By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Mississippi State hasn’t had much success against Kentucky but that doesn’t mean the Wildcats expect to have an easy time against the Bulldogs on Wednesday night.
Kentucky (12-3, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) has won 17 of the past 18 games between the two league foes. The Wildcats have won two in a row since a stunning 74-73 setback in the SEC Tournament three years ago and eased past the Bulldogs 71-68 last year in Starkville.
“It’s going to be a physical matchup,” Kentucky assistant coach Orlando Antigua said Tuesday. “Mississippi State is a tough, veteran and experienced team. Does that sound familiar in the SEC? A lot of veteran guys, a lot of grads and big bodies. We’re going to have to take care of the ball, we’re gonna have to take care of the glass and we’re going to (have to) do a better job defending the ball.”
Although scoring hasn’t been an issue for Kentucky, which ranks third in the nation with an average of 90.8 points per game, the Wildcats are 12th in the league and 283rd in the country in scoring defense and allows 76 points per game.
Antigua said the issue goes beyond the initial stance on the defensive end.
“I think we have to be a little bit more impactful on the ball,” Antigua said. “I thought the initial part of our defense was was good, it was just a secondary action in the secondary effort that we needed to continue to get better at.”
In addition to focusing on defensive improvement, Antigua added the Wildcats are used to getting an opponent’s best shot.
“When Cal (John Calipari) says we’re everybody’s Super Bowl, we are everybody’s Super Bowl,” he said. “That’s no lie. We galvanize teams to try to come out and play their best against us. We do that. Our guys are realizing that’s real. The beauty of it is our guys are up for the challenge.”
One of those players has been senior Tre Mitchell, who has collected double-figure rebounds in each of the past five games. Mitchell has grabbed 37 rebounds in the team’s first three conference encounters.
“That’s the luxury of having a veteran like Tre is that his experience is certainly needed,” Antigua said. “Both he and Antonio (Reeves) a lot. Obviously they (have) played the most minutes on on the team, but we do have to find time for some other guys to be able to step in and help us.”
Mississippi State coach Chris Jans has been impressed with the Wildcats, especially on the offensive end of the floor.
“It will be a heck of a challenge,” he said. “At first glance, they are uber-talented. Obviously, they have a lot of young guys this year but they are very, very talented. They don’t play like freshmen. They seem very seasoned already.
“From what I have read and seen, their coaching staff seems really happy about the vibe they have and the culture this particular team has. They feel really good about themselves.”
Gametracker: Mississippi State at Kentucky, 7 p.m., Wednesday. TV/Radio: ESPN2, UK Radio Network