Kentucky's experience is one reason Mississippi State coach Ben Howland is so high on the Wildcats going into tonight's game. (UK Athletics Photo)
Ben Howland has taken four different teams to the NCAA Tournament and got UCLA to the Final Four three straight times from 2006-08. That’s why when he analyzes an opponent, it’s easy to pay attention and believe what he says.
“Every win is critical, but a road win at Rupp Arena would be huge given they’re one of the top teams in the country,” Howland said about tonight’s game at Kentucky. “A win like that would automatically bolster your (NCAA Tournament) resume given it’s one of the hardest venues to play in against a great team.
“They’re a very talented team that’s playing very well. They’re a top 10 team right now in both the (NCAA) NET and the KenPom rankings and deservedly so; they’re really good.”
Howland says Kentucky is “very unique” this year and has the “oldest” UK team he has faced in his seven years in the SEC with Davion Mintz as a sixth-year player, Kellan Grady a graduate transfer, and Oscar Tshiebwe a third-year player. He even forgot to mention transfer Sahvir Wheeler.
“They have a lot of players with very good experience. They play seven guys essentially. (Jacob) Toppin is a very good player and goes unheralded for what he does for them. Mintz has been playing amazing for them. They’re very talented,” Howland said.
“Then, they have guys like (Lance) Ware who can bang around and cause issues because of his toughness and strength. They have a good team, and I bet it’s been fun for Cal to have an experienced lineup instead of working with pure freshmen this year.”
The Bulldogs are 13-5 with losses to Louisville, Minnesota, Colorado State, Ole Miss, and Florida. However, State does have wins over Arkansas and Alabama, both in Starkville.
Now State plays at No. 12 UK tonight and No. 13 Texas Tech on Saturday in the Big 12/SEC Challenge.
“I’ve been looking forward to this stretch of games. I didn’t have a normal amount of elation and joy after a win (over Ole Miss Saturday) given what happened with (starting center) Tolu [Smith]. It was tough knowing he’s not available to play in these games for him and for us (due to a knee injury),” Howland said.
“That being said, we’ve got to go out and make a few alterations to take advantage of playing a little differently without him. Both Kentucky and Texas Tech are great teams. Kentucky has a chance to win the whole thing without question, and Texas Tech has a shot to battle for their conference title with the way they’ve been playing defensively.”
