What John Calipari said about No. 1 Tennessee ahead of Saturday’s showdown
By SDS Staff
Published:
The college basketball world will have their eyes on Lexington, Kentucky, Saturday when No. 1 Tennessee travels to No. 5 Kentucky.
SEC play is nearing its end, and this could turn out to be one of the best regular season games of the year.
The last time these two teams hooked up it was Kentucky cutting down the nets in the SEC Championship Game over the Vols, and with so many returning players, the Vols surely remember how that felt.
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John Calipari previewed the showdown Friday, and here’s everything he said about Tennessee:
On how Calipari sizes up the showdown:
“It’ll be a hard game. They’re good. They’re not going to beat themselves. They’re physical. They fight for second and third opportunities to rebound. We’re struggling with rebound attempts right now. They are going three and four jumps at a ball. If you don’t block out, they’re jumping over your back. I mean, they’re going to tip and grab. They’re good. They deserve to be the No. 1 team, and they deserve to have the winning streak they have.”
On who else other than Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield jumps out on Tennessee’s roster:
“They’ve got a deep team, and their guard play — the way they shoot and the things that they do – they’re not winning with one guy or two guys, they’re winning because of how they’re playing. The biggest thing is, because they lead the country in assists – their assist-to-turnover ratio – they’re not going to beat themselves. They’re going to create great opportunities, and they shoot the ball well. You better play a good game. That’s what I’ll tell you. You better play good. Better not be any tentativeness. Just let it go and go play.”
How UK’s Ashton Hagans matches up with Tennessee’s Jordan Bone:
“Well, Ashton the last three games has not played well. Matter of fact, he’s not played well at all. This is a game where we’re going to need him to get back to where he was 10 days ago, 12 days ago when everybody was talking about him as the best on-ball defender in the country, a difference maker, a creator, he pushes. That’s all gone away; so, we need that back. He knows it. He’s a freshman. He hit a little bit of a wall. Like you said, Bone is playing fast. I mean, he pushes that ball. He either throws it ahead or drives for a layup. They’re playing good. Rick’s (Barnes) doing a great job with this team, really.”
On how the Vols are an older team and how UT shows cohesion:
“That’s why they create good shots for each other. That’s why they don’t beat themselves. That’s why they’re physically tough. They’re good. I mean, they’re the No. 1 team in the country for a reason, and they’re the No. 1 team in the country that’s on a big-time winning streak.”
Does Kentucky have the physical edge by comparison of who UK has played vs. who UT has played?
“No, because they’re beating everybody pretty good right now. Their numbers have not changed game to game. They beat Alabama at home, who beat us. So, no. They’re good. They’re a team, if they keep going like they are and stay injury free, they’re going to be one of the last teams standing.”
You can watch Calipari’s full press conference here.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
