Kentucky vs Miami....A Preview

Lwcat
WT Administrator

Kentucky vs Miami Redhawks….11/16/09 (Monday at 7pm)
TV Coverage—Fox Sports South/Big Blue Network

Miami
Location: Oxford, OH
Enrollment: 15,766
Arena: 6,400

Head Coach: Charles Coles
Career Record: 316-252 (.556)-19 seasons
At Miami: 224-168 (.571)-13 seasons at Miami

2008/09 Record:17-13
2008/09 MAC Record:10-6
2008/09 Postseason: None

2009/10 Season
Towson 82 Miami 71

2009/10 Season Stats (Based on one game)
FG%-48.1%
3 Point %-37.5%
FT-68.2%
TO’s-20
Assists-15

Projected Starting Lineup

Rodney Haddix G-6’3” Jr. (PPG-5)
Kramer Soderberg G-6’0” So. (PPG-8)
Kenny Hayes G-6’2” Sr. (PPG-17)
Nick Winbush F-6’7” Jr. (PPG-11)
Adam Fletcher C-6’8” Sr. (PPG-11)

Other Key Players

Julian Mavunga F-6’8” So. (PPG-6)
Orlando Williams G-6’4” Fr. (PPG-5)
Antonio Ballard F/G-6’4” Jr. (PPG-8)

The Miami Redhawks lost a tough opening game against Towson at Towson. The Redhawks had a 5 point half time lead and were close throughout most of the 2nd half, but lost by 11 points. Miami must replace 3 starters including MAC player of the year…Michael Bramor….who averaged 17.9 PPG. Kenny Hayes suffered a season ending injury last season after just 8 games. Certainly, Hayes, who led Miami in scoring against Towson with 17 points, return will be a big plus for Miami. Importantly, the Redhawks, despite losing 3 starters, have a number of returning players with significant game experience. Miami started 3 guards against Towson with last year starter, Antonio Ballard, coming off the bench. Like most teams in the early season, I suspect that the Redhawk rotation is still a work in progress. I noticed that Miami played before only 3,259 fans at Towson…..they will be in for a huge change when they play before 24,000 at Rupp arena.

The John Calipari era officially started with a nice win over the Morehead Eagles. However, as coach Calipari warned..….this exceedingly young, but tremendously talented UK team will likely not be a great team until Jan./Feb. The Morehead game revealed that there is a lot of improvement needed on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court by these young Cats. Importantly, Patrick Patterson played a solid game with 20 points and 12 rebounds while freshman Eric Bledsoe wowed the Rupp arena crowd with 24 points and some spectacular plays. However, coach Calipari was not pleased with UK’s overall opening game performance and was disappointed with the performance of several UK players. Perhaps, most notably, Darius Miller, a very talented player who continues to disappear in games. Miller played 32 minutes while scoring 0 points and committing 5 TO’s. It would be unfair to write Miller off after one game, but Darius must find a way to play with more confidence and be more aggressive on the court or he will lose his starting position. Dodson, who in contrast to Miller, brings terrific confidence and aggressiveness to the game and is a good shooter…..must learn not to take bad shots. While Bledsoe had a terrific game, he occasionally gets out of control and did commit 7 TO’s. Still, Bledsoe plays with the eye of the tiger and I can’t wait to see Wall and Bledsoe together on the court. Cousins got into early foul trouble, but still needs to play with more energy on each and every play. Cousins is a stud and when he is playing hard….can dominate in the paint. Harris and Stevenson, both took a step backward with very lackluster performances.

It is possible that UK will make changes in their starting lineup as coach Calipari remarked that only Bledsoe, Wall and Patterson are certain starters against the Redhawks. This weeks practices will determine the other starters. Once again, UK should enjoy a solid height advantage when they take on Miami and it will be important to exploit that advantage by getting the ball inside the paint…..and take fewer 3 point shots. It will be very exciting to see John Wall play his first game of the official season. I look for a more focused UK team….committing fewer TO’s and playing much better defense. GO CATS!