Here we take a look at the impact of an Auburn basketball matchup against Kentucky and how a loss might provide experience.
They did it last year, an upset against a No.14 Kentucky team providing the defining moment of the 11 win 2015-16 season.
That Auburn team took on plenty of talent through the year, a bulky, burly Colorado, a perennial contender Xavier, a pesky Harvard and the No.1 overall pick in the NBA draft’s LSU. That Kentucky team, however, was nothing in comparison to this year’s Wildcat squad.
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Bluegrass fanatics alike have an understanding that the entirety of their starting five could go in the first round of the NBA draft – a feat that maestro John Calipari would eat right up. Freshman guard Malik Monk can shoot from the Moon, De’Aaron Fox could chase down a cheetah and Edrice “Bam” Abedayo is a couple pounds away from tearing down the rim. Hell, Abedayo is practically a clone of Dwight Howard.
This team of freakish athletes seemingly drink from the same secret stuff Michael Jordan needed to take on otherwordly powers. They’re not just good, they’re great.
This team takes on an Auburn team that is slowly understanding what inexperience and ball movement mean. Often selfish, Auburn struggles to get all the talent involved and run the big man more than they do. Anyone with Vickie Orr blood in their veins is deserving of standing next to the rim at all times. Yet, even Austin Wiley isn’t involved.
Kentucky takes advantage of teams varying in all sorts of shapes and sizes, with length coming easily. Going to the rim or stopping on a dime won’t be an issue against the Tigers, with a three point barrage on its way.
It is difficult to find a single wrinkle in the Kentucky machine, with their size, speed and ease in scoring being an impenetrable force. For Auburn to have any sort of chance to win, they must slow down the tempo or roll with it on their own. It will be a fast paced game with hardly any stoppage, so the athletes, like Mustapha Heron and Jared Harper, will need to find their edge.
A loss likely on its way, this is a perfect time for a young Auburn basketball squad to fully comprehend what it means to be elite. The one-and-done talent of Kentucky comes with physicality and talent that never slows down – they’re born basketball killers. If this team is going to learn anything on the court, it will be against these Wildcats.
Something learned while playing any sport is that you must play against those who are better than you in order to grow. Kentucky is a fantastic showing of basketball might, it’d be good to get obliterated.
Prediction: Kentucky 101 – Auburn 76