ESPN’s Jay Bilas previews Kentucky basketball’s early showdown with Michigan State
By SDS Staff
Published:
The 2019-20 college basketball season is getting underway as many teams have held exhibition games already.
John Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats have already held an exhibition game against Georgetown College (Oct. 27) and will hold another Friday night against Kentucky State University. While fans are happy to have the Cats playing at Rupp Arena, it’s understandable that everyone is looking ahead to Tuesday night’s season-opener against Big Ten power Michigan State in Madison Square Garden.
This week, ESPN college hoops analyst Jay Bilas shared some of his early thoughts on the UK-MSU game in a media opportunity with members of the press:
Q. I wonder what you make of the game Michigan State and Kentucky right off the bat?
JAY BILAS: Well, it’ll be great. We’ve got the four top-ranked teams. I’m not sure that after the first month they’re going to be the four best teams, but to start the season, to have one, two, three and four is going to be really fun.Michigan State, I think everybody knows, a Final Four team last year, and they have a number of players back. But they’re very talented. They have experience. And I think they’re going to be, if not the best team, among the best teams all year. But it’s not an overpowering team.
We’re going to see a rotating No. 1 this year, and Kentucky is going to spend time at No. 1 because they have experience back, and as you know, a very talented group of freshmen coming in. I think after Calipari has them for a little while, they’re going to be — they’ve got the chance to be as good as anybody.
Q. What do you make of the match-up between Ashton Hagans and Cassius Winston?
JAY BILAS: Well, Winston is one is most accomplished guards in Michigan State history, and that’s saying something, and he’s got an outside chance of catching Bobby Hurley’s all-time assist record. He’s an amazing basketball player. You can talk about a lot of things that he’s not. He’s not big, he’s not athletic, but he knows how to play, and he figures out a way to win. He was the best player on the floor last year in the Elite 8 game against Duke. He was spectacular.Ashton Hagans I think has improved from last year when he was excellent, but he’s as good of an on-ball defender as there is in college basketball. His ability to put pressure on Winston — I think one of the most important issues in the game is going to be ball security, and it has been an issue over the last several years with Michigan State, where although they like to get up and down the floor and score a lot in transition, they can be a little loose with the ball and turn it over.
If Kentucky can turn Michigan State over, and that starts primarily with Hagans and his pressure on the ball, that can be a difference maker in the game.
More from Bilas on the upcoming hoops season can be found here.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
