QUICK TAKES: Kentucky 82, Florida 74
Kentucky's Chris Livingston battled for one of his game-high 14 rebounds during the Wildcats' 82-74 win on Wednesday at Florida. (Matt Pendleton/USA Today Sports)
Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated
Managing Editor Edit
@JDrumUK
In our regular postgame feature, the Cats Illustrated staff offers its first impressions from Kentucky's 82-74 win over Florida at the O'Connell Center in Gainesville...
TRAVIS GRAF:
Kentucky took care of business, even though it wasn’t pretty. They picked up another Quad-1 win on the road in what looked like a blowout scenario early on, but ended up as a nail-biter towards the end. Florida took it to the Cats late in the second half, but Kentucky answered. Yes, it wasn’t pretty, and yes, it shouldn’t have been that close after storming out to such a huge lead, but there were some positives. Chris Livingston didn’t shoot the ball well but was terrific. Jacob Toppin gave another great all-around performance. Oscar Tshiebwe had a great offensive game. The backcourt was the weak spot tonight, as both guys struggled at times. Kentucky isn’t going to survive in March if it’s just those two guards and both have mediocre or off-nights. I think Sahvir Wheeler coming back will help Cason Wallace’s legs a ton.
JEFF DRUMMOND:
Nothing seems to come easy for these Wildcats, but deep down, John Calipari is probably alright with that. This Kentucky team has learned how to fight. Chris Livingston continues to build his confidence. He's morphing into a totally different player before our eyes. He's pulled down 30 rebounds in the last three games, including a new career-high of 15 tonight to go along with 10 points and another double-double. Many of those came down the stretch as UK fought to hold off a late charge from the Gators. Oscar Tshiebwe gives you 25 points on 12-of-13 shooting from the field. I thought Jacob Toppin was outstanding as well, posting his own double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds. Cason Wallace didn't have his best game, but I think we can chalk some of that up to playing too many minutes. There's a lot on his plate. He desperately needs Sahvir Wheeler and/or CJ Fredrick back healthy to take a few minutes off his legs.
DAVID SISK:
Kentucky won 82-74 tonight in a game that shouldn’t have been that close. They led 30-15 early, but seemed to lose focus from there. The offense was good as 82 points would indicate. They shot 53% from the field. Oscar Tshiebwe was stellar against a backup center with 25 points. Chris Livingston and Jacob Toppin had double-doubles. Antonio Reeves had 16. But there were also sloppy possessions with 16 assists against 13 turnovers. A smaller Florida roster gave UK’s defense fits. They hit eight 3-pointers and shot 50% from the floor. The Cats are improving, but the defense against smaller lineups in space is still an issue.
