3,2,1 is my post game wrap up. It is pretty simple; 3 numbers, 2 quotes and 1 take away from the game.
Lexington, Kentucky – Kentucky defeated Georgia 66-61 in front of a crowd of 22,682 in Rupp Arena.
Numbers
31.5% – Kentucky’s shooting percentage from the field and they still won a conference game.
3 – Number of minutes Nick Richards played in the game. The first half was because of fouls, second half seemed to be coach’s decision.
13 – That is how many points Quade Green scored in the first half. Gilgeous-Alexander took over in the 2nd half but Green kept UK in the game in the first period.
Quotes
Mark Fox, On playing Kentucky after their emotional rivalry game, “That game wasn’t emotional. They steamrolled Louisville. That game wasn’t emotional for Kentucky. They sat there in the second half and drank Gatorade. That wasn’t an emotional game in my opinion. They weren’t drained, guys didn’t play huge minutes, they were as fresh as could be. I don’t think that was emotional in my opinion at all.
“They steamrolled Louisville, that game wasn’t emotional. They sat in the 2nd half and drank gatorade.”
Mark Fox did not want to hear about the quick turnaround for UK after the UL game. pic.twitter.com/tclTXFHTW3— Curtis Burch (@curtisburch) January 1, 2018
Wenyen Gabriel on how Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s smile helps the team, “ A lot of times when you play here you put a lot of pressure on yourself and when you see Shai smiling, all the time, you just realize the pressure is not really there.”
I asked the players (including Shai himself) about Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s smile and how it helps him play. pic.twitter.com/W2CnE0Cv0D
— Curtis Burch (@curtisburch) January 1, 2018
Take away
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is becoming an unlikely star on this team. After coming in, as probably the least heralded recruit in this class, he has had back to back 20 point games. Those games weren’t against Popcorn State they were against UK’s biggest rival (Louisville) and the first game of SEC play (Georgia). In those two games he is averaging 22.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 steals.
Calipari said of Gilgeous-Alexander, “he’s our best player. I said the greatest thing about him, he’s coming off the bench and not saying anything. Don’t worry about his shots or anything, he’s just playing. Smiles the whole game. Got some guys with the weight of the world on their shoulders. (It’s) got to stop.”
If Gilgeous-Alexander continues to play this way he will put a lot of smiles on Kentucky fans’ faces and he could even end up smiling on NBA draft night.
