NCAA Basketball: Wisconsin, Duke, Creighton rise in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
6. Kentucky (15-4)
Another good season is happening at Kentucky, but what exactly does this season hold for these Wildcats? There have been some rough outings, and we’ve mentioned UNC Wilmington basically every week. There have also been great performances; especially with the way the offense has been playing since conference play began in the SEC. Unfortunately this Kentucky squad isn’t exactly infallible against their conference foes.
Tuesday was the roughest performance of the season for the Wildcats, who fell 79-62 on the road against South Carolina. The Gamecocks had a phenomenal team effort to steal the upset, while Kentucky got 16 points from Rob Dillingham and another 15 from Antonio Reeves. There would be no repeat upset this weekend, as Kentucky survived at Arkansas with a 63-57 win. Reeves led with 24 points while Tre Mitchell had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Wildcats are 5-2 in a strong SEC but is there reason for concern? John Calipari’s program was among the nation’s best earlier in his tenure but the postseason success just hasn’t been there, even as the top-level recruits keep lining up. Losses to Texas A&M and South Carolina on the road aren’t black eyes, but Kentucky is looking for more consistency this season. They have a chance to defend their home court against strong Florida and Tennessee teams this upcoming week.