The Wright State Raiders are averaging 67.7 points on 43.2 percent shooting and allowing 68.7 points on 45.1 percent shooting.
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Wright St.-Kentucky Preview John Calipari and Kentucky finished two games short of perfection last season.
Wright State’s basketball squad turned in a respectable performance against the second-ranked team in the country Friday night.
“Exactly what he didn’t want to happen”, said freshman guard Isaiah Briscoe.
“Certainly, Kentucky speeds you up”, Wright State coach Billy Donlon said, “but I thought there were a few plays at the rim where shot blockers weren’t around where we got a few clean looks where the score might have been different”.
Calipari also said he might try a few zone, especially with a lineup that consists of Lee, Willis and another big man. The Cats haven’t zoned much this season, but it wouldn’t be much of a surprise if they tried it out against Wright State.
Statistically speaking, Kentucky owns a huge advantage over the Raiders, coming in to the game as the #1 overall team according to Ken Pomeroy’s efficiency rankings.
“The ball doesn’t have to be in one of our hands, 24-seven”, Briscoe said.
The Wildcats come off an impressive win over fifth ranked Duke on a neutral floor in Chicago.
In his second United Kingdom season, which of course makes him a veteran, Ulis realizes that what just happened, CAN’T happen too often or the Wildcats will pay a price. “We have a lot of work to to do”.
If The Blue Devils are the litmus test for the winter, Kentucky will be formidable because it has three guards who can play the point and play at the same time and play well with eachother. He distributed the ball (5 assists), hit his free throws (10-of-12), pressured the defense (scoring a game- and career-high 21), guarded (two steals and relentless backcourt pressure) and treated the basketball as though it were a baby duck (only two turnovers).
Over the next 3:14 the Wildcats went on an 8-2 run to take a 13-6 lead before the Raiders responded with four straight points to cut the deficit to three with 12:56 remaining in the half. “He never strikes out, never”, said Donlan, adding that Ulis always makes the right decision in transition.
Ulis responded just this shy of “Aw, shucks”. “He’s a skilled player with a great feel for the game and you see his leadership on the court”. “We took a big step back”. “How well we played against Duke, we have to do that every night, not just against teams like Duke and Kansas”.
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So young, but so wise.
