Jaxson Robinson, right, celebrates with his team after Saturday’s win at Mississippi State (Chet White/UK Athletics Photo)
Mark Pope insisted after Jaxson Robinson’s lackadaisical five-point performance in Kentucky’s loss at Georgia that he was not worried about his veteran guard.
Was he ever right.
Robinson came out on fire Saturday night at Mississippi and had 25 of his 27 points in the game’s first 23 minutes and got his final bucket late to help secure a 95-90 win. He was 9-for-12 from the field, including 7-for-10 from 3-point range.
“I was really proud of Jaxson. He had a tough week last week. He was super conscious about getting on the court and was joking and smiling and bringing intensity,” Pope said on the UK Radio Network.
“He had this focus. He just got distracted. He said, ‘I started worrying about the future and past. Make or miss shots, I don’t care. I am going to go play.’ His performance tonight he worried about just competing. It was really an unbelievable special performance for him.”
Robinson was humble on the SEC Network after his game-winning performance.
“We knew we had to come to this game and be tough. Mississippi State’s a tough team. Coach preached all game, especially leading up to this game, just about rebounding,” Robinson said.
“I think Amari Williams was huge on the glass for us. We couldn’t have done without him, Ansley Almonor, Otega [Oweh], I could go down the list, but everybody showed up. That’s what it takes.
“When you’re at Kentucky, you know you’re gonna get everybody’s best shot. And I think we came in here like some dogs and did what we needed to do.”
There was no bigger ‘dog’ than Robinson who shot freely and confidently. He played like the offensive star many expected him to be when he transferred from BYU to continue playing for Pope at Kentucky.
“To be honest with you, I’ve had a rough couple of games, especially after the last game. I didn’t have my best outing, but my teammates, my coaches, they just kept confidence in me,” he said. “They kept instilling it in me and I came out here tonight, played free, played with confidence. I played great. So I can’t thank my teammates and my coaches enough.”
SEC Network analyst Ron Slay said Robinson played “like the guy I have been waiting all year” to see. Another SEC Network analyst, Daymeon Fishback, called Robinson the “key” to more UK success. “If he plays like that it takes Kentucky from a Sweet 16 team to a potential Final Four tam,” Fishback said.
Robinson said he’s been trying to “set the example of what it means to wear this Kentucky jersey” and believes this win will send the team “on our way” to bigger things.
“We’ve just got to keep going, block out the noise and do it for each other, and for the state of Kentucky,” Robinson said.
Former Kentucky All-American Jack Givens appreciated Robinson’s offense but also noted what he did overall compared to past games.
“Jaxson has to be the guy for this team to be the team it can be,” Givens said. “When he is playing that way, he becomes more active in other parts of the game. He made deflections on defense and got more active.
“Everybody kind of responds when he does more and plays this way. I hope he figures out he has to play that way every night for this team to be the best it can be.”
5 Responses
I was so glad that Jaxson made the necessary mental adjustments. He has looked so miserable the past few games. He played great last night.
The Cats got back to playing Pope ball for the most part, even Butler. Oweh and Brea did not quite buy in last night, but Williams, Carr, Almonor, and Perry did. The open shots came to Robinson last night and he made most of them. It may be Brea next, or Carr; it can be anyone…the other team’s defense will reveal that. If we keep passing the ball until it gets to the open man, we will be hard to beat. Our rebounding improved greatly! Our defense still needs some work. We stuck together though and toughed this one out in a very hostile environment that had plenty of home cooking. We are still going to take some more lumps as we play through the season. We may even lose one or two games in Rupp. that is how good the SEC is.
I saw an article online this morning saying Kentucky has the strongest resume in all of college basketball. We do have a good one, even with the 3 losses, but this season is a long way from being over. Mark Pope has already proven that he can coach as well as recruit with the best of them. We have 2 of the hardest back to back games coming up this week. We can win both of them and we can lose both of them too. All I want to say to this team is to go out there and play hard, play smart, and play as a team and let the wins and losses fall where they will. Kentucky basketball has become fun again, but it will still have some times that won’t be so enjoyable. We have the right coach. We have a good team. Coach Pope and the team has made BBN proud again. Thank you.
If this team can improve defensively, they will be hard to beat.
I hope I don’t jinx him but Travis Perry has played about 28 minutes in the past 3 games.
He’s had 0 turnovers in that period of time.
Not bad for a kid that many said that "He’s not ready to play."
Still needs to contribute more on offense.