John Calipari reveals what makes Scotty Pippen Jr. difficult to defend against

Scotty Pippen Jr. is a versatile and dangerous guard for the Vanderbilt Commodores. On Friday, he will get his third opportunity to face the Kentucky Wildcats on the season. Kentucky head coach John Calipari has seen firsthand how dangerous Pippen can be, and he knows that the Wildcats are in for a tough matchup on Friday in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.

Ahead of the matchup between Kentucky and Vanderbilt, Calipari broke down just what makes Pippen such a dangerous player.

“He’s really crafty,” Calipari said of Pippen. “And then offensively when he gets going, whether it’s shooting threes, he’s a great layup shooter, he creates space. He snakes in on pick and rolls. He’s really a crafty player with that ball.”

This season is Pippen’s third at Vanderbilt. In his collegiate career, he is averaging 17.4 points, 4.1 assists, and 3.1 rebounds per game while playing an average of 31.3 minutes. This season, Pippen has posted an impressive line of 20.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 2.0 steals in 32.6 minutes per game. He is shooting 43.3% from the field, and 33.3% from three-point range.

Calipari knows it will be tough to contain Pippen

Kentucky and Vanderbilt have played twice already this season, with the Wildcats emerging victorious in both games. Even though Kentucky won both contests, Calipari has seen exactly how much of a difference maker Pippen can be. In the first matchup, Pippen shot 11-18 from the field and 6-11 from three, posting 32 points with four assists, two rebounds, and three steals. In the second matchup, he shot 11-23 from the field and posted 33 points, six rebounds, and five assists.

With conference tournaments now in full swing, all it takes is one big performance to completely upend the postseason picture. Pippen is capable of putting up that performance, just as he did on Thursday when he posted 26 points and seven assists in Vanderbilt’s victory over Alabama in the second round of the SEC Tournament.

“We’ve got touch matchups,” Calipari said of Kentucky facing Vanderbilt again. “Pippen has killed us, probably averaging 40 a game against us. And when you get in these environments, if a guy can go put up 40, you’re probably losing. But they got everybody healthy, they had some guys out. So I would say they’re dangerous and playing as well as anybody in our league right now.”

Tip-off is set to take place approximately 25 minutes following the conclusion of Tennessee-Mississippi State, which begins at 6 p.m. ET.