John Calipari explains starting Antonio Reeves, talks future following win over North Florida
Kentucky obliterated North Florida 96-56 Friday following a couple of disappointing losses to Michigan State and Gonzaga.
Those are not bad losses by any means, but does show Kentucky still has plenty of work to do if it wishes to truly compete for a national title. Head coach John Calipari agrees.
The tenured head coach spoke postgame about some lineup movements and how the Wildcats will move forward Wednesday. He started by revealing the team decided to start Antonio Reeves because they did not like how they started against Gonzaga with CJ Fredrick.
John Calipari now at the podium:
Says he started Antonio Reeves instead of CJ Fredrick today because he didn’t like how UK started against Gonzaga.
— Hunter Shelton (@HunterShelton_) November 23, 2022
Reeves was incredible Wednesday, scoring 20 points with 6 rebounds.
The Wildcats kept Lance Ware on the bench against their overmatched opponent. Calipari explained it is because Ware was sick, and that he could have gone if absolutely necessary.
Calipari confirms that Lance ware was sick today, but could’ve played if Kentucky really needed him.
— Hunter Shelton (@HunterShelton_) November 23, 2022
The Wildcats draw Bellarmine next week, facing off against a Scott Davenport squad that no coach in their right mind would want to play.
The Knights rarely dribble the ball, instead relying on making the extra pass to create space. It requires extreme discipline on defense, but can be easily exploited. The Knights are also slightly undersized and have struggled on defense this season.
Still, nothing is easy. Calipari knows that.
Calipari: “Every year I’m hoping it’s going to be easy, and it’s not. Every year. If it was easy, everyone would do it… We’ve got to get this right.”
— Jeff Drummond (@JDrumUK) November 23, 2022