Three in a row—Kentucky Falls to Mississippi State 66-57
For the third time in as many games the Kentucky Wildcats once again fell. This time Mississippi State was able to handle the Wildcats, just as Ole Miss and South Carolina did---slowing down Jodie Meeks and forcing Kentucky to win in other ways.
The shutting down of Meeks, has proved to be key for Kentucky opponents. In the last 3 games Meeks is well below his points per game average with only 18 points a game. That falls nearly 8 points below his average during the win streak that saw the Cats stock rise to #24 in the nation just a week ago.
If Kentucky is to get back on the winning track they will be forced to find some other type of offensive production. Big Blue is now 3rd in the SEC East trailing Tennessee, South Carolina, and the Florida Gators.
The Rebels seemed to find the answer to defeat the Wildcats and teams have used the same formula.
Coach Billy Gillespie now has a week’s worth of time to try and find an answer before the Florida Gators come to Rupp.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Kentucky Loses Two Straight and Needs Answers
Just a week after being ranked in the AP poll, Kentucky has lost two straight and is looking to rebound against a tough Mississippi State team.
The past two meetings with the Bulldogs, the Wildcats have struggled; losing both in 2007 in the SEC tournament and last year in Starkville.
Following the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky players and Coach Billy Gillespie were visibly upset with their performance and lack of quality play.
“You bet I am mad,” said Jodie Meeks after the game.
“We aren’t going to win too many more games with the way we handle the ball,” said Coach Gillespie.
And Patrick Patterson also summed up his frustrations with, “We aren’t doing the right things to win games.”
Now with a two game losing streak how will the Cats rebound?
They have faced adversity before, as they started the season 0-2 by being dominated by VMI and North Carolina. Following the two losses, the Wildcats did go on a tear winning 15 of 17 games.
Once again, Kentucky has hit a snag losing another two games in sucession. The once unbeaten in coference team needs to get better as a team.
National pundits, local media, and South Sporting News blog has been saying for weeks the Kentucky Wildcats need to find a third scorer, they need to limit turnovers, they need to stop relying solely on Jodie Meeks and Patrick Patterson.
And win after win, it seemed that although they needed to be more complete, Kentucky seemingly was doing enough to win and win handily over opponents. Now, Kentucky has been exposed, Jodie Meeks has been limited, and no one anywhere else on the court feels the need to step up.
Someone will have to step up Tuesday, or the Wildcats will fall further down the ladder in the SEC.
Game tips off Tuesday @ 7pm.
The past two meetings with the Bulldogs, the Wildcats have struggled; losing both in 2007 in the SEC tournament and last year in Starkville.
Following the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky players and Coach Billy Gillespie were visibly upset with their performance and lack of quality play.
“You bet I am mad,” said Jodie Meeks after the game.
“We aren’t going to win too many more games with the way we handle the ball,” said Coach Gillespie.
And Patrick Patterson also summed up his frustrations with, “We aren’t doing the right things to win games.”
Now with a two game losing streak how will the Cats rebound?
They have faced adversity before, as they started the season 0-2 by being dominated by VMI and North Carolina. Following the two losses, the Wildcats did go on a tear winning 15 of 17 games.
Once again, Kentucky has hit a snag losing another two games in sucession. The once unbeaten in coference team needs to get better as a team.
National pundits, local media, and South Sporting News blog has been saying for weeks the Kentucky Wildcats need to find a third scorer, they need to limit turnovers, they need to stop relying solely on Jodie Meeks and Patrick Patterson.
And win after win, it seemed that although they needed to be more complete, Kentucky seemingly was doing enough to win and win handily over opponents. Now, Kentucky has been exposed, Jodie Meeks has been limited, and no one anywhere else on the court feels the need to step up.
Someone will have to step up Tuesday, or the Wildcats will fall further down the ladder in the SEC.
Game tips off Tuesday @ 7pm.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
