The Kentucky Wildcats had yet to win a game on the road all year until they went into Coleman Coliseum and changed the tone of the season. It is now obvious what it takes for Kentucky to win a ball game.
Big Men Have Big Night
Kentucky's starting big men Alex Poythress and Marcus Lee combined for 33 points and 18 rebounds. Poythress led all scorers with his career-high 25 points.
After these two were nowhere to be found it was stated they "had a chip on their shoulder." Poythress and Lee used that chip to their fullest ability to go right at Alabama for 40 minutes.
The bigs contributed largely to the Wildcats, out-rebounding the Crimson Tide 40-to-23. After being out-rebounded by 14 at LSU, Kentucky was not getting beat on the boards again.
Heated Fouls
It was obvious early in the game these two teams weren't going to love shaking hands at the end. The players found themselves getting into multiple physical and verbal altercations throughout the game.
The first instance came between Kentucky's Skal Labissiere and Alabama's Arthur Edwards. The two exchanged words after a Labissiere offensive rebound and tie up. Then on the next trip down the floor the two met again, after Labissiere fouled Edwards then got in the face of Labissiere which resulted in a technical foul on the freshmen Labissiere. How only one player came out of that scuffle with a technical even after a review is questionable.
The next stoppage came when Kentucky's Tyler Ulis attempted to box-out Alabama's Jimmie Taylor. Ulis got low on the larger player and Taylor then proceeded to pick Ulis up off the floor in WWE fashion. A common foul was called and after review, once again, a technical or flagrant was not assessed despite the blatant non-basketball play.
A New One-Two Punch
Kentucky's Ulis and Jamal Murray had been the go-to guys when points were needed at a critical times. Poythress changed that with his new pick-and-roll plays in this game.
Poythress and Murray scored all of Kentucky's first 27 points before Ulis hit a jumper. These two are lethal in a situation when they are both playing the type of basketball so many fans have come to expect.
The biggest difference maker was Poythress' new ability to roll to the rim so well. Ulis is able to make some pin-point passes and with Poythress' ability, he can finish at the rim through contact.
Living & Dying on Bigs
The key to Kentucky winning games has become the play from anyone in their front court. With Labissiere still adapting to the game, the weight lies on Lee and Poythress.
As long as one of them is playing above average, Kentucky stays in contention with any team in the nation.
Player Statistics
Alex Poythress- The aggressive Poythress is a dangerous Poythress. When the senior goes to the rim with bad intentions he undoubtedly goes for blood. Poythress got to the line often and scored 25 points and seven rebounds on 8-10 shooting.
Retin Obasohan- It was impossible for the 'Cats to stop the force that is Obasohan. He was hitting big shots early on and continued to get fouled and go to the line all game long. He finished with 21 points on only 6-14 shooting.
Jamal Murray- Murray finally did what he needed to do all season long. The freshmen took less shots and made easy plays look easy. He finished with 21 points and five rebounds to match Poythress' performance.
Arthur Edwards- Edwards was emotional the entire game, pumping up the crowd whenever possible. It was obvious something about playing Kentucky amped him up. Edwards ended with 11 points on 3-9 shooting.
Upcoming Schedule
Mississippi State at #9 Kentucky 1/12/16
#21 South Carolina at Alabama 1/13/16