Kentucky vs Vanderbilt......A Preview

Lwcat
WT Administrator

Kentucky vs Vanderbilt….A Preview
(1/30/10 Saturday-4PMEST/3PMCST)
TV-ESPN

Vanderbilt

Location-Nashville, Tn
Enrollment-6,378
Arena-14,316

Head Coach-Kevin Stallings
Career Record-312-191 (62.0%) 16 seasons
At Vandebilt-189-128 (59.6%) 10 seasons

2008-09 Record-19-12
2008-09 SEC Record-8-8
2008-09 Postseason -None

2009-10 Record-16-3
2009-10 SEC Record-5-0

Vanderbilt 95 Lipscomb 73
Vanderbilt 72 St. Mary’s (Calif) 70
Cincinnati 67 Vanderbilt 58
Vanderbilt 68 Chaminade 41
Vanderbilt 84 Arizona 72
Vanderbilt 89 Missouri 83
Vanderbilt 67 DePaul 54
Illinois 79 Vanderbilt 68
Western Ky. 76 Vanderbilt 69
Vanderbilt 84 Tennessee St. 71
Vanderbilt 99 Mercer 59
Vanderbilt 86 Manhattan 48
Vanderbilt 82 Southern Miss 46
Vanderbilt 73 Middle Tenn. St. 53
Vanderbilt 95 Florida 87
Vanderbilt 65 Alabama 64
Vanderbilt 89 South Carolina 79
Vanderbilt 82 Auburn 74
Vanderbilt 85 Tennessee 76

Vanderbilt Stats / Kentucky Stats

PPG-79.5 / 82.1
FG%-49.8% / 49.3%
3 Point FG%-37.2% / 37.6%
FT%-68.9% / 68.7%
Rebounds-37.4 / 42.1
Assists-14.1 / 16.0
TO’s-14.1 / 15.1
Steals-6.1 / 7.3
Blocks-5.9 / 7.2

Probable Starting Lineups

Andre Walker F-6’7” So. (PPG-6.3)
Jeffery Taylor F-6’7” So. (PPG-14.1)
A.J. Ogilvy C-6’11” Jr. (PPG-13.8)
Jermaine Beal G-6’3” Sr. (PPG-13.7)
Brad Tinsley G-6’3” So. (PPG-7.1)

Other Key Players

Lance Goulbourne F-6’8” So. (PPG-3.3)
John Jenkins G-6’4” Fr. (PPG-10.8)
Steve Tchiengang F-6’9” So. (PPG-3.4)

Vanderbilt arrives in Rupp Arena riding a 10 game winning streak…..including a 5-0 record in SEC play. Three of those wins were away games at Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee. The Dores just defeated 14th ranked Tennessee in Knoxville…..not an easy place to win. Vanderbilt’s ranking in the polls at 21st and 23rd will surely rise and especially if they can defeat UK in Lexington.

The success of this Vandy team should not be a surprise….the team spent 10 days in August playing basketball games in Australia…..and they returned their entire roster from last season except one sub. The Dores, while not a great athletic team, bring experience, generally great shooting and often overachieve. Vandy is a fundamentally sound team….well coached…and rarely losses in Nashville….but, this season….they are winning on the road and are off to a tremendous start in the SEC.

A.J. Ogilvy, at 6’11”, gives Vandy one of the best centers in college basketball….. Ogilvy is the 2nd leading scorer….hitting 52.7% of his shots….while leading the team in rebounds with 6.1-PG. Forward Jeffery Taylor leads the Dores in scoring….and field goal percentage….hitting 54.5%.....also, Taylor is the 2nd leading rebounder at 5.3 PG. It seems like most every year, Vandy has some terrific long range shooters and this year is no exception. Guard Brad Tinsley is 45-92 from the perimeter for an eye-popping 48.9%. Basically, Tinsley is hitting one out of every two 3 point shots he takes. The other guard, Sr. Jermaine Beal is 39-109 from long range for a solid 35.8%. Beal also leads the team in assists.

Importantly, Vanderbilt is far from a one dimensional team, rather they have good scoring in the paint and from the outside. Vandy is often a cerebral team that seldom beats itself with mistakes. Make no mistake, the Dores are for real this year and will be a tough challenge for any SEC team this season!

UK arrives back in Rupp Arena having suffered a bad loss at South Carolina that broke the Cats 19 game winning streak and likely cost UK their #1 ranking in the polls. No one expected this very young inexperienced team, despite their marvelous talent, to be undefeated at this time, but, unfortunately, the loss at South Carolina hurts because it was a game that the Cats should have won. Now, the 64 dollar question is how will this super talented team respond….will they learn some valuable lessons from this disappointing loss? Certainly, one lesson is clear…..the Cats have got to get Patterson much more involved in the offense. Patrick is a great talent….a super kid…..and UK needs much more of his offense and much more rebounding. I look for Patterson to be much more aggressive in the future… starting with Vandy. In addition, the Cats need much more offensive production from the 3 position. At, South Carolina. Miller and Liggins produced zero points and Dodson only 5 points with poor shooting. There is far too much inconsistency from the 3 position, especially from Miller. Again, Darius is a very talented player who is up one game and down the next. Dodson, a good shooter, has struggled recently from the perimeter. Liggins has brought more intensity to the defense than Miller or Dodson, but the Cats will need some more offense from Liggins. Coach Calipari might make a change in the starting lineup at the 3 position…otherwise, Calipari keeps searching for someone to step up and give solid consistent play at the 3 position….both offensively and defensively.

Coach Calipari will be looking for his super talented guards, Wall and Bledsoe, to make better decisions and minimize TO’s. He will also look for more passes into the paint for Cousins and Patterson. Hopefully, these young Cats have learned that having great talent or more talent than your opponent doesn’t always mean victory. It’s what you do with that talent…..playing smart….executing your offense effectively….playing solid defense….and making the simple easy play rather than trying something spectacular.

In fairness, these Cats are young and inexperience and there is a learning curve, but now 20 games into the season….with a number of past close games….and now a loss to a clearly inferior South Carolina team….it’s time that these players truly learn from their mistakes and correct them. Vandy is only the start of some really tough games in the SEC.

The Vandy game is exceedingly important for these young Cats. They need to play a much improved game and defeat the Dores to regain their confidence. UK needs to demonstrate that they have indeed learned the lessons from their loss to South Carolina.

UK will need to bring their A game, for sure, against a Vandy team playing great basketball and brimming with confidence. Vandy will be a severe test for these young Cats….a very tough game. I see the Cats bouncing back from their loss and playing a great game against Vandy….I see a solid 7-10 point win over the Dores. GO CATS!