UK takes on another tough defense
UK's not getting a breather as the Razorbacks come to Rupp
In my last article I made reference to the “Suffocating Seven”, as UK’s close to the regular season features 7 games against teams in the top 25 defensive ratings per KenPom. The Wildcats passed test #1 agains the Florida Gators, but are called right back into action Tuesday against the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Against Florida, UK found success in the places where the Gators had shown some weakness; namely, transition and offensive rebounds. The Florida offense did a little better than expected, but wasn’t enough of a compliment to the Gator defense.
Arkansas presents a similar challenge in that they are a team with an elite defense (currently #13 in KenPom) and a less-threatening offense (#66 in KenPom). They’ve been even worse over the last 6 weeks as they lost two key players (Trevon Brazile and Nick Smith) to injuries. However, Arkansas may be an even tougher matchup on defense for Kentucky because their relative weaknesses aren’t in areas where the Wildcats are particularly strong.
For premium subscribers, I’ll explain where UK established advantages against Florida, how Arkansas’ defense compares to the Gators, and where UK could attack.
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