First impression

[Tom Blevins]

Coach Gillispie is substituting freely. Meeks is outscoring the whole Pikeville team at this point of the game.

[Tom Blevins]

Time out Pikeville as the Cats lead by 20. Kentucky is playing HARD!

[WildcatMountaineer]

Well I like to hear that.

[ctab5]

looking dominate

[Tom Blevins]

halftime: Kentucky leads 51-27. Meeks has as many points as the whole Pikeville team!

[Coldstream]

Meeks, Jodie* 27 :eek:
Patterson, Patrick 8
Bradley, Ramel* 7
Crawford, Joe 6
Coury, Mark* 2
Stevenson, Perry 1
Legion, Alex 0
Porter, Michael 0
Stewart, A.J. 0
Harris, Ramon* 0

[Coldstream]

Crawford and Bradley have a 3 to 1 ratio in assist to turnover ratio at half.

Bradley has 6 assists and 2 TOs while Joe has 3 assists and 1 TO.

Patrick leads team in rebounds (3).

1st Half
FG: 16-29 - 55%
3PT: 9-16 - 56%
FTs: 10-11 - 91%

[kydingbat]

Good to see the hustling!!

[Tom Blevins]

10 players in the game for Kentucky in the first half. We did look ragged at times, which I expected. But you couldn't ask for a better work ethic from the team. We're only outrebounding Pikeville 15-13 at this point. Hopefully Carter and/or Williams will be able to help us soon. We need someone at the 5 who can really hit the boards. I like Coury's effort, though. Stevenson needs to put on some muscle.

[RP_McMurphy]

Did anyone get that much last year in a game?

[NickyGreece]

Crawford and Bradley have a 3 to 1 ratio in assist to turnover ratio at half.

Bradley has 6 assists and 2 TOs while Joe has 3 assists and 1 TO.

Patrick leads team in rebounds (3).

1st Half
FG: 16-29 - 55%
3PT: 9-16 - 56%
FTs: 10-11 - 91%


I think that pretty much sums up the coaching change...

[BlueheartMattB]

FTs: 10-11 - 91%

This is one stat that I like to see

[Gunsmoke]

Lots of pluses in this game. Lots. Joe is having a very good game. Our inside game needs work.

[NC Cat]

FTs: 10-11 - 91%

This is one stat that I like to see
And coach says they have not taken a single freethrow in practice yet. FT shooting is mostly mental and they sure look like they're in the right frame of mind so far. :thumbup:

[Josh]

There are just a boatload of good things to take away from this game. Obviously it's an exhibition game and there are things to work on, but overall I am very impressed with our team. Above all, they worked hard on defense all night, moved the ball the majority of the time, seemed to have a lot of fun, and it was just a breath of fresh air.

Hard to believe it's already basketball season. I love it.

[Tom Blevins]

Did anyone get that much last year in a game?

Yes, but not in a half. Crawford had 29 against Goergia last season.

[NC Cat]

There are just a boatload of good things to take away from this game. Obviously it's an exhibition game and there are things to work on, but overall I am very impressed with our team. Above all, they worked hard on defense all night, moved the ball the majority of the time, seemed to have a lot of fun, and it was just a breath of fresh air.
Agreed. In a first exhibition about all you can evaluate is effort and attitude, and I'd say they passed with flying colors in that regard. Lots of errors, as would be expected, but the players and the coaches will all learn a lot from this one. And, it was fun to watch! Well worth the $9.95 it cost me to watch on Extreme Access.

[BigblueDrew]

FINALLY!!!!!! A UK offense that isn't like having a root canal watching it. I am so pumped. Tubby and his crappy basketball is really and truely gone, I saw it with my own eyes. I am so hopeful for the season. It's amazing what happens to your shot selection and shooting percentages when you run a coherent offense. Meeks looked great, as did Patterson. Bradley looked relaxed and in control and everyone looked like they were enjoying basketball something I haven't been able to say in a while.

[matt colvin]

I saw hustle, hustle, hustle, some continuity despite lack of practice time, some more hustle, and a genuine care for the game at hand.

I believe this team has a lot of room to improve, but I also believe they will have a good chance to reach their potentials.

Jodie Meeks: hard work pays off, big time. He'll have big games against tough opponents too. Might be one of the better scorers at guard since TD.

[UKcat]

What about the guys who did not play??? Most notable, Williams; does anybody know why he did not get in the game at all??? Is he just not ready or what??? The paper today indicated that they would all play except Jasper. Just wondering...............

[Tom Blevins]

What about the guys who did not play??? Most notable, Williams; does anybody know why he did not get in the game at all??? Is he just not ready or what??? The paper today indicated that they would all play except Jasper. Just wondering...............

I was wondering about Williams myself. I know a few days ago, Coach Gillispie said he had never had a player improve so much so fast. I still have hopes that he'll help us before the season is over.
While we're at it, I would have like to seen more of the walkons get in the game.

[ukwebfan]

Thumbs up:
Good on-the-ball pressure
help defense
ball movement
shooting FT and FG

what's not to like?
Sloppy ball-handling
rebounding
low-post offense

The defensive pressure was very encouraging and more conventional maybe but not necessarily better. Especially if nobody rebounds.

A different philosophy than the ball-line for sure. Not to knock the ball-line because that 2003 team had the best defense ever for me. But these guys have played man-to-man all of their young lives. I would guess the learning curve is pretty flat now. Either way, when the trap comes, play those passing lanes. Hello turnover and easy baskets! OH YEA!

If I could add one more thing, the hustle was contagious. He definitely has their attention.

[misterbluecat]

Having attended the game, I can say that I was impressed. Coach G substituted freely and got good minutes out of everyone. I don't know if they showed it on TV, but whenever a sub was made, Billy always had something instructional to say to the player(s) coming out. Most of the subs in the first half were to instruct a player on something they were doing wrong. Several times he pulled Stevenson and you could tell he was letting him know what he did wrong and how to correct it. He never got on them, like yelling. He was in Bradley's ear after he stood out top dribbling the ball to nowhere in the 2nd half. Infact, Coach called a timeout because of it. The assistant coaches did very well in the same instructional capacity, very vocal.

Meek is going to be our go to man this year I do believe. He had 27 at the half, hit a ton of threes including one from about 25ft as the shot clock expired in the 1st. Patterson is the real deal. Not very aggressive yet, but good hands and off the ball movement. Pat did get beat a few times down low on defense though. Bradley has improved his ballhandling somewhat and his floor vision has improved too. Crawford looked good, got some good shots and played some good D. Although he did get stuck under the basket trying to take it in himself. Gillispie was on him about that, told him to pass the ball. Stevenson is coming along. He's got some work to do on his hands and defense. He sure can block shots, but his position needs to improve. Legion didn't get alot of touches, although he did have a nice move to the basket in the second half that left me impressed with his handle and footwork.

All in all I was impressed and I had alot of fun tonight. This was some of the best basketball I have seen for awhile now. This team plays transition well and gets into the passing lanes with authority. The pressed well and trapped extremely well. It reminded me of the Slick Rick teams in days gone by from an execution standpoint. If they keep improving and keep hustling their asses off, they have the potential to make alot of waves this year on the national scene. Gillispie's work in the offseason is already showing.

[poodoo]

Thumbs up:
Good on-the-ball pressure
help defense
ball movement
shooting FT and FG

what's not to like?
Sloppy ball-handling
rebounding
low-post offense

The defensive pressure was very encouraging and more conventional maybe but not necessarily better. Especially if nobody rebounds.

A different philosophy than the ball-line for sure. Not to knock the ball-line because that 2003 team had the best defense ever for me. But these guys have played man-to-man all of their young lives. I would guess the learning curve is pretty flat now. Either way, when the trap comes, play those passing lanes. Hello turnover and easy baskets! OH YEA!

If I could add one more thing, the hustle was contagious. He definitely has their attention.

Excellent post, ukwebfan. Too, emphasizing the positives, I especially loved the MOVEMENT and HUSTLE. :)

Yes, the lack of better rebounding was my top concern, followed by the ballhandling and the lack of much low-post offense--the three areas you mentioned AND ones where improvement must obviously occur.

Again, I LOVED the movement, especially how Patrick quickly sent that ball back out to the perimeter, a huge improvement. :) I think we will continue to see that great amount of hustle, and, yes, that is because of the head coach. :)