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Direct Kick: Two games in and UK still has some work to do
Two games into the Kentucky basketball season, and I can tell you one thing: The Wildcats aren’t the No. 5 team in the nation. And I’m sure John Calipari would agree with me.
The Wildcats barely escaped Miami (Ohio) Monday night, a team that finished 17-13 last year, didn’t make the postseason, and plays in the MAC. But the Redhawks played right with the highly-touted Wildcats, holding several leads in the game before John Wall hit the game-winner in the final second for the 72-70 win.
This game came a few days after the season-opening 75-59 win over Morehead State, a game where, in my opinion, the Wildcats looked sluggish at times, and did not get Patrick Patterson the ball enough.
Wall had to sit out that game, serving a two-game suspension, but he made his presence felt against the Redhawks, scoring 19 points to lead three Kentucky players in double figures. Patterson added 19, and DeMarcus Cousins, 10. Eric Bledsoe, the star of the Morehead State game, finished with just two points.
I have never been a big fan of preseason polls. And most coaches feel the same way. The voters are basing their decision on the previous year, and what the team has coming back this season. Yes, Kentucky had the top recruiting class in the nation, but remember, these guys are just freshmen. They have never played at this level before, and it will take some time to mesh as a team, especially with a new coaching staff.
Like I said, right now, Kentucky is not the No. 5 team in the nation. By season’s end, I expect them to be, and maybe more.
n In the Morehead State game, former South Laurel standout Ty Proffitt saw plenty of playing time against the Wildcats. Proffitt, who played one year at Notre Dame, transferred to MSU, and that looks to be the right move for the former Cardinal.
Now, watching the game on TV, I couldn’t get a good feel as to how Proffitt was performing. So I went to the next best source, his former high school coach, Steve Wright, who was in attendance.
“I thought Ty handled himself well,” Wright said. “He was coming off a sickness, and remember, he hadn’t played a game in almost a year and a half. But he didn’t look out of place. I thought he was a little tentative when he first got in, but after that, he played well.” Proffitt was the first man off the bench for the Eagles.
I expect to hear some great things from Proffitt over the next couple of years.
Denis House can be reached at sports@sentinel-echo.com
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