KENTUCKY (13-3, 2-0 SEC)
vs. Mississippi State (10-5, 1-1 SEC)
Saturday, January 13 – 7:00 p.m. ET
Rupp Arena (23,000) ? Lexington, Ky.
TV: FSN
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Riding the longest current win strak, in the SEC (nine games), Kentucky plays its third-straight SEC West opponent as it hosts Mississippi State.
UK has already dispatched of Ole Miss (68-58) and Auburn (84-57), marking the 49th time that Kentucky has opened the conference schedule 2-0.
This marks the 101st meeting between Kentucky and Mississippi State, with Kentucky holding an 83-17 advantage in the all-time series. The Cats come into this evening?s matchup winners of 10 of their last 11 contests against Mississippi State. The Bulldogs last beat Kentucky 74-69 in overtime in Starkville on Jan. 5, 2002.
Mississippi State hasn?t knocked off the Wildcats in Lexington since Feb. 14, 1995, when the Bulldogs notched a 76-71 victory for their lone win over UK in Rupp Arena.
PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES – JAN. 12
Head Coach Tubby Smith
Opening statement?
?Good afternoon, I guess they had a press conference earlier for Keenan Burton. He?s an exciting player to watch. I don?t think I?ve missed a home game, and I?d like to get to more away games but, he?s an electrifying and game-changing player. I?m sure Coach Brooks and his staff are excited to have Keenan Burton back here for another year. Hopefully they can continue to build on this past season, and Keenan Burton has been a big part of that. This week we?ve gotten a chance to practice in the new facility. It?s a beautiful place, and the players seem to have a lot of energy and a lot of excitement. Winning helps also. Tomorrow we?re presented with a new set of challenges. Rick Stansbury?s teams are always very aggressive in attacking the basket. They push the ball up the court. Jamont Gordon is one of the top players in the league. He?s leading them in so many categories and doing an outstanding job all the way around. We really have to try and contain him, but then you have players like Reginald Delk who is (former Kentucky All-American) Tony Delk?s nephew, so he?s a very talented player as well. I know they?ll be looking forward to coming into Rupp Arena. They also have some new faces in their starting lineup. Again, they are a very young team and they are still growing and getting better as they continue to play. They had a good win over a good Ole Miss team. They have been playing well in the league. One of the things we know is that we can?t take any team for granted. This league is as balanced as it has ever been. I think teams like Mississippi State and Ole Miss and teams of that nature are going to be able to win a lot of games going forward. We like the way our guys are playing at this point in time. We are getting some good leadership from our veteran players. That?s always exciting. It?s important because you know what veteran players are capable of doing and you?ve seen them do it before. I like the way Ramel (Bradley), Joe (Crawford) and Randolph (Morris) are all playing. Bobby (Perry) seems to be coming out of his slump. He had a good game the other night. We?re excited about all of the guys. Hopefully, we can continue to get better. Every game is important and critical, especially in conference play during home games.?
On the new practice facility?
?We?ll have time, and we won?t have to adjust to schedules. No, there?s nothing you couldn?t really do in Memorial that you can do now in the new facility. I?m sure there are some things, but I haven?t really thought about them lately. I?m sure there are things that will be beneficial, but we?ll see as we go along. It?s going to be beneficial in recruiting. I think in this day and time it was necessary and needed. Not just from a basketball standpoint, but also from an administrative stand-point. It?s not just for recruiting for basketball but, also for our entire athletic department it?s going to be beneficial.?
On Mississippi State?s ability to block and contest shots?
?They have athletes that can block shots, not just in their frontcourt but in the backcourt as well. The players are long and they can jump up and block shots. (Jarvis) Varnado is a guy who we?ve not seen, but he can really block shots. Everybody knows that (Charles) Rhodes is one of the top sophomores in the league last year. He?s coming off an injury and he?s really starting to play well. They just have some really good athletes who really go after shots. They really challenge shots not only around the basket, but around the perimeter as well.?
On Derrick Jasper?s foul trouble?
?He?s got to quit fouling. He?s just had a drop off the last game; I don?t think he?s really been in foul trouble before. He?s playing against some guys who are pretty quick and athletic at the point guard spot. I think that?s part of it. He?s going up against a guy who is a real heady player and knows how to get you into foul trouble. He?s got to learn the position as well. He?s a bigger guy, but he?s got to learn to stay down in his stance and contain them.?
On Mississippi State?s point guard play?
?Jamont (Gordon) is usually there. When he?s in he is usually playing the point. They have a lot of ball handlers though. (Barry) Stewart has been bringing the ball up the court some. (Reginald) Delk has been bringing the ball up the court some. (Ben) Hansbrough has done some as well. He?s been running the two-position a lot though also.?
On Mississippi State?s Ben Hansbrough?
?He?s good. He?s quick. He?s athletic. He?s a very talented freshman. He shoots the three really well, so we can?t leave him open. He?s a very heady player, and I?ve been very impressed with his athleticism and his speed. He?s very aggressive going to the boards for a point guard. He?s got good size and good weight.?
On Joe Crawford and the overall offensive production of his team?
?I think we?re just playing better together. We?re taking better shots. We have a little better patience. We?re cutting better. Joe is making shots and that makes a big difference.?
On being the coach with the fifth most wins in the SEC conference play?
?I have to give credit to all of the players I?ve had and all of the opportunities that I?ve had. That?s about it. I?ve been around a lot of people who have helped me out. I haven?t made any of those baskets. It?s about long-lasting and longevity in this business or any business. I don?t want to attribute it to anything that I?ve done, except for the people who have helped me along the way. There?s quite a few of them. You can?t win games without good players.?
On his team?s shot selection?
?When you shoot the ball well, everything seems to fall into place. You can get the ball inside better. It also gives the team some confidence. When Joe (Crawford) hit his first shot down at Ole Miss you can see that our players lifted up. When Bobby (Perry) hit his shot the other night, I thought the guys felt like ?here we go.? As a coach you feel the same way, you really do.?
On Mississippi State?s shooting abilities?
?They?ve been really shooting the ball well. They also really distribute the ball well. They have about nine guys who average six points or better, and three who average in double figures and one almost at 10. They get a lot of balls to the rim. They are playing defense really well. They?re holding people to 26 percent from threes and 37 percent from twos. They really are defending well. They?ve got a very good team. I just think it?s a matter of game experience that most teams have to have to be successful at this juncture because everybody has scouting tapes on them. We?re breaking down film, they?re breaking down film. So, now it?s who can dictate the tempo and control the tempo.?
Kentucky Players
#32, G, Joe Crawford
On the new practice facility ?
?Coach is going to be able to really get on us now. There aren?t going to be too many people walking through here. He can have all of our attention in practice. Everybody was shooting really well in this facility. I don?t know what it is, maybe it is the rim. I think everything is nicer. Memorial is a good facility too but everything is just closer here. We can walk outside and the weight room, the film room is right there. We can get in here and shoot whenever we want so it is much better in that aspect because we can work on our game more. It helps us to get focused, knowing that we can relax in here.?
On the team getting off to a good start against Auburn ?
?It was good; it shows people that we are capable of coming out making baskets and playing well on defense. It just comes with focus and determination. We just need to be focused on defense and be determined to make shots.?
#33, C, Randolph Morris
On finding teammates out of opponents? double teams ?
?If teams play me differently with a double team, I feel like I can get the ball to guys who can make shots.?
On the new practice facility ?
?It is going to be nice to be able to come in and utilize the facility. We just want to come in and be able to work whenever we want. It is going to be a definite change from the past but we just need to get in here and get to work and try to get better. I feel like this is going to help us a lot.?
On the team getting off to a fast start vs. Auburn ?
?I think what attributed to that was that we were intensely focused on what we needed to do. We have been playing great defense and we hit a couple of threes that kind of set the tone. That is what we have to do and we just need to do it consistently.?
#3, G, Ramel Bradley
On if the new facility compares to Memorial Coliseum ?
?No, this place is so much brighter and more beautiful; this place is just so nice. We have a film room, a lounge; it is just exciting to be here. We will be in here 24/7. We can practice at 3 o?clock in the morning now if we need to. You can get shots up, you can watch movies, you can play video games, everything is right here.?
On his increased rebounding performance ?
?I think the main thing that we have to get better at is rebounding, so I just try to get to the boards and help the team.?
