The Kentucky Wildcats took control early and cruised to a 69-49 win over Travis Ford and the Little Rock Trojans in Friday night’s exhibition game.
After a clunky, uneven first half, the Wildcats offense came together in the second half, shooting over 50% from the field and from 3-point range in a 39-point half. Milan Momcilovic banged in four 3-pointers, including three in the second half, and Malachi Moreno set the tone in the frontcourt with a game-high 11 rebounds, including seven in the first half. Moreno also had three blocks, including two in the first half.
Despite 19 turnovers to just 12 assists, it was an overall good night for the Wildcats on both ends of the floor. This team looks like they’re going to become a really connected team, and they’re going to clean up what they didn’t do well tonight. They play with a palpable energy that will lead to a lot of explosive nights offensively and a lot of really strong nights defensively.
My Observations:
- Milan Momcilovic’s floor from 3-point range is ridiculous. It seems like he can make at least 3-to-4 3-point shots every game. In addition, he pulled down seven rebounds. Don’t underestimate Momcilovic’s rebounding this season.
- Malachi Moreno looks JACKED. He impacted the game in several areas tonight with six points, 11 rebounds, three assists, and four blocks in 26 minutes.
- Zoom Diallo led the Cats with five assists.
- Buy stock now in Mason Williams. He had 10 points, three assists, and three steals in 20 minutes Friday night.
- Alex Wilkins is so fun to watch. Yes, he was a little erratic, but his energy is palpable. In the second half, he made two 3-pointers and scored eight points.
- Bradydon Hawthorne is going to provide good minutes off the bench. In 13 minutes Friday night, he scored seven points and had a block and a steal. He’s earned his playing time and gives it everything he has when he’s on the floor.
Highlights
MVP: Milan Momcilovic
In the second half, you saw why the Cats went after him hard in the transfer portal. He just keeps coming and impacting the game from 3-point range. After a quiet first half, Momcilovic banged in three triples in the second half to finish with four on the night with 16 points. Momcilovic also pulled down seven rebounds and had a steal that led to his fourth 3-pointer.
Box Score
Game Summary
First Half
Kentucky started cold from the field, making just four of their first 10 shots. But the Wildcats’ offense eventually got going thanks to their floor creators and a Milan Momcilovic 3-pointer. Alex Wilkins missed his first two shots, but he converted with 15:52 remaining in the first half for an and-one that gave Kentucky a 5-4 lead. Momcilovic hit his first 3-pointer of the game with 12:01 remaining, giving the Cats a 15-4 lead. The Cats led by as many as 13 points in the first half, and they took a 30-19 lead into the locker room.
Zoom Diallo and Milan Momcilovic each led Kentucky with seven points in the first half, with Momcilovic hitting one of his two 3-point shots and pulling down five rebounds in the process. Diallo went 3/6 from the floor in the first half, including a corner 3 off a beautiful one-handed, left-handed pass from Alex Wilkins that was the final bucket of the first half for Kentucky.
What was working really well for Kentucky in the first half was their defense. They held Little Rock to just 7-31 shooting from the floor and 1-11 from 3-point range. Little Rock also had just five assists to seven turnovers. Kentucky also out-rebounded the Trojans 24-22 in the first half.
Early on, the Cats had the ball moving. There was some pop to the ball, and players were passing up good shots for great shots. Players were creating great shots for teammates. It was a stark contrast from last year and much more like Mark Pope’s first season. The Wildcats’ offense was flowing much better and at a much higher pace.
While that faster pace is a good sign, it led to eight turnovers and just five assists in the first half. Five different Wildcats had turnovers in the first half, including Malachi Moreno with three. Ironically, Moreno also led Kentucky with two assists, the only player with multiple assists in the first half for the Cats.
Kentucky shot 10-28 from the floor in the first half and 4-13 from 3-point range. The Wildcats were 6-10 from the free-throw line, had five blocks, and collected four steals.
Eight different Wildcats scored in the first half for Kentucky, and four different players knocked in a 3-point range. One of those 3-pointers came from Ousmane N’Diaye, which came off an assist from the post by Moreno. N’Diaye was a force all over the floor in the first half, pulling down two rebounds and blocking two shots.
Second Half
In the first segment of the second half, Momcilovic made his second 3-pointer of the game. He missed his first attempt, but the ball ricocheted off the rim to Moreno, who then tipped it right back to Momcilovic. Wide open and in rhythm… on a second chance. Yup, you knew what the result of that was going to be. Momcilovic buried it to get to double figures and give Kentucky a 41-25 lead.
The Wildcats went into another cold spell offensively in the second half. But when they were in that, their defense stepped up. Braydon Hawthorne was all over the court on both ends, chasing down multiple fast breaks for a block and a turnover. Hawthorne also stepped into an open 3-pointer to make it 48-33 midway through the second half.
Kentucky excelled in getting second-chance points in the second half. Justin McBride hit a 3-pointer off an offensive rebound that led to ball movement and an assist from Mason Williams. Williams then got a goaltending call on a fast-break to move him into double-digit scoring on the night.
Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins showed off their backcourt potential in the second half. Wilkins finally hit a 3-pointer two minutes into the second half. Although Diallo didn’t score in the second half, he had four assists.
Momcilovic made three triples in the second half. If you thought his second-chance 3-pointer was good, his third 3-pointer was icing on the cake. He stole the ball with 5:34 remaining in the second half, dribbled behind his back, pulled up for 3 in traffic, and calmly and matter-of-factly drilled it. At that time, Momcilovic suddenly had 16 points and four 3-pointers.
After shooting just 4/13 from 3 in the first half, the Cats got hot from beyond the arc in the second half, shooting 8/15. The Cats also shot 15/29 from the field overall. Momcilovic, Wilkins, and McBride all hit multiple 3-pointers in the second half.
Kentucky vs. Little Rock Twitter Reactions
Big Blue Nation was ready to watch their Cats even if it was just an Exhibition game. Here are the best Twitter reactions from Big Blue Nation Friday night.