UK v. Georgia

Tonight the University of Kentucky basketball team will travel to Athens to take on the Georgia Bulldogs. This is the first of two games that UK will play against Georgia this year. UK is coming off of a 67-72 loss to Vanderbilt on Saturday in Rupp Arena. Georgia is coming off of a 78-76 loss to Alabama.

Here's what you need to know about Georgia:

Sundiata Gaines a 6'1" 205 lb Jr is averaging 9.3 ppg and he's the team leader with 4.5 apg
Levi Stukes a 6'1" 205 lb Jr is averaging 12.5 ppg and is one of the SEC leaders in 3pters
Mike Mercer a 6'4" 185b Soph is the Georgia's leading scorer with 15.1 ppg
Takais Brown a 6'8" 250 lb Jr is averaging 14.2 ppg
Dave Bliss a 6'10" Jr is averaging 4.4 ppg and 3.7 rebounds per game

So what does that mean?

Georgia is a very physical team that doesn't make many defensive mistakes. Sundiata Gaines has improved since the Cats saw him last year. UK matches up against them pretty well height wise. It is going to be more important for UK to mantain control of the ball in this game and limit their turnovers. Georgia is the type of team that can get you with their defense. Their coach, George Felton, coaches his team very much like Tubby Smith coaches UK.

Some keys for UK in this game:
1. UK needs to have defensive stops in order for them to win. Georgia cannot come down the court and score every time.
2. Randolph Morris absolutely needs more than 8 shots. With the inside out game that Tubby likes to run, the Cats must have Morris touch the ball on almost every possession. Whether or not he shoots it or kicks it back out.
3. UK needs more bench production.
4. Fatigue cannot be a factor. The Cats were a little winded at the end of the Vandy game. Hopefully substitution patterns can work in their favor tonight.

For more analysis make sure you tune into the pre/post game tonight with me, Jim Tirey, and Ryan Lemond. We'll be on from 6-7 and for an hour after the game. You can get in on the action by calling 381-1313 or #1300 on your T-Mobile phone!