Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Mississippi State
Through 15 games, Kentucky finds itself with a 9-6 record, including an 0-2 mark in Southeastern Conference play. While some teams might feel like they were already in a huge hole, UK head coach Mark Pope knows that this particular team will continue to work hard in fixing what ails them.
“There’s no time for indulging and feeling terrible,” Pope said. “We raise up, and we get to work and we find answers and that’s actually where the great part of life comes from. Answering the bell when everybody thinks you can’t do it, shouldn’t do it, won’t do it, aren’t going to do it. Most people are too scared to go there. We are not.”
Kentucky fell to Missouri 73-68 on Wednesday night at Rupp Arena. The Tigers closed the game on a 15-2 run to snatch the victory away from the Cats. When Pope was asked if his team was suffering from mental fatigue, he balked at that notion.
“I think everybody has mental fatigue everywhere right now, if you’re putting your whole heart and soul into it,” Pope said. “It’s our job to not let that have any impact on today or yesterday or tomorrow. One of the things I love about sports is it teaches you that it teaches you. It doesn’t matter how bad things get. You can’t go back and rewrite what happened. You can just write the end of the story.”
The Cats have another opportunity to change that narrative on Saturday night when they host Mississippi State at Rupp Arena (8:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network). The Bulldogs are 10-5 this season, but have won their first two SEC games, beating Texas in Austin and Oklahoma in Starkville. Guard Josh Hubbard leads the Bulldogs, and the SEC, in scoring, averaging 23 points per game.
Kentucky has its next opportunity to right the ship on Saturday and the Cats are working hard to make that happen.
Know Your Opponent: Mississippi State
Kentucky returns home on Saturday to face Mississippi State.
• Kentucky leads the all-time series, 104-21, and is 52-5 in Lexington
• Last year, UK defeated the Bulldogs, 95-90, on the road. Jaxson Robinson had 27 points and made seven 3s in the win
• Jim Andrews owns the scoring record for the Cats with 34 points on Jan. 10, 1972
• Oscar Tshiebwe hauled in 22 rebounds on Jan. 25, 2022, while Robinson’s 3s matched Dontaie Allen’s mark for the most in the series
• Mississippi State comes in with a 10-5 overall record, and have won six in a row. The Tigers defeated Texas on the road and Oklahoma in Starkville to begin the league slate
• All-SEC performer, Josh Hubbard, leads the SEC at 23.0 points per game. He is also averaging 3.7 assists per game and 3.0 made 3s per night
• Jayden Epps is chipping in 16.0 points per game, while Quincy Ballard leads the way on the boards with 7.1 rebounds per game
Last Time Out
Missouri ended the game on a 15-2 run to slip past the Cats, 73-68 on Wednesday
• Otega Oweh paced the Cats in points (20), rebounds (5), assists (4) and steals (4)
• UK won fastbreak points, 24-7. Kentucky has won fastbreak points in every game this season
• Kentucky started the combo of Jaland Lowe, Denzel Aberdeen, Otega Oweh, Mo Dioubate and Jayden Quaintance for the first time this season
• Oweh swished a shot from the opposite foul line to pull Kentucky within 34-33 at halftime. After the game, the shot was measured at 69 feet, the longest shot in Kentucky history
Welcoming Back the 1966 Squad
Kentucky will honor the 1966 National Runners-Up at halftime of the game on Saturday as part of its continuing celebration of Elite Teams.
• Affectionately known as the “Rupp’s Runts,” the team had no player taller than 6’5″
• The team went 27-2 overall and captured the SEC regular-season championship
• Opened the season with 23 straight wins
• Pat Riley was named the SEC Player of the Year after leading the Cats with 21.97 points per game. Riley was a third-team All-America selection
• Louie Dampier was a consensus first-team All-America selection after posting 21.1 points per game
• Thad Jaracz joined Riley and Dampier on All-SEC teams, and received third-team All-America honors
