Cats pass first test against Germany in GLOBL Jam
Kentucky freshmen DJ Wagner and Rob Dillingham exchanged congratulations after coming off the court for a timeout on Wednesday in their GLOBL Jam game against Germany. (Chet White/UK Athletics)
Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated
Managing Editor Edit
@JDrumUK
Despite having less than two weeks to prepare for its summer exhibition trip to Canada, a retooled Kentucky squad passed its first test representing Team USA on Wednesday with an 81-73 win over Germany in the opening game of the GLOBL Jam event at the Mattamy Athletic Center in Toronto.
Senior guard Antonio Reeves and grad transfer forward Tre Mitchell scored 24 and 20 points, respectively, and combined to knock down seven of the Wildcats' nine 3-pointers in a competitive matchup with the Germans.
"It was a good, team win," UK head coach John Calipari said. "For a team that has practiced 10 times and don't know how (to play yet), I'm happy.
"We've got a bunch of competitors, a bunch of competitors, which is good."
Kentucky shot as one might expect a team with eight new faces to shoot -- 41% from the field, 33% from the arc -- and the Wildcats turned the ball over 13 times, but they made up for it by holding Germany to 35% from the field and forcing 22 turnovers.
The Cats, who showed some full-court press at times, scored 27 points off the German miscues.
In addition to Reeves and Mitchell, DJ Wagner gave Kentucky a third scorer in double-figures with 16 points. The freshman point guard also dished out six assists and recorded two of the Cats' 10 steals.
Germany hung around by hitting 13 shots from beyond the arc but also missed 28 long-range attempts. Malte Delow led his team with 21 points, including five treys.
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In this "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK victory...
KEY MOMENT:
Locked in a tight, back-and-forth game midway through the third quarter, Kentucky used a 15-2 run to open up a nice lead going into the final period. The spurt featured scoring contributions from five different players, including 3-pointers by Antonio Reeves and Tre Mitchell, a nice pull-up jumper from Rob Dillingham, and an electrifying drive to the rack by DJ Wagner. To cap the period, freshman Reed Sheppard, with only one second to work with on the shot clock and the ball out of bounds on the sideline, threw a beautiful lob pass for a dunk by fellow freshman Jordan Burks.
GAME BALL:
Tre Mitchell, Kentucky -- Could have been either Mitchell or Reeves here, but Mitchell's performance was crucial given the absence of fellow big men Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso due to injuries. The West Virginia transfer stepped up with 20 points, including four 3-pointers, pulled down six rebounds, and dished out three assists. He led the Cats with a +15 rating on the day.
BY THE NUMBERS:
6 - Assists for freshman guard Reed Sheppard off the bench in just 16:42 playing time.
9 - Team-high rebounds for freshman wing Justin Edwards.
10 - Steals for the Cats, including two apiece for DJ Wagner, Adou Thiero, and Reed Sheppard.
24 - Assists on 31 made buckets for UK.
33% - Three-point shooting by Cats, but 8-of-19 after a 1-for-8 start.
50-46 - Slim rebounding edge for Germany, despite UK missing 7-footers Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso.
QUOTABLE:
"I thought Antonio was fabulous. He went on an unbelievable run." -- UK head coach John Calipari on senior guard Antonio Reeves, who scored 10 points in a 16-2 run by the Cats in the first half after Germany had taken a seven-point lead.
UP NEXT:
Kentucky will play against Canada in its second game of the GLOBL Jam event on Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET. The game will be aired on a tape-delayed basis at midnight on CBS Sports Net.
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