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Indiana (7-1) at (17) Kentucky (6-2)
Kentucky’s stellar freshmen came through again in another win over a ranked opponent this week.
On Saturday, the No. 17 Wildcats will look to continue their recent domination of rival Indiana, which hopes its experience will pay off as it goes for its first win at Rupp Arena in 22 years.
With its top three scorers all freshmen, Kentucky (6-2) was expected to go through some growing pains, but it continues to play well despite the lack of experience and depth.
The Wildcats have only 10 players available because freshman center Enes Kanter was ruled ineligible last month by the NCAA for accepting improper benefits while playing for a Turkish Club team.
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Despite the relative absence of veteran leadership, Kentucky bounced back from a 75-73 loss to North Carolina last Saturday with a dominating second-half defensive effort in a 72-58 win over No. 23 Notre Dame on Wednesday.
Kentucky held the Irish to 18 points on 20.0 percent shooting in the second half, making up for its own struggles following the break. After shooting 50.0 percent in the first half, the Wildcats shot 29.6 percent in the final 20 minutes.
Terrence Jones had 27 points and 17 rebounds while Brandon Knight added 20. Doron Lamb, the team’s other impressive freshman, was held to six points after finishing with a career-high 24 against North Carolina.
Jones’ effort came after he was held to nine points on 3-of-17 shooting against the Tar Heels and was criticized following the loss for taking a pre-game nap and being ill-prepared.
“Coming in all I was thinking about was supporting my team and to make up for a loss,” Jones said. “I love challenges.”
While Jones and Knight were productive, Kentucky is still struggling with its shot. It has been held below 41.0 percent shooting in four of the last five games, although it does have two wins over ranked opponents during that stretch. The Wildcats beat then-No. 13 Washington 74-67 on Nov. 23.
“I think they are fearless,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said of Kentucky’s freshmen. “At Kentucky, the players don’t wait their turn, learn their roles, and worry about it later. They get put to the task right away and they are handling their tasks very well.”
Crean is hoping his team can make Saturday’s game more competitive than the last two matchups - a 72-54 loss at Lexington in 2008 and a 90-73 defeat at home last season. The Hoosiers have lost 13 of the last 17 meetings overall.
Indiana (7-1) has shown promise, starting the season 6-0 for the first time since 2002. It bounced back from an 88-76 loss to Boston College on Dec. 1 with a 79-57 win over Savannah State last Saturday.
“I think they’re gaining confidence,” Crean said. “… They are getting better, but it’s a long, long season.”
Junior Verdell Jones III had 18 points and eight rebounds last weekend while leading scorer Christian Watford added 14. Indiana is averaging 85.0 points and shooting 54.2 percent the last three games.
After a soft schedule, Indiana is getting a big test to see how far it’s come. The Hoosiers have 16 wins over the last two seasons.
“I”m sure they know, I mean obviously, that this is a big deal,” Crean said. “They’re going to get there and they’re going to see Dick Vitale and Dan Shulman sitting over there. It’s going to hit them. … They’ll be locked in to how hard they’ve got to play, I know that.”
Indiana hasn’t won in Lexington since 1988, although prior to 2006, the teams hadn’t played there since that victory, meeting in Louisville instead.
Kentucky’s stellar freshmen came through again in another win over a ranked opponent this week.
On Saturday, the No. 17 Wildcats will look to continue their recent domination of rival Indiana, which hopes its experience will pay off as it goes for its first win at Rupp Arena in 22 years.
With its top three scorers all freshmen, Kentucky (6-2) was expected to go through some growing pains, but it continues to play well despite the lack of experience and depth.
The Wildcats have only 10 players available because freshman center Enes Kanter was ruled ineligible last month by the NCAA for accepting improper benefits while playing for a Turkish Club team.
AdChoices
Despite the relative absence of veteran leadership, Kentucky bounced back from a 75-73 loss to North Carolina last Saturday with a dominating second-half defensive effort in a 72-58 win over No. 23 Notre Dame on Wednesday.
Kentucky held the Irish to 18 points on 20.0 percent shooting in the second half, making up for its own struggles following the break. After shooting 50.0 percent in the first half, the Wildcats shot 29.6 percent in the final 20 minutes.
Terrence Jones had 27 points and 17 rebounds while Brandon Knight added 20. Doron Lamb, the team’s other impressive freshman, was held to six points after finishing with a career-high 24 against North Carolina.
Jones’ effort came after he was held to nine points on 3-of-17 shooting against the Tar Heels and was criticized following the loss for taking a pre-game nap and being ill-prepared.
“Coming in all I was thinking about was supporting my team and to make up for a loss,” Jones said. “I love challenges.”
While Jones and Knight were productive, Kentucky is still struggling with its shot. It has been held below 41.0 percent shooting in four of the last five games, although it does have two wins over ranked opponents during that stretch. The Wildcats beat then-No. 13 Washington 74-67 on Nov. 23.
“I think they are fearless,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said of Kentucky’s freshmen. “At Kentucky, the players don’t wait their turn, learn their roles, and worry about it later. They get put to the task right away and they are handling their tasks very well.”
Crean is hoping his team can make Saturday’s game more competitive than the last two matchups - a 72-54 loss at Lexington in 2008 and a 90-73 defeat at home last season. The Hoosiers have lost 13 of the last 17 meetings overall.
Indiana (7-1) has shown promise, starting the season 6-0 for the first time since 2002. It bounced back from an 88-76 loss to Boston College on Dec. 1 with a 79-57 win over Savannah State last Saturday.
“I think they’re gaining confidence,” Crean said. “… They are getting better, but it’s a long, long season.”
Junior Verdell Jones III had 18 points and eight rebounds last weekend while leading scorer Christian Watford added 14. Indiana is averaging 85.0 points and shooting 54.2 percent the last three games.
After a soft schedule, Indiana is getting a big test to see how far it’s come. The Hoosiers have 16 wins over the last two seasons.
“I”m sure they know, I mean obviously, that this is a big deal,” Crean said. “They’re going to get there and they’re going to see Dick Vitale and Dan Shulman sitting over there. It’s going to hit them. … They’ll be locked in to how hard they’ve got to play, I know that.”
Indiana hasn’t won in Lexington since 1988, although prior to 2006, the teams hadn’t played there since that victory, meeting in Louisville instead.
