Kentucky’s win over Duke proved the Wildcats are still a title contender under Mark Pope

ATLANTA, GEORGIA – NOVEMBER 12: Amari Williams #22 of the Kentucky Wildcats reacts with Jaxson Robinson #2 after forcing a turnover by Cooper Flagg #2 of the Duke Blue Devils during the second half of the State Farm Champions Classic between the Kentucky Wildcats and Duke Blue Devils at State Farm Arena on November 12, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 776211197 ORIG FILE ID: 2184475119

No. 19 Kentucky got its first look at a big dog Tuesday with its game against No. 6 Duke, and by walking away from the Champions Classic clash with the 77-72 win, the Wildcats proved themselves to still be big dogs too.

One of college basketball’s blue bloods, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Kentucky might again be one of the best teams in the country. But that wasn’t a given after all the team’s turnover in the offseason, headlined by the departure of longtime head coach John Calipari.

Kentucky’s No. 23 AP preseason ranking was its lowest since going unranked in 2008-09. And even in that final season under Billy Gillispie, before Calipari took over, Kentucky had better national title odds than the +3500 they had entering this year at BetMGM.

Odds to win College Basketball National Championship at #BetMGM

+900 Kansas, UConn
+1000 Duke, Alabama
+1400 Houston
+1700 Gonzaga
+2000 North Carolina, Baylor, Iowa St
+2500 Arizona, Arkansas
+3000 Auburn
+3500 Kentucky

18% of money (most) is on @DukeMBB to win March Madness pic.twitter.com/SJHvhUWO2Y

— John Ewing (@johnewing) November 4, 2024

There has been serious doubt about how good this quickly constructed team of transfers can be under new coach Mark Pope. Tuesday’s game was the first sign that things might be just fine in Lexington.

The win didn’t come easy. Kentucky trailed by as much as 10, suffering through some scoring droughts in the first half. But their newfound experience proved to be useful against the young Blue Devils, as they were able to make a second half charge and seal the game on a late strip of…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/kentuckys-win-over-duke-proved-153831780.html

Author : FTW Outdoors

Publish date : 2024-11-13 15:38:00

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