuyN">The honor is the first of Diallo’s career, and it’s also the first weekly honor of the season for the Wildcats. It’s the deepest into a season UK has gone without winning an SEC honor in the John Calipari era. </p>
<p id="LutRYD">Here are the highlights of Diallo from this game, courtesy of Frankie Vision:</p>
<div id="EX9Xh5"><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.2493%;"><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NoikypbQQTs?rel=0&amp;start=13" style="border: 0; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no"></iframe></div></div>
<p id="y0jsrI"><em><strong>And be sure to </strong></em><a href="https://twitter.com/aseaofblue"><em><strong>follow our Twitter page</strong></em></a><em><strong> to get all of the latest Kentucky Wildcats news and views. </strong></em></p>
<p id="dKDG2O"></p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16791766/hamidou-diallo-sec-honor-highlights-big-game-vs-virginia-techJason Marcum2017-12-18T10:31:18-05:002017-12-18T10:31:18-05:00Seth Davis drops UK in his AP Top 25 Poll ballot
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<img alt="NCAA Basketball: SEC Tournament-Kentucky vs Georgia" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/1PDO8aFL7v8F6ZIta4J3XAj73DM=/500x548:5246x3712/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58022029/usa_today_9931123.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>UK beat a quality Virginia Tech team and still dropped in the poll of one AP voter. </p> <p id="HnH9OV">If you follow college basketball, you probably know who Seth Davis is.</p>
<p id="e8TJnG">The CBS commentator, who is now a reporter for The Athletic, is also a voter for the weekly AP Top 25 Poll. </p>
<p id="PCm0Kv">If you’ve been following the AP Poll this season, you’ve probably seen a consistent theme of the <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a> getting very little respect. </p>
<p id="5s6SRg">A lot of it has been Kentucky continuing to drop in the polls, despite their seven-game winning streak. Apparently, Davis is a big culprit of that.</p>
<aside id="o7MlZn"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Kentucky Basketball Recruiting Big Board 4.0","url":"https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16705584/kentucky-basketball-recruiting-big-board-4"},{"title":"College Basketball 2017: AP Top 25 Poll and ESPN Power Rankings Updated","url":"https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16790890/college-basketball-2017-ap-top-25-poll-espn-power-rankings-updated"}]}'></div></aside><p id="cMzFnZ">On Sunday, Davis revealed what his new AP Top 25 ballot looked like, and it included Kentucky falling from 16th to 17th:</p>
<div id="pPHOlF">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="de" dir="ltr">1. Mich St<br>2. Nova<br>3. Duke<br>4, TxAM<br>5. Ariz St<br>6. UNC<br>7. Mia<br>8. Gonz<br>9. Xav<br>10. WVa<br>11. UVa<br>12. Okl<br>13. Purd<br>14. Zona<br>15. Wich St<br>16. KU<br>17. UK<br>18. Bay<br>19. Tenn<br>20. Creighton<br>21. Ala<br>22. Clem<br>23. Cinc<br>24. Ark<br>25. TCU<a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthleticCBB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheAthleticCBB</a></p>— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) <a href="https://twitter.com/SethDavisHoops/status/942591726610468870?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 18, 2017</a>
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<p id="X9RujH">This comes after Kentucky beat a Virginia Tech team that was on the cusp of top-25 status. But somehow, 16 teams deserve to be ranked higher than the 9-1 Cats, including three-loss Arizona, two-loss Purdue, and a one-loss Xavier team that was down 22 points at home to East Tennessee State before rallying to win (Kentucky also beat ETSU earlier this season). </p>
<p id="qftXIo">John Calipari was right when he said <a href="http://www.kentucky.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/john-clay/article189063589.html">his team isn’t getting the respect it deserves</a>, and this is a prime example of it. </p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/18/16790356/uk-basketball-seth-davis-wildcats-ap-top-25-poll-ballotJason Marcum2017-12-17T10:30:02-05:002017-12-17T10:30:02-05:00Wildcats recap win over Virginia Tech
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<img alt="NCAA Basketball: Virginia Tech at Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/D7jpO0k6VVzwbFduAn_Lsbp4nX8=/464x111:1968x1114/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58010561/usa_today_10481573.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Knox, Green and Hami recap their big win over the Hokies. </p> <p id="megjLX">You’ll be shocked to hear that freshman are once again leading the way for the <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a>.</p>
<p id="tJqWWO">But on Saturday, it meant a little more to see these young Cats outlast a veteran-led Hokies squad hoping to score one of the biggest wins of their collegiate careers.</p>
<p id="EQPPLC">Not this time. Freshman wing <span>Kevin Knox</span> scored 21 points, 11 of which coming in a frantic spurt early in the second half. Freshman guard <span>Quade Green</span> poured in 17 on 6-of-12 shooting with five assists. </p>
<p id="4Fide7">Redshirt freshman guard <span>Hamidou Diallo</span> added 20, including a big 3-pointer with 50 seconds remaining, and the Cats held on for a 93-86 win over Virginia Tech.</p>
<p id="LOSzZw">After the game, those three Cats recapped the big win and what it means going forward. Here’s a recap of what they had to say, courtesy of UK Athletics: </p>
<h4 id="8GEAne">Kevin Knox</h4>
<p id="Zeh99l"><strong>On Quade Green wearing glasses in the game…</strong></p>
<p id="sjCJbF">“It was funny today. He’s practiced the last couple of days with them on. He was knocking down shots, so I guess he can see with them on.”</p>
<p id="565qC1"><strong>On the team’s shooting performance …</strong></p>
<p id="X0snda">“At the beginning of the season I knew we weren’t a horrible shooting team. We weren’t the best, but I know we’ve got guys that can knock them down. Tonight we showed that we can really knock shots down. We’re getting really better at it. We do a lot of shooting drills in practices, and just getting better at it and hopefully guys can keep knocking them down.”</p>
<p id="Jy5zJB"><strong>On defending Virginia Tech’s 3-point shooting …</strong></p>
<p id="JZSCl3">“I think in the second half Cal said they hit like three 3-point shots or something like that. We just stuck it out on defense, found the shooters. I think No. 13 knocked a lot of them down, so we found him in the second half. We fixed that at halftime, got in the second half and defended it better.”</p>
<p id="pEMzmK"><strong>On Coach Cal’s encouragement of long range shooting …</strong></p>
<p id="3834Hf">“He tells us that he really wants us to shoot around 18 to 19 3s a game. That’s kind of our number. He doesn’t want us to shoot anywhere in the high 20s or anything that like. That’s not where our strength is. I mean, 18 or 19, he said make around eight or nine, that’s a good percentage as a team. Of course we’re getting to the basket still, so he’s kind of challenging us to make some jump shots and tonight we showed that we can.”</p>
<h4 id="qw4vvx">Hamidou Diallo</h4>
<p id="iHCYoS"><strong>On what’s he’s been doing to be able to have high-scoring performances…</strong></p>
<p id="athvRd">“Just coming in everyday, working hard and buying into what the team needs us to do. That’s what we did today and we came out with a victory.”</p>
<p id="8hfNBZ"><strong>On having to change the game plan today with such a good 3-point shooting team…</strong></p>
<p id="5HodVH">“It was big. They hit a couple shots in the beginning, a couple momentum 3s. That’s just mind-blowing. The type of defense we were playing, and they were still making 3s. We just had to adjust coming in halftime, and second half we did a really good job.”</p>
<p id="2NX3ad"><strong>On winning a game with opposing team shooting 58 percent...</strong></p>
<p id="eHY2w5">“I think we were just aggressive. We were playing aggressive and never gave up. That’s what it was all about. There were times in the game when we were down, stayed with each other and we just kept competing.”</p>
<h4 id="CZa23x">Quade Green</h4>
<p id="nSVtmU"><strong>On playing with his protective glasses …</strong></p>
<p id="QrelQ7">“I’m not worried about that. I just played my game. Doesn’t matter what I’ve got on. I could have “Timbs” on- boots on- I’m still gonna play my game.”</p>
<p id="1EPqHt"><strong>His comments on opinions regarding this game being the best of the season …</strong></p>
<p id="pL0ixJ">“Oh, it was the best game for us as a whole, really. Kinda had to have toughness. It was a good game because Virginia Tech came out firing. It was hot from the 3-point line. It’s just another thing we gotta do and understand that we’re all together. Ain’t no one-to-one stuff. We all gotta win as one.”</p>
<p id="aPOc9w"><strong>On what the team learned in this game…</strong></p>
<p id="wVG6xU">“That we’re tough, very tough. We can survive late situations.”</p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/17/16786438/uk-wildcats-recap-win-over-virginia-tech-college-basketballJason Marcum2017-12-17T09:20:02-05:002017-12-17T09:20:02-05:00Postgame notes & updated season stats from win over VA Tech
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<img alt="NCAA Basketball: Virginia Tech at Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/I1Z1-fOKyb6nskiAMRi13YhXsaI=/0x0:4056x2704/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58010491/usa_today_10481572.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Virginia Tech had 19 turnovers that UK turned into 36 points. </p> <p id="UqPGpd">The <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a> are far from perfect, but all these young Cats keep doing is winning. </p>
<p id="6ft9iT">Their latest victory proved to be one of their most challenging of the season. Kevin Knox scored 21 points, Hamidou Diallo added 20, including a big 3-pointer with 50 seconds remaining, and the Wildcats outlasted Virginia Tech 93-86 on Saturday.</p>
<p id="aeeS5l">The Wildcats won their seventh straight on the strength of a season-high 11 3-pointers, with six players making at least one. UK finished 11-of-22 from behind the arc. Quade Green added 17 points with a pair of 3s while wearing shaded protective glasses after injuring his eye last week against Monmouth.</p>
<p id="yZY9ln">But while the offense gets the headlines, the Wildcats’ defense helped produce a lot of those points. Their pressing defense helped force 19 turnovers that led to 36 points, and they held the Hokies to 10 points below their nation-leading average of 96.2 per game. </p>
<p id="IUL9Id">Here are the updated season stats following win No. 9: </p>
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<p id="SmQDdg">And here are the postgame notes and milestones, courtesy of UK Athletics:</p>
<p id="FXdq24"><strong>Team Records and Series Notes</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="TRcUrf">Kentucky has won seven in a row and is now 9-1. Virginia Tech ended a seven-game win streak and is now 9-2. </li>
<li id="3ygDVX">Kentucky leads the series 4-1, including 2-1 in Lexington. </li>
<li id="msOHmE">Next for Kentucky is UCLA as the Wildcats take on the Bruins in the CBS Sports Classic on Sat. Dec. 23 in New Orleans’ Smoothie King Arena. Game time is 4 p.m. ET and televised on CBS. </li>
</ul>
<p id="Q10P7l"><strong>In the First Half</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="dsEIBb">Kentucky’s starting lineup featured <span><strong>Shai Gilgeous-Alexander</strong></span><strong>, </strong><span><strong>Hamidou Diallo</strong></span><strong>, </strong><span><strong>PJ Washington</strong></span><strong>, </strong><span><strong>Kevin Knox</strong></span><strong> </strong>and <span><strong>Nick Richards</strong></span><strong> </strong>for the second time, also the season opener vs. Utah Valley.</li>
<li id="AfKf8U">Virginia Tech scored the game’s first five points before the Wildcats came back with nine a row.</li>
<li id="dmajQ5">Diallo connected on a 3-pointer with 16:09 remaining, giving Kentucky 1,023 consecutive games with a 3-pointer.</li>
<li id="WisPKY">Tied at 39, Virginia Tech went on an 8-0 run before UK got the final basket of the half. Tech went to halftime with a 47-41 lead. </li>
<li id="MpW6OE">It is the most points UK has allowed this season in the first half and UK’s second-largest halftime deficit of the season (trailed by nine in the opener vs. Utah Valley).</li>
<li id="Uc6PpF">Kentucky’s seven 3-pointers is the most in a first half this season.</li>
<li id="rgJov9">UK shot 46 percent from the field in the first half, ending a streak of four straight games at least 50 percent.</li>
</ul>
<p id="d5vj4y"><strong>In the Second Half</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="0hWMTA">Trailing 51-44, Kentucky went on a 10-0 run.</li>
<li id="QoqMA3">Tied at 60, UK went on a 5-0 spurt and never trailed again. </li>
<li id="28qtDz">Ahead 75-71, Diallo net nestled a 3-pointer with 4:54 left to give UK its then-largest lead of the game at 78-71. (UK eventually led by eight points as its largest advantage.)</li>
<li id="SW9Mzu">Clinging to an 85-83 lead, Diallo swished another 3 with 48 seconds left to keep the visitors at bay.</li>
<li id="2TlWpi">Kentucky made several clutch shots with the game in the balance. Despite the closeness of the game, Tech never had the ball with a chance to tie or go ahead in the final seven minutes of the game.</li>
</ul>
<p id="3NDMie"><strong>Team Notes</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="ytxOM9">UK scored 93 points for the second game in a row. The last time UK scored 93 at least back-to-back was Jan. 3 and 7, 2017, vs. Texas A&M (100) and Arkansas (97). </li>
<li id="PJhrte">Although the Wildcats allowed a season-most 86 points, it is still 10 points below Tech’s nation-best 96.2 points per game.</li>
<li id="hdHv8a">UK won despite Virginia Tech shooting 58.2 percent from the field. It is the second-highest field-goal percentage allowed in the Calipari era.</li>
<li id="BPnXiU">Despite the difficulty of winning when the opponent shoots at least 50 percent, UK is 10-9 in the Calipari era when the opponent makes at least half its field goals.</li>
<li id="QFZwkq">UK committed only 11 turnovers, one off its season best.</li>
<li id="XNGUwa">UK did a great job of converting turnovers into points. Virginia Tech had 19 turnovers and UK turned those into 36 points. </li>
<li id="b67VfU">UK made 11 of 22 from 3-point range. Eleven threes is a season high and it is the second game this season that the Wildcats have made at least half of their long-range tries.</li>
<li id="dvoKp9">UK won the rebounding, 33-30, the ninth consecutive game that the Wildcats won or tied the boardwork. </li>
<li id="7lKJ0E">This is the second game in a row that two Wildcats scored at least 20 points.</li>
</ul>
<p id="WhwPhA"><strong>Player Notes </strong> </p>
<ul>
<li id="SImIrh">Coming off his only single-digit scoring performance of the year, <strong>Kevin Knox </strong>bounced back with a game-high 21 points. It is his fourth 20-point game of the season.</li>
<li id="Wh8yPS">
<strong>Hamidou Diallo </strong>bucketed 20 points. It is second-consecutive 20 game and fourth in a row with at least 19. He is averaging 20.3 over the last four games. </li>
<li id="RLEUIE">
<strong>PJ Washington </strong>collected 11 points, a career-high five assists and had a crucial blocked shot in the last minute of the game.</li>
<li id="04G2Da">
<span><strong>Quade Green</strong></span><strong> </strong>had 17 points and tied his career high for assists with five. </li>
<li id="fSbwPg">
<strong>Nick Richards </strong>had eight points, six rebounds and three blocked shots.</li>
<li id="DjyGid">Richards made 3-of-5 field goal attempts today has made at least 60 percent of his shots in seven straight games </li>
<li id="0CNHnM">
<span><strong>Wenyen Gabriel</strong></span><strong> </strong>had seven points and led the Wildcats in rebounds with nine. </li>
</ul>
<p id="P8aR8P"><strong>Coach John Calipari</strong></p>
<ul>
<li id="a3Q4Tr">Calipari has a 703-194 all-time on-court record.</li>
<li id="PLL0IA">Calipari is now 258-54 at Kentucky.</li>
<li id="8nqm0a">Calipari is 142-6 at Rupp Arena.</li>
<li id="ax9SgB">Calipari is 3-0 vs. Virginia Tech in his career.</li>
</ul>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/17/16786408/uk-basketball-postgame-notes-updated-season-stats-win-virginia-techJason Marcum2017-12-16T18:51:28-05:002017-12-16T18:51:28-05:00John Calipari talks shooting, Quade Green, defense and more after win over Virginia Tech
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<img alt="NCAA Basketball: Harvard at Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jP82VSxyb8qXHpTQQCDvxEACvhc=/0x0:3048x2032/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58009295/usa_today_10453914.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Everything John Calipari said after Kentucky’s good win over Virginia Tech</p> <p id="f5ScKF">There are a lot of positives to talk about after Kentucky’s 93-86 win over the <a href="https://www.gobblercountry.com/">Virginia Tech Hokies</a>. Head coach John Calipari talked about those positives, such as <span>Quade Green</span>’s play in his new goggles, forcing turnovers, the Cats’ great 3-point shooting and more. </p>
<p id="FaFGzf">On Green, Calipari said that he’s playing the way he wants him to play, scoring first and getting assists due to his scoring ability. </p>
<p id="6DPnDR">Calipari said the turnovers were what made the difference tonight, and if UK hadn’t forced 19 turnovers, they would have lost. </p>
<p id="X9mapB">Cal said the good shooting was a result of getting the ball inside and drawing the defenders in to open up outside shooters. </p>
<aside id="F0WqSL"><div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Quade Green says UK Basketball will beat Louisville Cardinals as a present for BBN","url":"https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/16/16785550/quade-green-uk-basketball-beat-louisville-cardinals-present-bbn"},{"title":"Jemarl Baker warms up before UK faces Virginia Tech","url":"https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/16/16784894/jemarl-baker-injury-virginia-tech-kentucky-basketball"}]}'></div></aside><p id="Tb7mZD">Calipari also mentioned the respect his team gets. He mentioned previously that he didn’t think the <a href="https://www.aseaofblue.com/">Kentucky Wildcats</a> were getting enough respect, but he seems to think that’s changing now. </p>
<p id="9TPJ35">Calipari also talked about some things the team will work on going forward, including running a press. </p>
<p id="cGtJYp">For more detail on everything Cal said, check out the transcript below. </p>
<p id="ImIfbo"><strong>Q. What did you learn about mental toughness and guys you can count on down the stretch from this game?</strong></p>
<p id="Y7rjTG">JOHN CALIPARI: I’m gonna watch the tape. I usually learn more from the tape than I do just watching the game because I'm in a dogfight. Very rarely say anything to the officials or anything, but everything else I'm in a dogfight out there, so I'll miss a lot of stuff. But let me start by saying that the job Buzz (Williams) is doing, how -- what I love about him as a coach, they're playing a way they have to play to win. It's different than we're playing. We were posting; they were driving and shooting 3s. And defensively he was switching it up, going some man, going some zone, and you know, I like the fact that we had to go against his team, well-coached. I expected them to press a little bit more, but I can see that he did the right thing for his team. They had a chance to win really the whole game.</p>
<p id="W4aF4C">But terrific players. You know, still made 10 3s on us, and we made 11 on them. How about that? We don't shoot that many 3s. We shot 22? Wow.</p>
<p id="uY86vC"><strong>Q. Is this the best game you've ever had by a player in sunglasses?</strong></p>
<p id="Bicona">JOHN CALIPARI: He (Quade Green) was really good. Let me just say this --</p>
<p id="yMW7es"><strong>Q. What was going on there?</strong></p>
<p id="Xyon6F">JOHN CALIPARI: There were a couple things. I thought Quade -- I put him in quick because I didn't like -- I like the rotation with him starting and Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) coming off the bench. It's just a better rotation for our team. He's playing the way I want him to play, which is score baskets, kid. Score baskets. That's what you do. But by doing that, he's getting five assists and one turn. So instead of being like watch me with the ball and bouncing it 12 times, he's either trying to score it, and if you stop him from scoring it he'll give it to somebody because he's a good enough passer.</p>
<p id="1bOE35">I thought Shai was good today. Wenyen (Gabriel), nine rebounds today was really good. I thought Hami (Diallo) was good. Look, individual players are getting better. Nick (Richards) struggled, Sacha (Killeya-Jones) struggled, but that's OK. They're not machines. They're not going to be great every night out. But you saw that I put in a press. That's what I worked on last week.</p>
<p id="w8Pk63">It was OK for three days' work. Now we're going to have another four days and try to add some stuff to it. That's my old press from 10 years ago. When you've been doing this 40 years, you can go reach back in the basket 20 years ago and come up with something you used that still can work.</p>
<p id="lFkubq"><strong>Q. Virginia Tech shot 58 percent --</strong></p>
<p id="tvYDRL">JOHN CALIPARI: Yeah, it was pretty good defense.</p>
<p id="lF90K6"><strong>Q. How do you factor that in, and how do you take account for this game?</strong></p>
<p id="u2tlBl">JOHN CALIPARI: If we didn't turn them over, they win the game. Then you look and say, well, how did you get them turned over? Probably the press more than anything else. If they don't turn it over, they beat us. And again, I'm going to have to look at exactly what they were doing, but they're like a typical team that comes into this building that has talent that plays loose. They had nothing to lose, and that's how they played. They only made three 3s in the second half. One was the last 3 throwing it up the court, and one was where Wenyen didn't know the guy was standing right next to him, he made a 3, so from that they made one. But they made three 3s in the second half compared to what they did to us in the first half.</p>
<p id="mkHvo8">You know, we had talked about tough twos and not giving up 3s, and we gave up a bunch. But it's what a young team does.</p>
<p id="Sbx1z6"><strong>Q. What was the difference in the 3-point defense in the second half? Why were you more effective then?</strong></p>
<p id="Xh6GYb">JOHN CALIPARI: I told them if you don't run through, I'm taking you out. So if I see a guy go at a 3-point shooter and not run through him, not to foul, just make him bounce the ball, you're out, I'm taking you out. That's mean, I know, and probably it's a mean thing to say, take a guy out every time he gives a guy a 3. We're trying to win.</p>
<p id="Hev4CT"><strong>Q. Are the sunglasses now mandatory for Quade Green going forward?</strong></p>
<p id="dCe8LL">JOHN CALIPARI: I don't know if they're mandatory, but just so you know, because I kind of felt bad for him, I was going to wear sunglasses today, too. I told the team I was going to. I thought, if he has to do it, I'll do it with him, we'll both have sunglasses. But I didn't want to be -- it would have been a national story, and there he is, he wears jeans on the plane, this bum, this guy. Who does he think he is? He thinks he's at the beach, who is this guy? But that's why I didn't do it.</p>
<p id="XojYDP"><strong>Q. Could you talk about Hamidou Diallo's shooting today?</strong></p>
<p id="MV3WDt">JOHN CALIPARI: Shooting much better. He's working at it. <span>Kevin Knox</span>, I told him after the game, I went at Kevin for three or four straight times and it was unbelievable, and then you look at me and say, well, you went away from him after that. Well, he had played seven straight minutes and what I do normally is just keep going. If that guy gets it going, he'll get it 15 straight times. But I didn't because this is not a normal team for me. This is all freshmen. So then I shifted, I wanted PJ (Washington) a little bit, and I'm forcing him to make baskets, make fouls. He's got to be that guy for us. And then I like Hami away from the ball as a secondary scorer because he gets baskets that way as well as anybody.</p>
<p id="TwTq8P">But it was -- I thought we rebounded a little bit better. Nick (Richards) still -- we didn't two-hand rebound. Nick went after the ball one hand probably five times that cost him five rebounds. So he could have had -- I don't see him on here. He had six, he could have had 11 or 12 rebounds, and he went after balls with one hand. He didn't bring any of them in. Some of them were late that almost cost us.</p>
<p id="n67mJX"><strong>Q. Why is a press you dusted off from 10 years ago best for this particular team?</strong></p>
<p id="DnoTzH">JOHN CALIPARI: Because I've got to figure out something that disrupts the game and something that they don't get into a rhythm. A zone normally is going to get a team to make eight, 10 passes. If you want to speed up a game, how do you do that and be disruptive? You either trap out of a zone or trap out of a man or press, and this is a simple -- it's not that hard a press, but it's one that I think could be effective for this team. Part of it is when the front line of your press is 6-9 and 6-6 and that guard is looking at that and you put interceptor in the middle and the other guy is 6-9 and you've got an interceptor deep who's seven-foot, Nick, who can come up with balls; kind of makes you think like what are we doing.</p>
<p id="V7SqMM">Now, what they did, and again, Buzz (Williams) was pretty smart. He said, look, we're putting shooters in the deep corners, throw it to anybody, just get rid of it and we're going to find somebody in the corners, which is what they started doing in the first half at the end of the first half.</p>
<p id="hMv3lt"><strong>Q. What was it about the way Tech defended you that led to those 11 3-pointers and the 22 3-point attempts?</strong></p>
<p id="yuU1ST">JOHN CALIPARI: Well, they're a 3-point shooting team and a fast team. Man, did they start the game fast. I mean, I'm sitting here saying, are they this fast the whole game. We're more of a post-up team. So now when we throw it in there you've got to make choices. If we can score on you, you're going to trap. You're going to do something, and the minute you trap, it should open up our shooters. Now, what was happening is we couldn't get Nick to dive, so Nick's man was going to double-team, and Nick wanted a jump shot instead of that run to the basket. When Wenyen ran to the basket, that's when Hami got shots, that's when PJ got shots. You just need that guy out of there.</p>
<p id="LIb7Go">But I think that's what did it and where we got most of the 3s.</p>
<p id="90fpkJ"><strong>Q. When you're pressing and you're limiting their possessions, are you willing to live with a higher shooting percentage because they have fewer shots?</strong></p>
<p id="O3AzQN">JOHN CALIPARI: Well, if you know my career, I cannot stand giving up baskets. I want them all contested. And when you're doing this, you have it a little different mentality, which is let's get into their legs. Let's be the aggressor. If we let Virginia Tech be the aggressor, we lose this game. We don't have a chance. And what I've learned in my career, you're playing a pressing team, you always press the pressing team. And that makes you the aggressor versus them.</p>
<p id="9edx1W">And so the issue becomes can we play eight and nine guys playing that way, you know, and I thought PJ got tired in the second half. You know, and that's -- you start playing -- we haven't played in a week, so you start playing twice a week and we're trying to play this way, it may be in spots, may not be much but it'll be in spots.</p>
<p id="6Jr7eD"><strong>Q. You talked yesterday about guys not getting enough respect.</strong></p>
<p id="xNiiaE">JOHN CALIPARI: Well, the thing I've said is people evaluating my players individually. It's not the team. We're all freshmen. Everybody knows it. We're hoping by January we become one of those kind of teams. We're not there yet. But when you look at whether it be Hami (Diallo) or Kevin (Knox) or even Nick (Richards), who was not real good today, or Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander), and you start saying, well, they're not this and he's not that and that's not <span>John Wall</span> or that's not -- well, there's only one John Wall, and I want to tell you, there's only one Anthony Davis, who has one eyebrow. There's only one. These kids are good, really good players, and are going to have professional careers. They are. I don't know who's watching them to think they're not, and they're all 6-9 and 6-10 and seven-foot and head on the rim, now nose on the rim. I mean, yeah, they may not have this, but what they have is special and sets them apart.</p>
<p id="LjfD50">The question becomes when we're fatigued how do we play. Do we learn how to win in close games. That's why this game was important for us. Do we really become servant leaders to each other to where we're worried about the other guy more than myself? We still have guys that want the ball so bad they can't play. I keep trying to explain. You set a great screen, you will get open. We've got guys that won't set a screen because they're looking at the ball, and it affects them.</p>
<p id="8mJhoS"><strong>Q. Do you think with this win your team is going to finally get some respect?</strong></p>
<p id="KyysdC">JOHN CALIPARI: I think we've gotten respect. I mean, everybody knows we're playing all freshmen. Wenyen (Gabriel) didn't play much last year and Sacha (Killeya-Jones) didn't play much last year and everyone else is a freshman. This is the youngest team in the last 11 years. This is the youngest team to play college basketball, and I bet you it's the youngest team in the last 30 years to try to play this young and really compete for something. You know, a team this young usually goes 7-30 and they fire the coach. No, we're getting respect. We are.</p>
<p id="IaK9ua"><strong>Q. </strong><span><strong>Justin Robinson</strong></span><strong> had 19 points and nine rebounds tonight, most out of screen-and-roll situations. What makes him so difficult in that situation?</strong></p>
<p id="MRlQD1">JOHN CALIPARI: Well, you know, what I saw with him, he was good coming off, getting him the ball, physically being able to finish. We couldn't get guys to come across the lane. And again, when you're a young team and they're over there and your man is over here, you're more concerned with your man than coming over here and helping, and that was a lot of it. I mean, I started like saying, let's just switch. I can't get the weak side off. That's what you do when you have freshmen. Just switch. Just play zone. They're not listening.</p>
<p id="uivtdP">But no, they're good. I mean, this team, you know, not only is he good and he's a great lay-up shooter, so if you get him near the rim, he's making baskets. But they've got guys that if you leave them open, they're making 3s. They're going to make shots. And that's why they're going to be dangerous. Any team that's willing to take 25, 30 3s and has a chance to make 15, you will win games. You will win games. And Buzz (Williams) is letting them go. They're playing fast. He's doing a heck of a job with that team.</p>
<p id="gJCZnu"><strong>Q. I know you're not looking for excuses or making --</strong></p>
<p id="bNrVRa">JOHN CALIPARI: I always look for excuses. Give me a couple.</p>
<p id="TGTFxQ"><strong>Q. But this time of the year you talk a lot about distractions, final exams, family, friends, girlfriends, NBA scouts, media. How do you think this particular team is going to be able to respond to all those distractions later on down the line?</strong></p>
<p id="m32xFa">JOHN CALIPARI: Well, we've got -- they've got two days off. They've got today off and they have tomorrow off. We're coming back Monday to practice. Tuesday will be individual work. Then we go Wednesday, do some stuff before we leave. We leave -- we practice here Thursday, leave to go to New Orleans. It's been good for our team. This team needed this kind of schedule. We did not need to play top-five teams early. We don't even know who's who. I don't, they don't, we're trying to learn about each other. But this schedule has been good for us.</p>
<p id="W20gUn">Look, I coach at Kentucky; there are no excuses here. You're supposed to win every game by 20. If you win by 13, they want to know what the heck is wrong with the Cats. And all I worry about is how do I get individual players better. How does each guy, like I'm looking at Sacha (Killeya-Jones) and Nick (Richards), they're more on my mind than these other guys because I've got to get them right for them. Wenyen (Gabriel) was better today. Second thing is how does this team have to play to win. I don't know yet. We've got guys saying we should be playing all zone. We've got guys saying why aren't they pressing. Why didn't he just do what he always has done: Play man-to-man. That's why I'm the coach and you're sitting in the seats. So I will try to figure that out, and we're experimenting, honestly, offensively. We're experimenting. Like we don't have this system that -- we're like trying stuff, I don't like it, it's out. If I like it, we do it. You know, I'll say this: A bunch of good kids, and they're trying to please me and the staff. What else can I ask for? And they're smart. They're like -- I say it once, they're pretty good. The only thing that happens is they get fatigued, and when they get fatigued, they revert back to their old self, and their old self -- when they're doing it the way they did it at times today, they look pretty good.</p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/16/16785522/kentucky-wildcats-basketball-john-calipari-talks-after-win-over-virginia-techJeremy Chisenhall2017-12-16T16:37:26-05:002017-12-16T16:37:26-05:00Quade Green says UK will beat Louisville as a present for BBN
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<p>Quade Green has a Christmas present in mind for the Big Blue Nation. </p> <p id="CrLixl"><span>Quade Green</span> is becoming a fan favorite in Lexington. </p>
<p id="EGiVSS">Green was already riding high after his performance in UK’s win over Virginia Tech,. In a game the Cats trailed for much of the first half and remained within a single score for most of the second half, Green finished with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including two critical baskets down the stretch, all while donning a pair of black glasses due to his eye injury. </p>
<p id="yObG5Q">He also chipped in five assists vs one turnover, but what Green said after the game was what really endeared him to UK fans. For a Christmas present he’s getting for the Big Blue Nation, Green says a win over the <a href="https://www.cardchronicle.com/">Louisville Cardinals</a> is coming:</p>
<div id="gOtr1h">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">A fan yells to Quade Green, "beat Louisville" to which he responds with a smile, "Oh yeah, we'll beat Louisville. That'll be our Christmas present to you." <br><br>We'll take it. </p>— UK Sports Network (@UKSportsNetwork) <a href="https://twitter.com/UKSportsNetwork/status/942143715619037184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2017</a>
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<p id="NLaiZc">The game will take place four days after Christmas, but a present like that is well worth the wait. If UK plays as well as they did in the second half vs Virginia Tech, it’s hard to see many teams left on the schedule beating them in Rupp Arena. </p>
<p id="aWbBBQ">But first thing’s first: UK faces the <a href="https://www.bruinsnation.com/">UCLA Bruins</a> in New Orleans next week before hosting the Cardinals on Dec. 29. </p>
https://www.aseaofblue.com/2017/12/16/16785550/quade-green-uk-basketball-beat-louisville-cardinals-present-bbnJason Marcum