QUICK TAKES: GLOBL Jam Game 1 - UK vs. Germany
Kentucky's Antonio Reeves led the Wildcats with 24 points on Wednesday in an 81-73 win over Germany. (Chet White/UK Athletics)
Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated
Managing Editor Edit
@JDrumUK
In our regular postgame feature, the Cats Illustrated staff offers its first impressions from Kentucky's 81-73 win over Germany on Wednesday afternoon in the opening game of the GLOBL Jam in Toronto, Canada.
JEFF DRUMMOND:
A lot to like today for a team that has only been working together for about two weeks. For starters, the two veterans -- Antonio Reeves and Tre Mitchell -- played as one would expect against older, physical, international competition. Reeves was fantastic with 24 points. Mitchell was not far behind with 20, including a team-high four triples. He showed some serious stretch-4 ability that could open up some great things for the UK offense this season. With big men Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso out with injuries, I thought Adou Thiero did a really nice job of stepping in as a small 4 and producing a line that included nine points, seven rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots, and two steals. That's kind of the Chris Livingston role. Among the freshmen, DJ Wagner really shined. You gotta love his ability to beat people off the dribble and attack the basket. He finished with 16 points and six assists. Also loved how UK showed some full-court pressure. It really bothered Germany at times and led to some cheap buckets.
JUSTIN ROWLAND:
Necessary disclaimer: We still really don't know much. But I think on the whole you saw some things that have to be considered promising. The backcourt should be good. DJ Wagner is very impressive getting downhill and he's probably going to do that all season. Antonio Reeves was as confident as we've seen him. Reed Sheppard was very active and Adou Thiero appears to have elevated his game going into a second season. Tre Mitchell's impact on the team's shooting was significant. It was an interesting contrast in styles with Kentucky having the quickness advantage and the Germans having some size. Bradshaw and/or Onyenso will be big variables that this game didn't account for but you saw that this is a different kind of Kentucky team than we've watched in recent years. It's more of a throwback Calipari team in its ability to break defenders down and get to the rim, and the shot chart looks like what the analytics crowd would like to see.
TRAVIS GRAF:
It’s important to not get too high or too low from these games. Different rules, different ball, different style of play, but there was a lot to like all all things considered. Kentucky’s trio of upperclassmen delivered, with Antonio Reeves sticking out. It was so big to get him back into the fold. Tre Mitchell provides offensive upside and what he lacks in athleticism (he had to play too much 5 today), he makes up for with IQ and floor spacing. Adou Thiero is the X-factor for the season, as he can wear many different hats. Justin Edwards struggled at times, but, as he always will when he’s not scoring, he provided rebounding, defense, and passing. DJ Wagner has a swagger about him that they haven’t had at the lead guard position in a while. He made a lot of mistakes, and he will throughout the season, but he plays a mature game. Rob Dillingham will have growing pains, but he played very solid defense, which he hasn’t always done. Reed Sheppard backed up the positive practice reports with a great impact as a glue guy.
