2020-2021 Kentucky @ Miss State (Game 8)

all right the hump is the spot by the way this the 1 000th career game coached by john calipari wow cats and dogs hey shooter you go to the cafe and eat fish and i are going to eat here watch your little hoops we'll see it after and we welcome you to starkville mississippi where tonight the bulldogs try to make it 2-0 against the kentucky wildcats suffering their longest losing streak since 1927 playing their scc opener mike morgan from atlanta john sunvold all the way back in beautiful como in mizzou and sunny when we talk about this kentucky wildcat team everybody wants to know what's going on what's the matter well there's a number of things you can point to but the bottom line is when you don't shoot well it's hard to win in the game of basketball you know maybe they're they're thinking that this is a fresh start remember they've won 49 of these titles in the sec so maybe that will jump start them a little bit but when you look at their offensive numbers for this wildcat team uh it's disastrous right they don't shoot well they don't score they don't score from the inside outside they turn it over too many times it puts so much pressure on your defense and if you do that it's going to be tough to win ball games meanwhile for the mississippi state bulldogs they now are playing some really good basketball they're healthy and when you take a look at the numbers and what they have in the best in the backcourt they might have the best backcourt in the southeastern conference yeah two super sophomores it's uh that jump again ben holland always has from freshmen to sophomores these guys they played minutes last year this is a special tandem and they're just kind of getting used to each other playing both over 18 points a game iverson mullin or dj stewart jr they shoot it well they handle it well they're aggressive they can steal basketballs they can rebound they have assists this is a group this leadership will continue to get better special to watch they have size on the inside monarch and stewart again two electric guards that mississippi state has are shooting a combined 50 percent from downtown numbers that no doubt kentucky would be envious of again when kentucky puts together this kind of losing street and when they're off to their worst start since calvin coolidge was president obviously this has become national news but sonny the key point is this it's conference play you can take all these stats for kentucky and you can just do this right now it doesn't matter there are zero and zero in the sec and they got a chance to pick up a big road win well if you look uh mike at any social media from the players some that have stayed on or cal or into kentucky it is about being a fresh start it's about their time of year and when i talked to ben holland yesterday he said hey this is a wild cat coming in these guys he know will be at their best he knows that the mississippi state bulldog team is going to have to rebound they're going to have to defend because he knows coach cal will get this group going sooner or later van hollen just doesn't want it to be tonight [Music] there is some breaking news for the kentucky wildcats we were told moments before air time that one of their star freshmen and their third leading scorer terence clark will be out of this game he suffered that ankle injury in the north carolina game tried to come back but he's got a boot on his foot so he is not going to be available to play so we could see some of the uh local product that a lot of the fans have been waiting on dante allen the redshirt freshman maybe this is a chance for him to break out you know when you take away a guy that as clark is averages near 11 points a ball game again that's that's on the offensive side is where they struggle those are big numbers to a team that struggles scoring the basketball but when you mention allen i think all the big blue nation wants to see him play they want to see him shoot it he had huge numbers in high school everybody's talking about this is the guy that can get them going we'll see what happens tonight what i would think of a guy like brandon boston who's a terrific free-throw shooter that has not shot the ball well from outside be aggressive and attack maybe get to the free throw line find some easy baskets the tough part is their schedule's been hard and it's not easier tonight ben holland's team is terrific defensively they rebound they don't allow second shots and in the hump they will play better and they're coming off their best game with their win on the road to georgia you look at brandon boston that certainly certainly will be a guy who'll have to elevate his play tonight so too will olivier sar high expectations for the big man the transfer out of wake forest last two ball games zero field goals for sar sonny that's just unheard of for that kind of player in kentucky would certainly like to get him going well it's shocking mike when he did doesn't get a field goal and and what happens when you lose some of your confidence you lose your aggressiveness and obviously in practice they're trying to get his aggressiveness and confidence back uh he did miss the shot that would have given him the lead late against louisville does that bring him down maybe when you transfer to a place like kentucky there's a lot of pressure a lot of thoughts but if they can loosen him up asar can be one of those guys that should give him 14 to 16 points every ball game tip is scrambled and eventually 1-4 for the home team bulldogs mississippi state and kentucky are underway this is the one team that has never beaten coach cal since he got to lexington 14-0 are the wildcats under cal against mississippi state and the bulldogs right off with a three off the mark man-to-man defensively for kentucky they'll want to get rebounds and maybe push see if they can find some early looks like before the bulldogs can set up defensively mints has been the good one the last three ball games here is sar who we just talked about and sar going to work early but left it short he's going up against one of the top shot blockers in the league and abdullah dude i do so good defensively and that's not the shot sar needs to try to get early especially if he getting his confidence going find one that is a better attempt against maybe not to do who's a great shot walker meanwhile ado takes it right at sar and gets the first basket of the game ado does all the tough things for this mississippi state team he's a leader vocally obviously in his age he's been around a while but not only leads his shot blocking and rebounding but he vocally does things all the dirty work he's the tough guy the blue collar guy that they rely on mince with seven to shoot on the handoff from sars stop and pop from 15. no good and flying in for the rebound and drawing the foul was iverson molinar not only are the guards good for mississippi state sonny but they're big which helps on those rebounds yeah they're big and they're solid they love to rebound you know 6-6 and 6-3 mulliner 6-3 dj stuart 6-6 they're an aggressive tandem they will attack you offensively but they'll do the same defensively they will come at you and and again it's early in this season and their career playing together they played minutes last year but not starting like they are this season see the farm rich starting lineup for mississippi state tolu smith another big body down low to go along with those three guards johnson mullinar and stewart shot clock was down to four and then an offensive foul that'll go against stewart you know we've noticed uh ben howland especially mississippi state he likes big guys he likes to have big lineups doesn't mind pushing the ball doesn't mind tempo he's had guards that can score obviously with the weather spoons but he likes big bodies inside they can defend block shots rebound and that allows them to get out and run much like we're used to seeing with kentucky they lost a ton of production from last year sarah steps on the baseline out of bounds mississippi state lost its top four scorers from last year but you wouldn't know it with the way they played thus far you know i asked ben holland yesterday i said is it sometimes is it refreshing uh not that you like losing great players but is it refreshing with a new group though they were here and his comment was basically it's just different we have new voices new leadership maybe a different style because talents are different than the guys who left strong take to the basket by tolu smith toulou smith the transfer from western kentucky and that wasn't hard to find there's some uh connecting dots there with western kentucky of course the head coach there is rick stansberry who was a long time coach and a successful one at that in starkville he's already has smith already has four double doubles he sat out a year ago when he transferred which when you do sit out it allows you to practice get to know your teammates who they are what they're about it's not as though you transfer right away and get to play and try to figure out the system tolu steps in this year and he has made terrific strides and he's a force to be reckoned with as you mentioned mike 610 about 245 pounds stayed out to an early four-nothing lead farm-rich starting lineup for kentucky again davion mintz has been a welcome addition to the starting five but this is an offense that has struggled mightily that's a three knocked down by the big man olivier and they gave him space as you saw askew come off but basically a pick and pop they gave star space trying to see if his confidence is up he is now it's his first threes knocked in for the season moenar so hard to guard but that time got called for a carry there you see john calipari this has been a team that has tested him as much as annie he's been critical of himself for perhaps over scheduling early and the usual draft picks every year they'll probably be a couple off of this team as well but that's not going to make any of big blue nation feel any better they just know the team has lost six in a row and they're off to their worst start in nearly a century you know mike i think what cal does as well as any coach obviously he's more open than most coaches how they're doing and what they're thinking but when he mentions the schedule i think he puts it on himself right the schedule was fine if you're kentucky there were some good teams they played and some teams they lost to that were just above average but i think he doesn't mind the load on his shoulders trying to get it off his young team see if he can just get them to go and play a little more loosely but it's not easy when you get in conference play you're playing against teams that are really good a great steal by jackson but then they give it right back up that's another staple we talked about the shooting woes sonny but they're averaging a tick under 16 turnovers a game that is the worst in the cal era yeah it's near the bottom of the sec you know they're last in the sec and scoring field goal percentage three-point percentage and then when you turn it over also it puts so much pressure on the defensive end that is what jalen johnson does for you the former louisiana and st louis billiken he's on his third school and he's been a welcome addition to stretch that floor for the bulldogs great addition for ben holland jalen johnson redshirt senior start of the last three ball games double figures in every one of those games he's off to a good start tonight that one was halfway down and then out for brandon boston stayed out to an early four-point lead at starkville we stayed on top of kentucky by a score of 7-3 we mentioned at the top it's the longest losing streak for kentucky since 1927. that was a great year for the yankees murderers row some other things that were going on in 1927 calvin coolidge sonny will give a full breakdown on his presidential tenure later on in the second half we had 48 states instead of 50. you could buy a new house for 7 680 bucks can't even get a car for that much now and a gallon of gas oh don't we all yearn for the days of 10 cents a gallon that's a long time ago think of that i i mean the numbers don't stop there and i don't want to pile on but the the 64.9 points a game that's the lowest since 46. the field goal percentage is the lowest since 63. the three-point percentage of 25 is the worst ever and the turnovers is the worst under the calipari era so there's just so many things to talk about but you know when you look at all that it's so easy to just say well okay kentucky this is just not their year there's too much talent that they have on this roster to not be able to turn this around in some capacity well and it only takes a 10 minute run a 20 minute a half a game you know five minutes it's amazing what confidence can do when things turn around again the tough part when you get in league play you're playing against some veteran teams that really don't care what accolades you had at the lower level from high school good shot by asking don't look now but kentucky is at two open threes that's been a problem for them all year long just missing open shots stewart kick out pass sets up an open three rebound battle for and scooped up by askew kentucky on the run out those mints short on to three and quickly the other way dropping the hammer is dj stewart now they can run and they can score in a hurry if you take i don't know if it's by shot but it's not a great shot as mints came down i think you can get better and if you miss and you're on the road even though it's not a loud atmosphere you invite the home team to run and this was mississippi state team will run with mullinar and d.j stewart leading the way [Applause] another open three in that time knocked down by mintz who came in shooting a team high 35 percent tie ball game six minutes into the action at the hump three rims out for davis again no terence clark today for kentucky we can tell you cameron fletcher did make the trip and there's the baseline jumper by ascu and kentucky takes its first lead yeah another good bucket by azkou tough shot [Applause] boston junior has been the quiet one so far in the offensive end but again the bulldogs are going to cover him up every chance they can strong take to the basket shot no follow no block from behind but a whistle well when you're playing an explosive team that's really the guards they'll run and and this bulldog squad [Music] iverson and dj they'd love to push it and they'd love to attack and they can finish both at a high percentage at the rim freethrow clangs off the front iron it's javian davis the transfer from alabama see a dude checking back in from mississippi state they check a lot of boxes state does they have size down low they've got a rim protector and a dew they've got great guards they shoot the three well they play usual stifling defense that you would expect under a ben howland coach team i don't know in some ways sonny this is the third time i've had state and while they lost a lot of production a couple of nba guys top four scores from a year ago i like this team better yeah i would agree with you mike i like the team better too the only the achilles heel so far has been the free throw line they shoot 59 from the foul line they struggle two or three of their guys really strong [Applause] wildcats exhibiting patience on this possession shot clock at eight now down the six pull-up jumper is rattled in that's topping good bucket again kentucky doesn't have the lightning jet point guard that can get shots for his teammates guys that just simply break you off the dribble and you have to contain them when they penetrate there's no deer and fox type of guy that you see on this roster silky smooth jumper that time molinar just makes it look so easy originally from panama city panama but grew up in california of course ben howen has ties to that state he says he worked as hard as anybody he's ever had in the off season there's the resume for ben allen multiple final fours at ucla he was hired by mississippi state during that incredible wave of hires that really took the sec from kind of a low point to one of its high points you know when you hire guys like rick barnes and you hire ben howland and bruce pearl and all of a sudden it went from a league it's getting three four bids a year to seven sometimes even eight as we saw a few years ago well all those guys knew how to win where they were before they know how to recruit the level they want to get not only get to the ncaa tournament but to win games to get to sweet 16s and elite eights and final fours all of them have been there and ben holland who was impressive way back when he was in pittsburgh on the sweet 16 a couple times [Applause] nice running tap in that's tolu smith and firing was brandon boston that's what he brings you elite athleticism and i like the play instead of settling for the jump shot now he made a difficult shot but what i'd like to see brandon boston do better is continue to do that and to get more contact he's a terrific free-throw shooter so get some easy points get some points in the lane don't rely on the jump shot that as of so far has has yet to fall he's not shot the ball very well from outside only 16 beyond the three boston the highlight of that number one ranked recruiting class that's just a hustle point right there by mississippi state causing the steal and then davis there for the bucket [Music] [Applause] mike you mentioned it before that this mississippi state team is a physical squad they've got big bodies they've got quick bodies they will like to bang the entire game [Music] [Music] one point game at the hump in starkville mike morgan john sunvold hope you're enjoying your saturday evening mississippi state trying to go 2-0 in the sec kentucky playing its conference opener wildcats already 3-5 from downtown mississippi state we mentioned earlier the amount of productivity they lost from a year ago this would be crippling for a lot of teams i mean you've got two guys that went to the nba you've got another guy playing in greece and nick weatherspoon our free agent but was certainly a key cog for what the bulldogs have been doing the last couple of years that's 74 percent of their scoring gone but what has happened is molinar and stuart have gladly accepted bigger roles and again john sunvold you and i have seen a number of teams already in the scc i don't think there is a better backcourt at least not playing right now than those two gentlemen now they're outstanding and when they match up against tennessee that would be one to watch and when you saw those names of those players that we had up there that's the reason why mississippi state has won over 20 games the last three years but the guys that are here now have all they were all here in in smaller forms mullinar and stewart played last year they were all started a few games they mixed in with that group and when you have a do that's back as a redshirt senior you had smith who sat out last year this is a veteran team that's not quite as old as other veteran teams in this league and i think it's a team that ben holland i i you know confidently he won't say it but it just sounds like he feels this team can really do some special things yeah as much as ben can get giddy when he talks about players he feels giddy about his backcourt coach cal feeling somewhat giddy about the way his team is shooting in this first half ask you with another jumper he's got a quick seven points here in the first half and he's perfect from the field and what confidence that gives the young lead guard out front for kentucky one point lead then a steal quick hands by the wildcats looked like jackson got his hands on it the sec's leader in blocked shots picks up another steal stop and pop on the way no good look at it for boston [Applause] inside smith in the trees had that one blocked looked like sore might have got a piece of it loose ball a scramble and [Music] [Applause] i thought they were going to call jump ball [Music] i couldn't hear sonny do they call foul [Applause] we'll find out when we get back [Music] 9 49 to go kentucky up by a point 17 to 16 kentucky coming in trying to snap a six-game losing streak and mississippi state fresh off a blowout victory on the road against the georgia bulldogs there you see the numbers on isaiah jackson you know he's one of those guys he doesn't have to score a single point to help you win games number one in blocks seventh in rebounding you've already seen the quick hands couple of steals in this first half he has done his job that he needs other guys and coach cal needs some other guys to elevate their play yeah the only the only thing jackson struggled with last few ball games is it's foul trouble yeah but but if you if you you know if you ask to say okay give me one stereotypical thing about cal's teams in kentucky i already mentioned ben holland likes big guys cal always has long guys right guys with great length and we just saw that last possession when the bulldogs went inside it was jackson at 6 10 in his length and saw it seven feet his leg the shot didn't get to the rim and that's been what kentucky has always been good out of the defensive end [Applause] we can count on usually kentucky being good defensively and one of the better rebounding teams in the league they don't shoot the three well but they don't shoot it often so they don't rely on it which this year is a good thing askew nice move in the lane just popped out and then an and one isaiah jackson who we were just praising comes up with the rebound the hope and the arm and what helps offensive rebounders is when you know your guards are going to be aggressive and try to score ascu hit his first three this one looked like it was halfway down but he gets the ball inside the lane and defense has to help out which allows your rebounders angles to attack and get offensive boards i think part of what you know watching kentucky and all the games that we've seen so far there's been a hesitancy of making a play and that's normal for young guys but if if you're good enough just make the play a great tip in there [Applause] now it is going right for kentucky that's toppin who did not get boxed out just slithered in and kentucky has its largest lead match-up zone defense got to keep their hands up bulldogs have a few shooters outside one right out front that's the freshman davon smith misfiring on the trade under nine minutes to go kentucky up five with the basketball [Applause] [Music] mints angles it in the sar bellied up by ado kickout pass baseline jumper and a dude grabs the carrum from mississippi state always looking to run the bulldogs smith rejected by tsar davon smith another good freshman in this league had a terrific game the other night when you were doing mike against georgia hit three threes in that first half he's not shot the ball well besides yeah that was his best game by far so far another top 100 recruit for ben hall and he's had eight of them it is a block party for kentucky isaiah jackson took some air out of the basketball on that swat he's number one in the sec averaging 2.6 blocks a gain this one should count as two we mentioned length of kentucky inside and defensively that's not an issue man they blocked shots in a hurry the bulldogs struggling inside once they get to the rail timeout on the floor 807 to go first half a different looking kentucky team so far in starkville [Music] kentucky on top by five on a 6-0 run thanks in large part to that man the enforcer isaiah jackson mississippi state has tried to score at the rim they've taken it on the break they've pounded it inside down low but mr jackson has not allowed anything to get above the roof hey there's some teams that mississippi state will play this year with ado and tolu smith and company where they can play a little bully ball this is not one of them when you've got jackson and tsar on the floor kentucky is awfully big and awfully long and tough to get those shots up against again defense has not been the largest problem for kentucky it has been offense they've scored fewer than 65 points every game during this six-game losing streak with all that firepower that's kind of an incredulous number you just know at some point it's been brimming and it's gonna explode and if you're mississippi state you hope that that's not going to happen tonight and if you're looking at numbers in this ball game 47 from the field kentucky is and on three-point field goals are three of five so that's a good number in mississippi state on their home court they're struggling six to 17 from the field and only one and five on the three-point line got a big doubleheader coming up on tuesday kentucky will host vandy at rupp arena you'll hear the dolce tones of john sunhold on that one with number 12 missouri after that one taking on mississippi state these same bulldogs that will be at the hump missouri taking a big time leap today after a tough loss at home at tennessee they go on the road against an undefeated arkansas squad and put on a clinic yeah good road win for missouri a lot of road wins so far early in the sec season no home crowds no big crowd for teams obviously to go on the road yeah you know i actually did a deep dive on that earlier today because i have no social life since the turn of the century in 2000 home court advantage in college basketball has been 69 i'm gonna wager that number is going to be down dramatically this year because it clearly it's not the same i mean it's always nice to play in your own gym and shoot on your own rims but you don't have nearly the home court advantage without the crowds yeah can you imagine going to auburn and it's quiet versus what you normally would get or florida or kentucky i mean it's just a different feel for any of these road players to have to deal with i mean you take a look at this game today i mean the hump would be standing room only for a match-up against kentucky yeah no doubt and and again the other part is the energy it fuels to a home team right it elevates a home team we've seen it already so many road teams winning and right now we've got a road team kentucky up early in this game bolinar with his second basket a three-point lead for big blue under seven minutes to go first half again cal has never lost to mississippi state 14 of those since coming to lexington stop and pop and a shot off the mark by topping but an offensive rebound for the wildcats and offensive foul aggressive take by boston but better defense by state solid defense but you don't want to allow a second attempt offensive rebound by when he kicked it over i'm thinking boston because he's good enough you want to get contact get to the lane maybe jump stop go over the top of somebody guys are too quick at this level they'll get in front of you draw charges especially veteran players [Applause] walks the ball up the floor and kentucky will stay in the zone stay in the matchup zone [Applause] a dude kicks it out jumper from the baseline boy it is fun to watch molinar and stewart with their mid-range game yeah that was smooth there good ball fake one bounce dribble for the jump shot [Applause] [Music] shot clock at seven on a steal [Applause] takes it all the way gliding of the basket is jalen johnson [Applause] yeah active hands and energy sorry mike that they'll do it on the defensive end if you stand offensively against this bulldog team they will eat you a lot boston can't connect molinar fading and firing pops out offensive rebound and that's blocked another block for kentucky five blocks in the first half for big blue and a block foul on mississippi state well we've mentioned this mississippi state team on the defensive end they do have active hands active feet johnson with the ball he's got two on one break he could either take it himself lay it off to stewart would have had an easy one also but if the defender doesn't stop you you take it all the way [Applause] and a dude just picked up his third foul that is critical with 507 to go in the first half your top rim protector is going to have a lot of time on the bench do a great story a senior at lagos nigeria first member of his family to graduate from college did that earlier this year got a long distance congratulations from his family back in nigeria now we've got a lane violation so first you have a foul that everybody was upset about [Applause] for mississippi state now you got a lane violation mike i think all six guys violated the late i think they all fell in it was like a hesitation at the free throw by boston boston the most celebrated recruit out of nowhere cross georgia about a stone throw away from north atlanta a lot of great players have come out of that area just as bruce pearl of auburn he's been recruiting plenty of them from that spot in the state of georgia wildcats go to man-to-man great set play by the bulldogs and a great feed from stuart to davis on the slam back to a three-point game great thing about the mississippi state run yeah the great thing about dj stewart out front he's 6-6 so you can see over the top when he runs a pick and roll he can really fire it inside on a good pass [Music] boston no offensive rebound follow yes by lance ware the 6-9 freshman from camden new jersey physicality what where will bring in he's a banger inside [Applause] do you like the zone yeah if they're active with their hands they've got to realize they've got great shooters outside i think changing defenses is really good it makes an opponent change some things and at least think about some stuff another block that is a half dozen and that is a return to sender by brandon [Applause] boston [Music] uh welcome in dory and fish going to be with you on the sec halftime report the latest on steve sarkesian moving on to texas but not just yet but texas a m little late heroics here what do you see in the first half of our game i think the aggies have the most experience they're displaying that for the cats they need to play as fast as possible without turning it over i know you said aggies but you meant bulldog man i appreciate that dog guys thank you much at texas a m pulling off a nail biter against the auburn tigers so now auburn oh and two in league play [Music] good win for buzz in the gang i thought his interview was terrific afterwards uh but they focus more on themselves he said practice needs to be 85 on them and 15 on the next opponent a good win on their home court now and bruce pearl you know he'd get his guys going 0-2 i thought a m was one of the better stories in the league last year i mean there's so little expectations buzz walked into a situation where you didn't have a ton of uh players on that roster with a lot of acclaim but overachieved pulled off some major upsets down the stretch [Applause] yeah i don't think they'll catch i don't think i don't think they'll catch guys off guard this year right about i don't think so and how they'll do things and i think teams will be kind of ready for them three ball from the corner good look but a miss and there's the follow and that is quentin post all seven feet 240 pounds of them out of amsterdam backing in solid defense [Music] and then a bump foul up top by davis you know davis did such a good job staying down on all the pump fakes and then they swing it over and he steps out and bumps somebody [Applause] [Music] [Applause] brandon boston coming in leading scorer 14 points six and a half rebounds a game out of norcross georgia he still has a tradition that he's had since he was a child playing middle school and high school ball where he keeps cash in the form of a dollar bill in his shoe and i was trying to get the intel on why someone would do that isn't back when he was a kid he always had that because he liked to go to the concession stand before he played in the game get a little snack get some skittles a little sugar high and get ready to go that's pretty good pre-season all sec first team guy that kentucky kind of you know was supposed to step in and have big numbers right away but it's not easy [Applause] that is the x factor for mississippi state you saw right there all jalen johnson has to do is just that and he's going to be a huge help just hit threes eight points now for johnson the transfer from louisiana and i think state's gotten some pretty good looks mike on against that zone defense they've got good enough shooters and when they get the good looks if they're wide open against the zone they've knocked them in here comes stewart draws the foul he took that one on two and askew called for the reach in what the zone has done for mississippi state now they haven't made a ton of shots but it has stretched it out and you get openings like this and if you took a look when that ball went in you had inside position by post again he had one offensive rebound but because it's a zone sometimes again when you're outside guys are swinging the ball around you know as a big man step inside and get an angle on the defensive low guy in that zone defense you and i have been doing kentucky games and coach cal games for years i don't remember a first half seeing this this much zone played by a coach cal team yeah you know i think he's searching for things but i don't know on the defensive end if that's been and he'd say it hasn't been the big issue offensively they've got 25 points with 221 left they've shot the ball a little bit better tonight but from outside three of six but now they're below 40 from the field for the game and i would say a lower scoring game could favor mississippi state ordinarily nice fall that time weak side sark got the rebound and got the follow under two minutes to go first half stayed up by four mike you make a good defensive stop and post the seven footer inside doesn't block out that's frustrating to a coaching staff it takes away minutes from me if you're a player i'll just be honest the coaches don't like it if you don't block out because you've done your job and all sudden you give up an offensive rebound and a putback and then he committed the double whammy a moving screen on the other end so that's not going to do much in the way of earning playing time for quentin post so they're high on they believe not only can he help with his size but he's got the green light to shoot from outside [Applause] wide open three and it's buried by dante allen out of harrington county mr basketball the fans have wanted to see more of him they got to see him hit a three right there cal said he's going to get his chance now it's his turn to shine knocks in the long one a lot of contact no whistle on the ball out of bounds to mississippi [Music] [Applause] state scouting report would say you've got to get on allen and not allow him the open look lack of communication from the back side might get his confidence going and mississippi state responds back up by three stuart you don't want him to get heated up and you don't you never have to worry about stewart's confidence right he's got the green light he he'll attack in any way and he's never worried that he's not shooting the ball well eight points for the red shirt sophomore out of grace mississippi trying to get a little too cute and drag that pivot foot now it's it's just hard to see sar struggle the way he has you're talking about a guy who is third team all acc last year at wake forest last two games zero field goals he does have a couple of buckets so far tonight but they really need him to play at the same level you saw him play at wake forest stewart drive and dish great job protecting the rim by kentucky [Applause] [Music] and then a walk so a nice block on one end by wear but then happy feet on the other end [Applause] and you were close to being in the last possession of the half and a turnover so now ben holland's team can run it down get the last shot take the lead going into the locker room eighth turnover on kentucky again they averaged just a under 16 the highest mark for a coach cal team clock down to six pull-up jumper is good boy is it pretty when it leaves the hands of either molinar or stuart kentucky almost with a desperation heave that one hits the front iron mississippi state 13 points off of eight kentucky turnovers and the bulldogs lead it by five 35-30 our halftime score from the hump welcome back to the hump in starkville mississippi good half as we envisioned it would be mississippi state leading kentucky 35-30 as we welcome you across the globe mike morgan here in atlanta john sunbold at mizzou and john when you talk about mississippi state you talk about that terrific backcourt as good as average as good as advertisers dj stewart had eight points and i thought for uh kentucky i thought askew had a pretty solid first half on that offensive end he had three buckets for seven points but you've also got to defend one of the best on-ball offensive players in the sec iverson mulliner who hits that one at the end of the half to give the 35-30 lead and you can tell by the stats pretty even surprisingly the free-throw line did not go well for kentucky 2-6 when you're on the road you've got to do better than that and the points off the turnovers it's been a key issue all year long for kentucky mississippi state they've got active hands on their home court they got out they ran the ball they finished it at the rim and the surprising number for kentucky as well four three-pointers in the first half that's what they averaged per game coming into this contest that's near dead last in the country a low scoring half overall we'll see what the second half has in store kentucky playing its first conference game trying to snap a somewhat historic six-game losing streak mississippi state looking for a 2-0 start in league play loose ball picked up by kentucky it's boston boston step back baseline jumper rattles off boston with only four points in the first half as kentucky continues to be in search of a go-to guy askew led the way with seven boston now one of eight from the field tough night against going he's going against good defenders yeah i mean boston's one of those young men if we had a there's another pretty looking shot they're so good in the mid range molinar and stewart for those who think the game has become too much about threes and dunks watch those two young men play the game yeah they've got a great mid-range game and they can the great thing about both players they can take one bounce and shoot it two bounces or they can go to the rim i mean they've they have a game that is tough to defend pull up from 15 off the back iron for mints and a shaky start in the first 90 seconds for kentucky down by seven that's the largest lead now for the bulldogs [Applause] inside tolu smith lost the handle quick hands there by who else isaiah jackson he is so active on the defensive end seventh turnover on mississippi state what do you want to see more from kentucky i mean the obvious answer hit more shots here but what do you want to see them do in terms of movement and execution here well i still think it's a team that in the half court set because they don't have someone that's so quick off the bounce that can beat guys it doesn't free up shooters so you're almost going to have to create it from your defense your offense and push but if you're in a half course set sar's got it got to stay at home in the block if he's going to be in the block don't get moved off so now you're 10 feet from the hoop or eight get your position so that if they throw it to you make a quick move they've got guys who can offensive rebound and put pressure if they get to that area because now from inside then it could open up guys like asku who looks like he's shooting the ball better tonight mitz is a good shooter but because the lack of the speed of a one dribble guy a one-on-one kind of guy they just don't free up other open shooters if you're joining us late terence clark unable to play today he's got that boot back on the foot and the ankle injuries suffered against north carolina so kentucky playing short-handed there's a steal into the hands of boston [Applause] sar is not starting the second half instead on the floor right now it's lance ware [Applause] shot clock down to eight for the wildcats it's a circus shot not sure exactly if that was the look they were planning on yeah it's degree of difficulty so tough good active hands there again jackson again sets up an easy basket for kentucky it's mints gliding through and the lead is cut to four and ben holland can't be happy because his teams had opportunities to stretch this lead turnovers and a couple turnovers and all sudden it's only a four-point game again [Applause] [Music] [Applause] eight to shoot moen are going one on one and ask you stolen away ahead to mince three on one and kentucky finishes it's boston on the bucket kentucky's defense leading a comeback here and it's down to a two-point game well we knew we'd have a quick timeout if you can't handle the ball the offensive end in kentucky defensively active feet active hands we worried about them offensively but this is how you get back in the game and get energy offensively kentucky on a roll starting on the defensive end 37.35 our score was 16 26 to go from the hump that's where the game is taking place mike morgan john sunfold we are from uh parts well east and west and north of the hump i guess we're all over we got atlanta georgia represented here we've got columbia missouri represented there and sunny i know you're a history of the game we love that the history of the game kentucky is making some history not exactly the history you want to see again the six straight losses the one and six start the worst since 1927. now if you go back to 1927 you're probably wondering who was the coach that's a good bar bet over there at tony's steakhouse right you could you could win yourself a nice shot of bourbon if you get it well how about basil hayden basil hayden was the coach and there's some factors to this now he was a great player at kentucky first ever all-american for the wildcats born in 1899 died in 2003 at the tender age of 103. when he took over as the coach most of the team was football players just trying to play it out now he took over from ray equine there's another bar bet for you he was given just a week to prepare that less than stellar team they had a losing season he was done he went on to bigger and better things they then went on to hire john bauer and then shortly thereafter in 1930 came one adolf rupp so basil hayden who by the way if you're wondering for you bourbon lovers out there it was his paternal great great grandfather who was the basil hayden the well-known distiller that is everything you need to know about that team that coach that player and a little bit of bourbon trivia as well i was going to say if you say basil hayden in in my neck of the woods they're just going to think you're you're pulling up to the bar absolutely and there's nothing wrong with that two-point game and there's a big three in a response from mississippi state they had turned it over four times in the last five possessions jalen johnson is terrific for this ball club fits in well defensively offensively [Applause] on any given night if you're mississippi state you can go to johnson mullinar and stuart and they can give you 15 20 25. pretty good luxury to have kentucky down by five our women's basketball doubleheader for you comes on thursday on the sec network tennessee hopefully will be back on the court after a positive cove at 19 test has paused all activities they're slated to square off against 10th ranked arkansas in knoxville at 6 30 eastern time and then kentucky takes on texas a m at reed arena sonny that's just something we all have to get used to this year in college basketball the same way we got acclimated to it in college football any given game on the schedule could be postponed due to cobit yeah and it's tough i think well it's tough on coaches it's tough on players when we've watched it in college basketball we've all said and coaches have agreed that the the older teams have handled it better because they're used to school they're used to all the things that go on now they just have to add another element but it hasn't disrupted them many of the high school kids that have come in it's been disrupted they haven't played a lot of basketball with their current teammates through the summer some of these teams well we finally got to see south carolina play this afternoon it's been a long time before we've seen frank's team and that's a team we don't even get to talk about we don't even know them yet but we think they'll be a good team because it's a veteran squad that was their first game in nearly a month nearly um four weeks of no games in the middle of the season for south carolina so you're right we're still trying to figure out exactly what they're made of they struggle today against florida a m but i'm with you i think when they get things going they could be a dangerous team iverson molinar is already a dangerous player and continues to heat up he's got eight and the mississippi state lead is seven tough matchup for this wildcat team with the three-headed monster out front mullinar johnson and stuart all three guys can shoot it all three guys can go off the bounce entry pass tonight askew picked it up his shot blocked but he walked beforehand anyway [Applause] another turnover on kentucky that's 10 for the game you couldn't be thrown into a bigger role as the lead guy of kentucky wildcats right ask you devon ask you comes out a year early yeah and he's handed the reins of kentucky basketball and that would be so difficult to try to be able to at his age to try to comprehend understand what a coach wants of what big blue nation expects all those things he will be a terrific player in a kentucky uniform but it takes time well and and what does he have i mean he doesn't have a drop dead shooter on the wing right you know right right he doesn't have a tyler hero or a malik monk or some of the other guys that we've seen in recent years at kentucky he doesn't have a bam out of bayou down low that can just carve up space and and bully people on the opposing teams i mean it's not just on ask you that they have just been limited in a number of spots and no one's gonna feel sorry for kentucky is against another one recruiting class yes or no there's boston on the stuff not all number one recruiting classes are built the same that's something we've learned over the years right then let's go back to coven it hurt every group and again who has more one-and-done guys or just first-year guys every year it's kentucky so when they don't get to work together this summer and then when you have to take a break because of kovad because of tracing all those things it has been tough on a lot of ball clubs especially younger players that's one boston would love to have back fouling the jump shooter in stewart that's a quote from john calipari the other day he says they're fighting they're defending the rebounding we turn it over too much working on that miss a lot of shots but the biggest thing is our execution on offense has got to get better and we've got time to continue to work on it well there is time yes but now we're in conference play i mean these games become magnified when you go one and six out of conference now you're at a point where your margin for error this is still going to be another ncaa tournament team and they've made it every year but one under coach cal then they're going to have to be one of the top teams in this league record wise to really have a shot for the committee yeah and and it's still there i mean this is the first game of sec play and they got a chance to win this one but every coach is going to say okay what do we have to do against kentucky transition defense right keep them off the glass they're very active like they always are and you've got to keep just keep guys in front of you and make them make jump shots finally boston gets another one to go boston now with 11 and that's what they could use they were pretty chilly shooting the basketball in the first half boston might be the closest thing they have right now to a go-to guy davon smith talented freshman in for mississippi state i do a do with an and one we've been watching abdullah do for four years i don't know if i've seen that move from him sonny you know they were enticing him good scouting reports sar stayed back enticing a do to shoot the jump shot gave him space gave him room and i'm sure the coaching staff for kentucky says he played it perfectly because the shoulder was lowered officials saw differently underneath gave him the contact and he knocks it in off the glass [Applause] abdul adu and his 107th career start scc's active leader and rebounds and blocked shots gives mississippi state an eight-point lead [Applause] 12 and a half minutes to go it's the largest deficit for kentucky askew nice take would have counted anyway with a goal 10 but the bucket and the ball goes through the basket so that'll make it a six point game ask you freshman on freshman avon smith thought he might have helped on the back side did not ask who turned it up a gear got it to the bucket nice blow-by by the freshman stewart crosses over takes it strong he's just so fluid at six six he's got a good handle he's quick and you have to respect his shot from three-point range on yeah he shoots it so well and he's so good off the bounce and we've already seen it tonight he can shoot it you know if he catches he can release it when he goes off the bounce whether it's one dribble or two he can go for the mid-range jump shot comfortable and because he's strong enough and at six six he can finish at the rim and he's looking for contact when you average 18 points a game you're trying to get six or seven free throws a ball game contact draw it see if you can finish it doesn't need to be missing at the foul line where he has really struggled this season just at 59 and that's almost a shock that would go along with the whole state team at 59 percent that is the one weakness we've seen out of this squad so far in fact it's cost them two games if you go back to the dayton double overtime loss and the loss to clemson if they just hit an average amount of free throws they win those games we're talking about a an 8-1 team if that happens instead they stand at six and three and trying to go to two-and-oh in league play tonight yeah that's a good point mike and you know what people talk about free throws they do matter especially if you're an aggressive team that can attack time out on the floor with 11 43 to go state up by seven at the hump well coming up on tuesday got a good double header for you kentucky hosting vanderbilt at rupp arena and then number 12 missouri will battle these same mississippi state bulldogs from the hump more of the stewart and molinar show will be ready for that one and those two have not disappointed the most dynamic of duos and the backward in the scc this year mullinar and stewart you know they always talk about john that if you if your best players are your hardest workers that's a coach's dream right that's the formula for success you're talking about two guys in mullinar and stuart that are tireless workers in fact iverson molinar who ben halland told us he's never seen a player improve this much from freshman his sophomore year since one russell westbrook who of course he coached at ucla he went to california the entire offseason did two a days three a days worked with family just continued to work on his jump shot dj stewart who was only a 33 percent three-point shooter last year shooting 48 this year we both those guys continue to work on their game and continue to lead the way yeah and they brought in davon smith ben holland thought that davon smith might be the guy like to delete him and then stewart would play alongside mulliner would come in but as you mentioned when iverson mulliner decided that he needs to be the guy leads a team in points assists steals all of a sudden you've got leadership out front that can do so many things on both ends of the floor now you bring the freshman along davon smith who's an explosive player who's going to have some ups and downs because he is a freshman but as you saw him in the georgia game he was spectacular and was a big reason that first half went totally mississippi state's way telegraph pass trying to hit sar inside state the other way and there is the finish by the talented freshman davon smith timeout coach cal sees the lead balloon to nine the largest for the bulldogs [Applause] [Music] you see the quick hands by ado to stuart to the freshman davon smith who bent howard raves about he thinks he's going to be a good one a nice complimentary piece to a veteran backcourt there's there's just a lot to like about this mississippi state squad and i think they've been flying under the radar remember a couple of those losses they had early on monarch was not on the team at that point and so they were playing short-handed mention the two losses due to free throw shooting you and i we continue to get a first-hand look at a lot of these teams in the sec tennessee to me isn't you just had them the other night john yeah they were supposed to they're in their own category right yeah right now they are yes yeah i i mean when you got two five-star kids coming off the bench and you got veterans all over the place you got a great coach rick barnes but i think mississippi state and that second tier more people are going to start talking about them and they'll only get better because of yeah just the way it is their growth together and their confidence you know that last play that was laid in by smith on the steal by ado that do's the guy who sprints down he's trailing it he's there for the miss they are very athletic now they'll run into some teams that may shoot the heck out of it when they lost to liberty i mean nobody wants to play richie mccasey i'm just telling you i've seen them in person missouri had a heck of a game with him they made 19 threes against mississippi state when someone does that you know it's gonna be a tough night the same liberty team that beat south carolina earlier this year as well they're very dangerous [Music] all right so kentucky's down by nine plenty of time left in this game but john how do they close the gap well when did when did they make their run mike they they did it on the defensive end right they had steals they had active hands uh offensively they are who they are in the half court again without the blow-by of any point guard it's all handled by how well do you pick for each other how well does sar set himself inside can he get buckets good follow there was that time he took it right on to do and then cleaned up his own miss would you work for them offensively i mean it's not an easy thing you you just you went through about five names that they don't have those type of players guys that can shoot it like a monk or a booker but you go through guys and you're taking a look okay how can they score well they've got talent but they've got to be able to do this they need to get out and run push see if they can get some open looks and if this kid allen because everybody wants to see him and cal said i'm gonna have him play that's his second one he's hit you know what they're saying right now back in bluegrass country we want to see more of dante allen that's a pair of threes [Applause] you know mike you said something to me you said something to me when we were on the break that kentucky hasn't gone over 65 points yet this season which is a shock and i'm looking at the rubbers wow yeah they had one game where they got over to 65 that was the win against moorhead state yeah the first one you're right so so six in a row of fewer than 65 points and that is a staggering number i gotta admit i checked the notes like 12 times to make sure that that was not a typo [Music] [Applause] johnson checks back in for mississippi state you know ben holland's got a deep team too guys he can rotate in and out you mentioned the production of the guard court if you include jalen johnson the transfer redshirt transfer he another guy that scores so when you've got the ability of a number of bodies that can put points on the board that's how you stay at the upper echelon of this league [Applause] [Music] yeah quick hard bounce if you're a great jump shooter uh the the bounce should be harder on your last dribble and that gets you right into a jump shot now they just teed up coach calipari i think he might have wanted a carry on the dribble by molinar and if we can take another look at that last play as he's saying when you read his lips he's got his hand under the ball right which is very common in college basketball today and calipari has just gotten tossed a second t he was arguing for the carry which we saw one called in the first half he wanted it here in the second half on that play by mullinar got the first tee and just got a second one and that is frustration that has been boiling over now for seven consecutive games exit stage right coach cal [Applause] for the final nine minutes and four seconds kentucky will look to tony barbie and company on the bench johnson misses the first technical free throw we'll take another look at the controversial no call after the free throw to make it 53-46 watch mullinar we got four free throws let's get the extra two first this is like a drill you get to shoot four in a row sonny 88 free throw shooter anybody that uh wants to be in that spot because it helps your stat sheet you're thinking this is a great way to get four points although he's only going to make three of the four [Applause] and now we'll get a chance to see it yeah watch the hesitation dribble he wants the hand under the ball [Applause] you know he's got an argument i i like i said it's pretty common in the collegiate game in the nba game that the hand gets underneath there quite a bit yeah sometimes it's called sometimes it's not it's it's the ultimate judgment call in basketball i once had a veteran official say what i look for did he freeze the defender with the move ah good point if he does that i'm blowing the whistle if he doesn't i'm letting it go speaking of letting it go kentucky let another three go the wildcats uncharacteristically hitting threes in this game and that'll cut the lead to six i believe that was allen again catch and shoot your loving life in pendleton county about an hour north of frankfort [Applause] six point game and six on the shot clock and we know how energetic cal is on the sideline now will his players respond to uh tony barbie's not the same way [Music] a three would cut it to three allen has had the hot hand gives it off to mints turn and face by olivier that's what he did so well at wake forest and it's a four point game momentum energy maybe what cal did brought a life into this wildcat team [Applause] kentucky trying to snap a six-game losing streak and will have to do so without their coach on the sideline two straight possessions shot clock winding down and a steal leading the way it's where on a two-hand flush time-out mississippi state a two-point game 16 to play things getting interesting in starkville well that is one of the assistant coaches for kentucky drawing up a play right now it's bruiser clinton you talk about the experience on that bench with tony barbie and bruiser flint you're talking about two guys who are long time head coaches of course tony barbie among other places the auburn tigers in the sec nope coach cal for the rest of the game as he has been ejected in this one arguing a non-call on what he thought was going to be a carry on iverson mullinar at that point kentucky was struggling since the technicals kentucky has amped it up on the defensive end john and has closed the gap within two something we talked about mike if uh their defense is what leads to good offense and it's it's hands it's activity and i think the bulldogs when they get in their half court set and they allow the wildcats to get set and they're and they don't run good motion and they don't set good screens and they're stagnant offensively it allows kentucky to be better and it's really hurt this mississippi state team tolu smith lost his footing but did he get pushed i believe they caught a foul on lance [Music] ware that's 18 fouls on kentucky [Music] that's a tough call yeah looked like he just lost his footing front end of the one and one is missed [Applause] sarah on the rebound kentucky can tie it with a two take the lead with a three don please watch him coming off the screens [Applause] out of bounds it will be kentucky basketball with seven on the shot clock [Applause] kentucky has not led this game since 21-20 in the first half that's their largest lead one point shot clock at five for askew pulls up on a three off the front iron rebound state into the hands of d.j stewart under six and a half to go from the hump in starkville tolu smith wheeling and dealing missed [Applause] [Music] it bulldogs have tried to almost score inside the last few possessions probably put a little pressure on sar who's got three personals for kentucky but they've not been able to convert stewart on the other end no that last possession shot popped out like he was halfway down very similar to the game against louisville open three on the way no boy kentucky has had three chances to tie it or take the lead and normally that might not be a good look but dante allen has already knocked in three threes and that was right on track also kentucky six for 13 from behind the arc well ahead of their 25 clip on the season ado inside try to split a double can't do it kentucky on another takeaway all the way stripped again steal for steal that time it was mullinar numbers for state not sure what that was wow it was a terrible here comes kentucky with numbers three on two and open three knocked down and the career performance for dante allen continues kid he's going to get his chance that's what they said that he has delivered he has hit four threes in this ball game and dante allen confident his teammates are confident space the floor on the break if you're a great shooter why not stop behind a three-point line he said three already here's his fourth and the wildcats on a roll as mississippi state has just floundered opportunities a couple times on the fast break mr basketball in the state of kentucky coach cow was asked a very direct question after the loss to louisville why didn't we see number 11 dante allen cal gave an answer about playing clark and everything and the fans just said no no no we don't want to hear that we want to see more of dante allen and right now he's earning some more pt four three pointers for the freshman that's one more than the entire mississippi state team and you can tell mike his confidence as a shooter regardless of what level as i mentioned over 3200 points in high school that's just a staggering number and he is now catching it with confidence and the possession before when they kept it they ran him off two screens and even though he didn't get the shot the mississippi state's adjusting where he's going which then that makes everybody else open boston should be able to play off that mints should be able to play off that guys will get open shots because their teammate now allen is knocking at three mississippi state meanwhile on a scoring drought of over four minutes i have not scored a field goal since the 905 mark give some 55 points yeah give some credit to the wildcat defense but they've just been stagnant offensively not a good shot there by stewart early in the shot clock and deep kentucky on a 10-0 run [Applause] boston to mince pick [Applause] jackson i'm not sure if that's the look kentucky wants will the scoring drought continue it does for state and then both players fighting for the ball it will be mississippi state ball great hustle by ado [Applause] a one-point game with 410 to play kentucky's first conference game of the year state trying to go to 2-0 [Music] [Applause] normally it's stewart molinar who are the guys that take the big shots or try to make the place steward on the drive i was going to say stewart does not miss that often but there to clean it up is tolu smith state back on top kentucky bleeding some clock here shot clock now down under 10. ask you on a rise and fire three no tapped around into the hands of toulouse smith [Applause] [Music] they took allen out to get him a blow they've got him at the scorers table to get him back in he's the one that has brought this team back as in kentucky stewart left-handed loves to go left and he's aggressive when he attacks the rip [Applause] askew one-on-two return to sender by ado not a wise move to take it on number 24 in maroon abdullah do one of the top shot blockers in the scc we're coming down to the final moments in starkville let's take a look at tonight's protection spotlight brought to you by allstate defensively kentucky when you talk about protection active hands especially around the rim they've got ten 10 blocks tonight against this mississippi state bulldog squad and that has really kept him in the game but a chance to win on the road and go 1-0 in the sec we talked about at the top how big this game is for kentucky john i mean you lose six in a row you can't get the 65 points everybody in big blue nation wondering what's going on with this team they've got a chance to write a lot of wrongs if they can pull this out what should we expect from both teams in the final three and change so if i'm a player on kentucky's team i got to find how i get allen open he doesn't have to shoot it but if i'm trying to get him open that means the guy setting the screens will probably get open to slip because the bulldogs will try to get him or at least try to stop him if you're the bulldogs mississippi state go back to stuart mullinar johnson those are the three guys that have scored don't get stagnant always looking on the inside post it hasn't been there they've not finished it inside let your outside guys take it off the dribble see if they can cause some action [Music] final three minutes and two seconds if you're just joining us john calipari got ejected arguing what he thought should have been a carry call back-to-back technical fouls kentucky's actually outscored mississippi state 10-5 since the ejection so a little bit of spark provided by his team as john mentioned on the defensive end offensively the story has been dante allen with four threes a one point game under three to play [Applause] state has only scored two points in the last six minutes and two seconds three on the wing knocked down by molinar mike molinar started on the opposite end of the floor they went away from him came off two screens off the top of the three-point line he came all the way across and knocked it in mullinar came into this game shooting 52 from behind the arc and molinar is matched up against alan a little gap to keep allen from catching the ball pressure situation they go to boston rims off offensive rebound and a foul on the floor says terry oglesby and for mississippi state that's only the fourth team foul fowl's going to go against mullinar but if it's on the floor no free throws yet yeah a lot of whistle is a for state but not in the second [Applause] so kentucky will inbound it from the baseline i think molinar was asking he thought he hit a three-point shot down there they gave him two and they go check that and shooters shooters no yeah well shooters down for a three yeah i did two but i didn't give it to him and it was the first thing he looked at when the ball went dead he looked over there said he was a three i know where i'm going you know where i was you weren't the kind of guy that would check the box score after the game just to see how many you lit him up for were you no no no i knew where my feet were i promised you i knew where my feet were there was no sense coming off a double screen to shoot a three and move inside that lane live that's right but that's a tough angle for us and it is a two it is confirmed the two the line of course to look for there is the white one the second line is for the women's game with the white line which was expanded a couple of years ago to the international market 22 feet and that one from was from about 21 feet and 7 8 of an inch so it's a one possession game 202 to go kentucky with two timeouts could come a factor mississippi state no timeouts remaining and kentucky only three of eight from the foul line [Music] [Applause] don't have to hurry they had a fresh shot clockwell okay go ahead and fire up a three shooters that's perfect but the bulldogs had the perfect defensive possession and they don't come up with a loose ball and allen knocks in another one dante allen with five threes [Applause] molinar with the response they see tough rise up and shoot it guy in his face dante allen made two shots all season long he's played a grand total of 20 minutes before tonight's game he's got five count of five three-pointers well kentucky didn't have a lot on that last offensive possession mike and when the shot got up buzzer went off loose ball it's on the ground ask who comes up with it and again when you're a shooter like alan and the shock of the thing is he's not played much and he steps in and knocks his shots in and on the other end this is the second time in a row they've gone to mullinar and he simply steps up and it's all net yeah i don't know how you guard molinar one on one at this point it just seems like it's almost a fruitless effort no matter who you put on him if you lay off him he'll hit you from outside if you crowd him he can drive and pull up on anybody yeah he's got that physical body 6'3 190. let's see if this is a little better a little more movement for kentucky in the offensive end final minute of the game from the hump it's sar pump fake takes it strong on a dew pops out follow yes olivier on the second attempt and we're tied again another offensive rebound for this kentucky team got himself a dude got himself out of position just by going for the shot block couldn't get back to get the rebound [Music] you have to think top candidates here are going to be moenar and stewart stewart comes off the screen mullin are on the handle shot clock at eight for molinar good defense shot clock to one great defense by kentucky and the wildcats can play for the final shot and play for the final shot i think they want time out on the side partner you and i thought we were going to have a good one today i think mississippi state is one of the more unheralded teams in this league and kentucky one and six i get it it's one and six but nobody wants to play this wildcat team this year in the sec if they can get out of the hump tonight with a victory being down your coach gets thrown out all that happening uh it would probably ignite this kentucky squad like we haven't seen in a long time [Music] all right you got 14 seconds left no more timeouts the hot hand clearly belongs to dante allen in the past the last few games in these situations they have gone to olivier sar on mid-range baseline jumpers one of which was halfway down before it popped out against louisville what are we looking at here well what they did last time they did the same thing they went to him on the block and because he's a he's a tough match-up and yes ado is a good shot blocker but it puts pressure on the rim yeah they can get allen coming off screens etc but that's what will be guarded if they can get it to sar in the post he has a terrific jump hook and again because of his size duke there's a chance for fouls there's a lot more things that can happen with sar in there but i think there'll be movement number 11 allen's going to be coming off screens and that makes defensive teams just start hollering switch start things so the guys set the screen if they step into gaps they can get some openings again both teams devoid of a timeout for the final 14 seconds it's been the allen and sars show for kentucky here the last few minutes hey mike the other part is mississippi state likes to go for blocked shots that usually leaves offensive rebound ask you up top allen again gets it short rebound soar again at the buzzer and again he misses olivier with a similar baseline shot that one fading away and we are heading to overtime in starkville awfully quick shot by allen but again he's made five it was probably too early to take a missed chance underneath and sar it's really just a heave up at the end little bonus basketball for you on a saturday night 61 all sec basketball overtime presented by papa john's mike morgan with john sunvold delighted to be joined by you folks on a saturday evening we thought this would be a good one it's exceeded expert expectations and john you look at this final possession you're not in love with this shot here it's a great play he gets open but there's a all it is is a pump fake i mean you lift the ball you got two dudes by you you take a dribble you've got an easier shot you still have five seconds left you had two guys if you're a great shooter now again we're talking about experience he hasn't been in this situation he was in high school all he does is lifts the basketball he two dudes are buying him now you've got an easy shot you take a bounce in more guys are coming they might have been able to dunk the ball now it is what it is kentucky got to the overtime because dante allen got him there so super play for him offensive rebound underneath and then stars fade away but we get an extra five minutes of basketball and can mississippi state now get a little bit of momentum can they get a defensive stop and get out and push to get back to where they were earlier in the second half you know ordinarily when i have an overtime game one of the first things i look at foul trouble sometimes it can be a game of attrition nobody on the floor has more than three fouls in fact the second half of this you know mike the second half's been pretty clean you know the whistle is blowing we've had eight lead changes we've had three ties state led this game the overwhelming majority of the first half and most of the second and then when coach cal got ejected on the technical fouls the defense got ratcheted up and all of a sudden kentucky was in business thanks in large part to dante allen's five three-pointers moenar rimmed off tap up and in it's a tough team to box out that time it's cameron matthews 6-7 knifing in for the tip-in [Applause] dante allen up top of the screen keep an eye on him because he's an easy catch and release guy and he's already made five of them here's mints with eight to shoot sar deep two and the rebound of the bulldogs i can't tell you mike how great a play cameron matthews just made for mississippi state he was on allen sar caught it he ran it sar but before sarah could think of passing he sprinted back to allen saar then shot his own jump shot dante allen meanwhile fouling matthews who is cutting the baseline 19 foul so a 1-1 matthews a freshman out of olive branch mississippi just scored his first points of the game on that tip-in he's one for 10 from the free-throw line this year one for 11. so you would have been saying you would have said box out right yeah i would have definitely been saying box out yes that's almost unfathomable to be one for 11 from the free-throw line well i think you go underhand i'm not saying that is a joke i think underhand is the greatest way for big guys to shoot nobody else doesn't cameron uh barry did remember that when he was at yeah florida can you bear it uh with florida yeah and he was a 90 free throw shooter like his old man yeah stewart comes away with it blocked from behind got a whistle and a foul so two free throws upcoming for the redshirt sophomore from grace mississippi d.j stewart now he came into this game he came into this game 59 but he's made five of six which is where we shoot her well we expect him to be at 80 right right you should you should be there and so sometimes you get off to a slow start during the season but that was ugly you've got to find your confidence you've got to find your rhythm hey there's some guys you go to the free-throw line and you look at the form and you say yeah you know he's not gonna be good this kid has good form on his jump shot yes but what's in between the ears right it's like if you play golf if you can't make a five-footer but your stroke looks good you just know in your head i don't make many of these leave my game out of it john 14 14 points for stewart three-point lead for state overtime from the hump mike morgan john sunbold with you on the scc network capping off a great day of scc basketball nice take and it's down to a one point game mint says uh mints is capable off the dribble of getting to the lane area of anybody on the floor in kentucky when he turns a quarter he can get there he can finish that play the former creighton blue jay with seven mullinar loves that pull-up jumper missed it and smith fouled on the floor but mississippi state will have the benefit of the double bonus the rest of the way i don't think there's a doubt when molinar catches and he gets to that area that his teammates the big guy the biggs can simply go to think of an offensive rebound right i mean you want mullinar to take or stewart inside eight 10 feet to take the shot no sense trying to make some crazy pass they get it on the rim the bigs can go for follows again mississippi state has been plagued by poor free throw shooting all year 59 that one gets a friendly bounce and the lead up to two smith the transfer from western kentucky is split the freebies one possession game as we come up on the two and a half minute mark of overtime ask you tough shot there to pick up the loose change and follow is jacob toppin and we're tied again a good break for kentucky looked like that ball was going to head out of bounds fourth tie of the night i like when the bulldogs run stuff and don't just run clock down because they have not been good at the end of clock getting good shots inside tolu smith wheeling and dealing no gets it back second time no third time no and popping back out to state with a fresh 20 seconds on the shot clock down to five down to two gonna have to hop fire up at a desperation yeah what a bad possession once they got the rebound back ben howlan yelling play number three but it took him so long to get into it now said you put pressure on you really don't get a shot who does kentucky turn to here well of course they turn to dante allen the pride of pendleton county six pointers he stepped off the defender as he was gonna jab going right defender goes with him pulls back lets it fly pinball action off of one of the kentucky legs and it'll be mississippi state basketball when you have a quick release all you want is a defender to move watch alan catch and watch him put her oh man i mean that's it's textbook let me just repeat this dante allen has hit two shots all year long in 20 minutes of action if kentucky wins this game he's not paying for a meal in lexington for quite some time [Music] that's a three that's a make clutch by molinar oh is he tough he's hit every big bucket for the bulldogs the end of regulation and now in overtime 17 for molinar timeout kentucky [Music] we saw him do it down the stretch before regulation every big attempt mulliner wanted it in his hands this time catch release can't allow him space but if you get him up in his shirt he goes by you you pretty much know where state is going to go to on every possession with molinar and stewart they've earned that right what we're figuring out right before our eyes here is a rising star for kentucky and dante allen john because i mean who would have thought it i mentioned that kentucky fans have been clamoring to see more playing time from dante allen but i don't think anybody could have imagined six three-pointers five of them after halftime in a clutch performance when your coach says well now he's going to have his chance you know he's going to get his chance to play well you know what mr allen said okay i'll take my chance and then maybe i'll deliver i mean he's hit tough shot after tough shot and he's been the focal point of what mississippi state wants to stop and that last time he came off the jab step was so quick and hard but he's a gunslinger i mean it was quick and boom and don't be surprised if they go back to him and find him off the screen again he's six for 10 from three-point land you see the shot clock there's about a 12-second differential to the game clock ascu goes off either side it'll be a back pick here comes allen up top inside in the trees shot blocked and then out of bounds to mississippi state mints could not corral it bulldogs can play for the final shot with 15 ticks left tried to run the play and when now to his right our left little bounce pass he's got a dunk he had three bulldogs coming at you again when you're thinking of the game as a player what kind of team am i playing against right if if i'm the guard okay i'm playing against guys that like to block shots that's what the bulldogs do inside so when you go you've got to recognize if i'm six two or six three that dudes are coming now where are they coming from and all that has to be processed in a split second but in that case you know when you put it on the floor and you're going your big dude on the side put it on the floor somewhere you can find it well i i think and what you're saying in layman's terms knp right yeah or kyp i should say know your personnel in this case know the personnel on the other side he went up against 611 abdullah do and 611 tolu smith on that drive what are the chances you're going to finish on a layup on that play well the thing most most players scouting reports are you you think of the defensive scouting report right you think of how do we guard people i always put it that way and then you go okay how are they guarding us if we go this way where are they going if i go a different direction where are they coming from all these teams are so well coached where do they help from how do they help which guy sags in if you think like that as a player then as the game is processed as you're playing it's not perfect all the time but you can read and you can see some things now kentucky's got to find a stop in mississippi state they can go to mulinar no matter if he wants to take it off the dribble off the bounce and you know he's probably going to be covered up so which teammates are going to find openings this is a key review now we're just being told they're looking at molinar's shot whether or not it was a three now if it's a two that changes the strategy of this possession entirely i think i see a millimeter of hardwood oh yeah he's got it so they gave him a three though correct they gave him a three so we're still tied if somehow that was changed to a two now all of a sudden kentucky's up one it's a different ballgame but it is indeed a three we are still tied we're still in overtime state can play for the final shot and if you're in vegas there's about a 95 chance that final shot's going to belong to either number one or number three and of course i'm talking about mullinar and stewart and i found mike if i'm either one of them again here's the thought process they're going to try to kentucky's going to try to stop those two so which of the other three on the floor will find openings where if your guy leaves you where do you best position yourself that that stuart or mullinar throws you a pass i'll play along and say to lou smith down low there you go number 35. we'll see how it shakes out here in the final 10 seconds now good defense good step out goodness down to three molinar down to one has to heave it missed it we're heading the double overtime great defense great defense ascu pushed him one way and saw i believe it was sar stepped out not a good possession not a way you want to end it but you got another overtime [Music] 68-68 our score mike morgan john sunvold mrs sunvold cooking up some dinner back in john's domicile in columbia missouri you got to wait might pop it in the microwave john as we've got another five minutes at least from starkville got the meal upstairs but uh it can wait just a bit and both teams uh you get to this position and how do you get there right you got there because dante allen was special and the other guy on the other end iverson molinar has been special until the last possession of the overtime speaking of food our overtime presented by papa john's we're going to need another pizza to get us through this extra session from starkville 68-68 if you're joining us late mississippi state controlled the first half kentucky after john calipari got not one but two technical fouls arguing the same play got ejected kentucky's defense got him back in this game and then dante allen is the story among all stories a freshman who's played 20 minutes all year long has hit six threes for kentucky to lead the way [Applause] a little weave up top for the bulldogs out of the hands of molinar there's tolu smith and that's a beautiful feather rims off smith missed it from point blank range yeah devon asked you ask you didn't give up on the play bothered the big just enough here is allen will defer to ask you shot clock down to eight ado on a hedge sar gets it and fires and hits 71-68 the big man olivier sar from downtown smooth stroke and maybe some confidence is coming back to his game offensively you're starting to see it now 14 for sar and he wanted that shot the moment a dew helped fade and fire and drawing contact is dj stewart now he'll go to the line for a pair with 3 51 to go here in double o t wildcats have been better really almost running set plays pick pop guys coming off screens to find shooters this time sar simply stepped out confidence which is good to see for him set a nice ball game six of 15 from the floor 14 points two of two beyond the three-point line on the other end i think the bulldogs have been stagnant we know they have good talent on the in the guard position but i think they've sat on that dribble other guys standing around and when you sit on the dribble kentucky's not an easy defense to score upon that's a great point it's become the stuart mullinar show but kentucky knows that as well both free throws sunk again that has been the achilles heel for state this year free throw shooting but stuart calmly buries a pair and it's back to a one-point game mints finds askew on the wing 10 on the shot clock ball screened by sar pops and gets it back here's the man of the hour allen got it off the glass are you kidding me dante allen wow 20 points for a young man that hit two baskets all year straight on off the window no folks he did not plan on that three-point lead for kentucky smith wheeling and dealing left it short long rebound kentucky and tolu smith is still down in pain now he gets up and trails in time it might give ascu credit out front for kentucky in the half court said he simply run the stuff they need to run and has not turned it over no not taking bad shots allen again are you kidding me allen from downtown 23 points including seven threes off the bench lead for kentucky a legend is born in starkville but he plays for big blue from all angles in all instances he's simple the geyser on him he continues to move without the basketball searching what shooters do dj stewart just took his eye off him for a split second and understandably so he hasn't scored much he's the focal point but again the bulldogs haven't just stayed jersey to jersey with it right 20 points from the second half on for dante allen i think this is what we love about college basketball right it's on any given night you can have that story that that young man that hasn't done much all season long or even in his career in this case we're talking about a freshman after all and then all of a sudden he ignites and puts together a performance for the ages well i'm looking at him and he he's looking at all these mcdonald americans saying hey boys get me open i don't i don't i don't i don't shop where you shop but get me open if we're if we're we're playing the game hey he's seven of 11. so those are magic numbers right there let's roll 7-eleven that's what he is from three-point line just get him open every shot he's taken is going you might have five stars next to your name i got 23 points tonight spectacular performance big possession here from mississippi state mullinar around the screen from ado dribbled into a double team great hands by askew and he comes up with it and then knocking it out of bounds was johnson it'll be kentucky basketball but how about the d by devin askew well i think it was sar with the tip out i think sar hit the ball first i think so yeah when mullen are trying to split the scene between sar and asco i think sars hands he's got quick ones i think he's the one that pinned it and then ask you got on the floor sar playing one of his best games of the year tonight kentucky you can just see the body language a little more confidence they've lost these kind of games all year it's not like they've been getting blown out during this six-game losing streak they've been losing games at the buzzer in overtime [Applause] at some point you have to learn how to win these kind of games ask you on a blow-by and a floater and it gets it to drop an eight-point lead for kentucky [Applause] mike the big change on the offensive end is that they have now a shooter that stretches the whole defense and when he's moving off of picks you can see the bulldogs pointing trying to stop this trying to stop that it frees up a guy like asco to go ask you to go off the pick and roll and just try to find an open that is one heck of a response by dj stewart if he misses it you say i don't know if it's a great look it looks like a settle but he hits it five point game far from over under a minute to play the one thing the bulldogs have not done is put pressure on this kentucky team whether it's full quarter half court they've not put pressure on the ball or ask you really all night long and ask you a little bit has had time has had a tough time handling some pressure this season if sar delivers that pass cleanly dante allen has a wide open look on the wing and and from there as well as he's shot he's either saying net or glass like he's because he shot him well all night you're putting three in the books that's for sure tsar on a rise in fire shot clock buzzing big possession they can't you can't back out you gotta go forward molinar with a hand in his face left it short rebound ask you do you foul your state yeah some kind of game and win this is going to be for kentucky this is you know cal got thrown out it looked like they were kind of done bruiser flint who's been out there just doing what he does terrific coach was a great player for cal way back when at umass the thing is state only has five fouls they're gonna have to foul two more times to get free throws how about a steal wow threw a right tool but you gotta go three off the mark and no foul and somewhere from up above basil hayden is smiling kentucky is off the schneid six-game losing streak over 1-0 in sec play cal got tossed bruiser flint taking over with tony barbie and joel justice and big blue finally picks up a victory and another nail biter and coach cal's teams 15-0 all-time against mississippi state it's been a pleasure bringing this one to you a lot of fun double overtime win for the cats for john sunfold mike morgan saying so long everybody

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Length: 114min 26sec (6866 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 02 2021