One down, one to go!

I guess Kentucky had what you would call, "a moral victory" today on the basketball court against a good Rider team that beat Mississippi State about a week ago. For most schools, a moral victory is a game in which you don't win but play well and feel good about it. For Kentucky basketball, a win isn't good enough. A 10 point win isn't good enough either. At Kentucky, a moral victory is a 30 point win against a solid opponent, then...after winning be 30, it's okay to be happy.

The Cats had been playing well in just about every aspect but one: perimeter defense. In the last two games, the Cats gave up 33 three pointers. Today, they gave up 4. By the time Rider made their first three point shot, the Cats already had a 28 point lead in the second half. At one point, Demarcus Cousins even committed a foul on a three point attempt. I think they finally got the message and played with the defensive urgency that was absent the last two games.

Rider Head Coach, Tommy Dempsey's Comments:
"I know they have taken a bad rap for some of the three pointers that have gone against them, but I watched every game and a couple of kids went nuts against them. They hit tough, fall-away, in your-face threes. They gave up open shots, but you can't expect them to not give up open shots in the course of the game, especially when they are pressing, jumping in passing lanes, and trying to create offense with their defense. Of course when you play that way, you're going to give up open shots at times. I watched the film and said to myself, 'If we have to hit shots like that all night to stay in the game, it's going to be a long night.' Those were some spectacular performances, and I don't think it was strictly a product of Kentucky not playing defense. But, I did think they looked better tonight. They were active and their big kids were aggressive guarding the perimeter. They made it hard on us."

It was indeed a long day for Rider. John Wall led the way with 21 points and 11 assists, while Patrick Patterson had an impressive 19 points and 18 rebounds (the Sports Illustrated cover didn't seem to have a curse on him), and Cousins finished with 18 points and 5 blocks.

Game 1 for today went according to plan, now it's about time for Rich Brooks' football Cats to spoil the plans of the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens. With a win tonight, and (cross your fingers) an end to the streak against Tennessee next week, the Cats can finish 2nd in the SEC East behind only Florida. Coach Brooks says that he plans to unleash Newton tonight and open up the playbook for the talented true freshman. Randall Cobb is questionable, but I have a feeling he's going to go, even if he's limited, because this game is a chance to move up the SEC ladder. It's a game that is crucial to the advancement of this program. GO CATS!