We love what we’ve seen from this Kentucky basketball team, but challenges await

They’re going to hit a pothole or two. As impressive as this young Kentucky basketball team has been to this point, the Wildcats aren’t going to go 29-2 before postseason play. They’re just not.

Still, heading into the final game of the calendar year 2023 — Illinois State at Kentucky, Friday, 7 p.m., at Rupp Arena — what we’ve seen to this point has been more than a bit encouraging.

For starters, these Cats are fun to watch. In the repeated words of their coach, they can dribble, pass and shoot. They know how to play basketball. They share the basketball. They play fast. They play together. They have good chemistry, an overused phrase until you don’t have it.

Did we mention the shooting? The Cats are making 41.4 percent of their shots from 3-point range. That ranks fourth nationally. Through 11 games, that number ranks second among the 15 teams John Calipari has coached at Kentucky. His 2010-11 team was shooting 41.6 percent from three at this point. That team had Brandon Knight. It reached the Final Four.

In the 95-76 victory at Louisville last week, Kentucky was 12-of-25 from three for 48 percent. That’s the fourth game this season in which UK has attempted at least 20 3-pointers and drained at least 48 percent of those. You have to go back to that 2010-11 team to find the last time that happened. Those guys accomplished the feat five times. Over the entire season.

So what about those potholes? After all, Kentucky sits 9-2 right now. The first loss came in the season’s third game, to Kansas, then ranked No. 1 in the nation. The second came in the season’s eighth game, to heavy underdog UNC Wilmington, five days after the Cats had thrashed then eighth-ranked Miami by 22 points and accepted too many pats on the back.

It was an educational experience. After the impressive 87-83 win over North Carolina in the CBS Sports Classic, the Cats took care of business at Louisville against Kenny Payne’s Cards. A 13.5-point favorite, Kentucky won by 19.

Were you John Calipari, you might worry about your team becoming complacent. I don’t see that as a problem. From day one, we’ve heard about the group’s competitive makeup. They want to win every drill, every possession, every scrimmage. They crave improvement.

There are areas where improvement is warranted. By Ken Pomeroy’s numbers, the Cats are 47th in adjusted defensive efficiency. Last year’s edition finished 68th. Of the last 10 national champions, only Baylor in 2021 at 22nd ranked outside the top 20 in that category. UK ranks 167th nationally in guarding the two-point shot, 137th in guarding the three.

Having healthy 7-footers Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso on the floor should continue to help on defense. They’ve already paid dividends under the glass. Kentucky is a much better offensive rebounding team with Bradshaw than it was before Bradshaw.

SEC play begins next week. (The Cats open conference play Jan. 6 at Florida.) Pomeroy’s numbers place the SEC as the third-toughest league in the nation, behind only the Big 12 and Big Ten. Tennessee (six), Alabama (eight), Auburn (10), Kentucky (19), Texas A&M (23), Mississippi State (29) and Florida (33) all rank in kenpom’s top 35. UK plays nine games against that group. Plus one game against a currently unbeaten Ole Miss. And two games against a dangerous Arkansas. Don’t forget Gonzaga on Feb. 10 at Rupp.

One more thing: The Florida trip will be UK’s first true road game. The Cats faced Kansas in Chicago and North Carolina in Atlanta. There were more Kentucky fans than Quaker backers at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia for UK’s 81-66 win over Penn. That game was sponsored by Malone’s. In Lexington. There isn’t a Malone’s restaurant in Philly. Not yet, anyway.

The fun part will be seeing how this young team tackles those challenges. The guess here is they’ll be just fine. They’ll hit some bumps, but not ones deep enough to throw this group off course.

Friday

Illinois State at No. 8 Kentucky

When: 7 p.m.

TV: SEC Network

Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1

Records: Illinois State 8-4, Kentucky 9-2

Series: Kentucky leads 1-0

Last meeting: Kentucky won 75-63 on Nov. 30, 2015, in Lexington

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