What an awesome win for the Cats!
It’s been an emotional season for the Kentucky Basketball program, considering the calendar has yet to strike 2026. The Cats’ matchup with St. John’s in Atlanta was always expected to produce an extra level of juice the moment the game was announced.
The biggest question on the minds of Kentucky fans was wondering what version of Mark Pope’s team would show up in the CBS Sports Classic. You could make the argument that they got to see both! Lackluster play and cringe offense were the themes of the first half, leading to a double-digit deficit.
The tides finally began to turn in half number two as the Cats saw shots dropping from all over the floor. Go Big Blue chants blared through the television as Kentucky stormed out to a double-digit lead themselves.
Getting this performance as an early Christmas gift was much welcomed by everyone in the Commonwealth.
Kentucky will host Bellarmine on December 23rd in what will be their last test before opening SEC play on January 3rd at No. 16 Alabama.
Rick Pitino Reunion.
It was a special treat for the Big Blue Nation to get what could be one final hurrah with one of the best college basketball coaches in the history of the sport. Pitino has been overly supportive of his former player taking the reins in Lexington, making Saturday’s match-up a game of destiny.
There was no doubt once the ball tipped off that we’d see the hard-nosed, crazed Pitino that we’ve all come to love, or hate, depending on your acceptance of his tenure at UK’s biggest rival, the University of Louisville. He’s given his entire life to the game and continues to plow ahead, entering with a top-25 St. John’s.
Wherever Pitino goes, a winning culture follows
He’s now turned St. John’s into a program that has its sights set on a Final Four before the 73-year-old New York City native finally hangs it up. Pitino gave us a great quote during an in-game interview after a light first-half scuffle.
“We’re a bunch of choirboys. It’s all on them.” Pitino jokingly said.
Welcome to the party, Jayden Quaintance
You could make an argument that JQ’s first segment of live-action was the most exciting moment of the entire season. His immediate impact and aggression were exactly what the BBN has been chomping at the bit to see.
You can effectively kill the Shaedon Sharpe comments and commend Quaintance for his hard-work and dedication to his rehabilitation. It was evident that he came to bring the lumber and make his presence felt. The 6-11, 255-pound big man will now need to focus on getting in-game shape and polishing up.
We’ll be holding our breath waiting for JQ to get his training wheels removed and play major minutes for a team that desperately needs him. The vicious putback slam as the game wound down was what dreams are made of.
Jaland Lowe Out. Just kidding, he’s back.
The BBN let out a collective sigh on Saturday after Jaland Lowe seemingly re-injured his shoulder shortly after checking into the game. His facial expression showed devastation, and he immediately jogged into the locker room. At this point, most people were probably leaning towards him sitting out the rest of the season, so it was a shock to see #15 not only back in the game, but also make an immediate impact.
The Cats are a different player with Lowe on the floor, and it showed again on Saturday against a top-25 opponent. His crafty ability to get in the paint is something that his team desperately misses when he’s not on the floor.
Monster second half may have changed the season.
I don’t want to be a prisoner of the moment here, but it felt as if the season was somewhat on the line in the second half of Kentucky’s matchup with Rick Pitino and #22 St. John’s. Coming out and getting smoked would have been a devastating blow to Mark Pope’s program and a demoralizing way to head into the New Year.
Instead, the Cats came out and flexed their muscles in a way that could have revived the entire campaign. Not only were shots falling, but the flavor of hoops was also once again palatable. It was a thing of beauty watching this team execute like many of us expected before the year began.
Now that these Cats have shown they have what it takes to put it all together, it’ll be up to them to figure out how to implement consistency heading into SEC play.
Kam Williams shows signs of life.
Another key element to the big win over St. John’s was the emergence of Kam Williams. His stat line didn’t jump off the page, but you could watch the Tulane transfer’s confidence grow with every minute played. At 6-8, his ability to spread the floor gives this offense a much-needed extra layer. Williams also showed that he’s not scared to stick his nose in there for a 50/50 ball.
This team was in desperate need of some swag on the offensive end of the floor, and Kam Williams may just be the guy to fill in the gap.
Now, let’s celebrate!
Go CATS!!
Category: General Sports
