Kentucky 73 Vermont 69
What a way to open the season.
On the road, against a top 5 team, facing a double digit deficit, the Vermont Catamounts railed and gave themselves several chances to take control of the game before falling to the Wildcats. The shots didn't go down at the end but the Cats showed what they are made of. It is rare when a game actually lives up to the hype. Vermont looked liked they belonged and the box score reflects that as well. There is a lot to unpack from this game but the first thing I want to say is a big congratulations to Drew Urquhart. Drew U has gone through some ups and downs in his career and persevered through it all. He has always accepted his role, held his head high, and been ready when called upon. This afternoon he put together the finest game of his career. Drew U finished with 13 points, hit a huge three pointer late in the game, and battled on the defensive end with the giants of Kentucky. What a great game and it always great to see a senior seize the moment. This is the jumping off point for what could be a strong final season. The game itself was great. Vermont struggled to hit shots early in their first regular season half of basketball. Then Trae Bell-Haynes got into foul trouble. Things were trending in the wrong direction. The Cats kept themselves in the game with strong defense. Then early in the second half shots started to fall for both teams and it looked as though Kentucky was ready to pull away. But Vermont hung around and then Bell-Haynes went on one of his one.man.run streaks. He is just such an incredible player and even against elite, future NBA talent he is fast and finishes with strength at the rim. He is set up for another strong year and looks fully healthy from the injury scare. The Cats had some good looks down the stretch but couldn't get them to fall. A great effort against a difficult opponent and now the task is to take the lessons from that game and go out and get the wins they are looking for in their very tough non-conference schedule. You never want to celebrate a loss, but it is hard for the Cats to hang their heads after this one. Anthony Lamb looked strong once again with 15 points and 7 rebounds. The perimeter shot is there as almost all of his points in this game came from his jumper. If that shooting stoke continues the way it was at the end of last season, watch out. Payton Henson hit a big three down the stretch and held his own down on the block. I still am both impressed and intrigued by Everett Duncan's rebounding ability. He has a nose for the ball and held his own on defense. It was nice to see Skyler Nash come in and immediately drain a three. That has got to give him a nice confidence boost going forward. Vermont only turned the ball over 7 times and shot 45% from the field despite the incredible length that Kentucky puts out on the floor (I mean how many times did ESPN put up the wingspan graphic?). The only area where Kentucky had a significant advantage was at the free throw line. Here I was all worried about the defense and it looked good in their first game action. Shows what I know. One of the interesting observations is for the first time in a while it looks like Becker will be giving his starters more minutes. The rotation looks to be smaller and unlike in years past the starters might inch closer to 30 mins per game. That will certainly be an interesting development throughout the season. Also with Ra Kpedi in street clothes the redshirt must be official. I like the move because with a year to get stronger and up to speed, I think he can make an impact. I equate this game to the Houston game last season. It was a game where they competed and had chances to get a signature win but fell short. I actually think not winning that Houston game last season helped keep the Cats grounded and hungry for more. I believe this game will have the same effect. This Vermont team is not going to be satisfied with just competing with Kentucky. Now that they have been so close this Vermont team is going to be ready for the next time this opportunity presents itself and they wont let it pass them by. Now it is on to the Bahamas for a weekend tournament where they are the favorites to win. Anything can happen in a three games in three days format but I expect the Cats to come out hungry.
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