Amari Williams smiles as he talks to UK fans after Tuesday’s win. (Vicky Graff Photo)
The only numbers that really mattered Tuesday night were that Kentucky beat LSU 95-64 to raise its Southeastern Conference record to 9-8 and enhance its chances of not having to play on the opening day of the SEC Tournament next week.
No, this game was about emotions.
It was the Senior Day sendoff game for Andrew Carr, Ansley Almonor, Amari Williams, Koby Brea, Jaxson Robinson and Lamont Butler. The pregame ceremony gave Kentucky fans a chance to say farewell and thanks to the five players who transferred to UK to play under new coach Mark Pope in their final collegiate season.
It was also UK’s chance to regain some mojo after the beatdown it took from No. 1 Auburn on Saturday. The Cats were totally overmatched against Auburn and out of sync almost the entire game.
LSU was the perfect opponent for this game. The Tigers offered almost no defensive resistance to Kentucky. The Cats were 36 of 71 from the field and 12 of 32 from 3. After constantly turning the ball over against Auburn, UK only had eight against LSU.
“It is pretty basketball by Kentucky but LSU just does not put up much resistance,” ESPN analyst Daymeon Fishback said. “Kentucky’s defense has been better but LSU made it easier on them.
“If you had questions, Kentucky showed tonight it can compete with anyone when it shoots like this and defends. Kentucky will be a problem for people in March.”
Sounds good and maybe Fishback will be right. But for that to happen, Kentucky had to not only get over the Auburn loss but also knowing that Jaxson Robinson, the team’s best offensive player, won’t play again because of his wrist injury. Coach Mark Pope said Robinson cried after the Oklahoma game when he tried to play but had to come out because he knew his season was over. However, he not only was on the bench with his teammates Tuesday but he was openly coaching and offering advice.
Pope won the postgame, too. He addressed the Rupp Arena crowd and pointed out that even his 1996 national championship team at Kentucky did not beat as many top 15 teams as his team has this year despite the number of injuries the Cats have had.
But then Pope threw in this nugget.
“Just as importantly (as the top 15 wins) to me is these guys have logged over 300 hours serving the community and welcoming citizens and members of BBN,” Pope told the UK fans.
Pope didn’t stop there. He had all his seniors take a turn addressing the fans and it was very well received as it should have been by BBN. But that wasn’t enough. Pope and his seniors came out and signed autographs and took pictures with any fan who stayed around.
Carr, who had eight points and six rebounds, thanked from the “bottom of my heart” and added he was a “Wildcat for life.”
Butler has battled a severe shoulder for weeks. He’s missed games but never lost his competitive spirit. He called Kentucky an “amazing environment” and UK fans roared their approval.
“It is a dream come true for me (to be here) and we are not done yet,” he said.
Again, BBN liked that a lot.
Ansley Almonor may have enjoyed his one year at UK more than any other player. It was somewhat fitting he had 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting to end a recent scoring slump. He told fans just how special the program was and unlike any other program.
“I come from a small town in New York and a lot did not think I would make it here and I want to thank God for helping me make it to this level,” he said.
Amari Williams had his normal stat stuffing game with nine points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block in only 19 minutes. He is not one of the team’s big talkers but he thanked fans for “always showing up” because it meant a lot to him and his teammates.
Koby Brea appreciated fans for “accepting me with open arms” on his arrival from Dayton.
“It has been a helluva year and we have more work to do,” Brea said.
Fans really liked that and many liked it even more when Pope also sent them all out to be the UK Radio Network postgame show with Jack Givens.
Kentucky is still not assured of not having to play the opening day of the SEC Tournament — which seems strange since the Wildcats are still being projected as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament by bracket guru Joe Lunardi. But that’s the reality of life in the SEC this year.
But I think the work Kentucky still has to do got a bit easier now after this feel-good win that lets the team relax, regroup and refresh before a huge regular season ending game at Missouri Saturday.
3 Responses
We couldn’t have had a better Senior Night for this team. Go CATS!!!
I’m proud of this team. They overcame alot this year. Its good to see guys who love playing for Kentucky again. No matter what happens past this point I’m proud of this team. I think we beat Mizzou who are playing very good basketball right now. I think if we can beat them on Saturday and keep this momentum going forward we can do some damage in the tournament. One thing I noticed is the team shares the ball better without Robinson. Chandler has finally turned the corner as I predicted the other day. He had a ton of rust to knock off and he needed a year to get back to playing the way he was when you play and never stop. Really you have to work on your craft year around. Michael Jordan said if he stopped playing basketball for one week in his prime he could tell a difference in his game and in his shooting. Which is 100% true. This guy went 2 years without playing basketball. Coming out of high school I wanted Kentucky to recruit him 3 years ago. He was my Hudson Greer before Hudson Greer ( which sucks that Creighton got such a great player) I just hope Chandler doesn’t transfer back out west. He’s a west coast kid and for some reason the kids love to go back home. If we can keep Chandler I think he will be one of the best players on the team. His conditioning will be 100% and he’s a hard worker so he will only get better and better. Chandler could be one of the best players on the team next year. He plays above the rim and has a great jump shot. He also plays great defense. What’s up with Perry? Why can’t he shoot the ball during the game? All I hear is he’s one of the best shooters and during the game he can’t buy a bucket. He’s shooting 33% From the field. That’s field goals 3s and two pointers combined. If he wants to get PT and be a factor at Kentucky he’s going to have to shoot the ball better. I love how Noah scored with 10 seconds left on a layup lol. I would have done the same thing. Alot of people were mad about that but who cares. He wanted to score.
I agree with You Terry! Whats the Greatest Mystery on this team is that Travis Perry the Kentucky High School all time leading scorer can’t shoot better than what he’s doing??? All we hear is in practice he can’t miss?? If He doesn’t get it figured out in his head that’s all he will ever be “A Practice Squad member” that we can’t rely on playing in games. Maybe the pressure is too great for his fragile ego? I am praying for the kid! I know he doesn’t want to be remembered as the kid with a legendary high school career who couldn’t cut it in College! I really don’t want him to transfer to a little school and be forgotten. I want him to be one of the all time favorite Wildcat home grown boys. He’s an inch taller than the Great Roger Harden and I still smile when I think about Roger and how he was a great guard and remembered as one of an all time fan favorite of BBN! Get it Together Perry! We are pulling for You!
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