4-Point Play: Turning the page to Texas A&M

The SEC road and home openers were fun, back-to-back wins for Kentucky as it looks to continue building momentum into the meat and potatoes of conference play. And the road isn’t getting any easier, the Cats heading down to College Station to take on Texas A&M for yet another Quad 1 opportunity, the team’s fourth overall with a chance for a third win.

These games are like gold in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, so it’s an important one for Kentucky. And with the Aggies losing two straight, four of their last six and five of their last eight, it’s a must-win for Buzz Williams’ squad to avoid a real downward spiral after entering the year expected to contend for a conference title.

What do you need to know about the matchup? Let’s dig in tonight on 4-Point Play.

A&M is the nation’s worst 3-point shooting team among high-majors

The Aggies are currently shooting an abysmal 26.0% from three, good for No. 346 nationally and dead last among high-majors. Only IUPUI (25.6%), Detroit Mercy (25.6%), Utah Valley (25.2%), Coppin State (24.7%) and Houston Christian (24.5%) are worse. Not a single player on the roster is shooting better than 37.5% individually, just two averaging at least one make from deep per game.

A&M has only cleared the double-digit mark in made threes in three games this season, only shooting 40% or better from deep in two of those games. Some of the single-game 3-point shooting marks? 3-18, 2-22, 4-23, 6-33, 3-24, 5-28 and 3-19.

Point being, the Aggies are gonna hit 15 threes on efficient shooting with Kentucky in town. Mentally prepare yourself.

… but the Aggies are No. 1 in offensive rebounding

For a team that launches threes at a high rate and takes 63.1 total shots per game, it helps having some vaccum cleaners down low to help on second-chance opportunities. That’s where A&M thrives: the offensive glass.

The Aggies are pulling down 18.3 offensive rebounds per game, good for No. 1 in all of college basketball. Interestingly enough, they’re only snagging 24.6 per contest on the defensive end, good for No. 251 nationally. That pulls the overall rebounding rate down to No. 8 in the country and No. 15 in total margin — still very impressive.

It was a similar storyline for Kentucky entering its trip to Gainesville last weekend, the Gators ranked No. 1 in overall rebounds per game. On the other side, the Cats have struggled on the glass the majority of the season, but found a way to neutralize Florida in a slight 43-40 loss in that battle. That was a win in Coach Cal’s eyes, UK now ranked No. 84 in the country in rebounding at 38.64 per contest. It’ll be another test for Tre Mitchell, Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso to get their hands on balls.

As for some of the other team stats, scoring is an issue while defense is solid. The Aggies are scoring just 73.2 points per game (No. 217) while giving up 66.7 (No. 80). They’re shooting just 40.1% from the field overall (No. 332) with an effective field goal rate of 45.1% (No. 334), but attempt an impressive 23 free throw attempts per contest (No. 39) with 16.3 makes (No. 48).

Wade Taylor leads the way with 17.3 points per outing on 36.4% shooting and 25.4% from three, followed by Henry Coleman with 12.5 points and 8.4 rebounds per contest. Tyrece Radford rounds out double-digit scorers with 12.2 per game while adding 5.1 boards.

A day in the life of Antonio Reeves

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be the leading scorer of the Kentucky Wildcats, how things work behind the scenes on a day-to-day basis? No. 12 is giving fans an inside look at his life in a new documentary called The Life of KT and Tone.

Reeves and his close friend Koron Tate came together for a day-in-the-life series to show what the fifth-year senior is like behind the scenes. The journey starts during the preseason, the weekend of Big Blue Madness back in October. The two meet up with Rob Dillingham at the barbershop, tour the Joe Craft Center and locker room, get shots up and head to Big Blue Madness where Reeves goes for his school-record second straight 3-point contest title. And then things close out at a Kentucky football tailgate where Reeves and Jordan Burks face off in a rap battle — you guys decide the winner.

It’s a chance to see the sharpshooter’s personality in his own element outside of live game action as a Wildcat.

Rally for Cats vs. Cancer

Speaking of these Wildcats off the floor, the Kentucky men’s basketball team is raising support and awareness for the American Cancer Society through its partnership with Alltroo. And some pretty remarkable prizes are up for grabs for participants.

Running through January 22, Rally for Cats vs. Cancer is a sweepstakes that raises money for a great cause. Every donation supports the American Cancer Society, which works to ensure everyone has an opportunity to prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer. Fans can donate as little as $10 for a chance to win the following prizes:

One Grand Prize

• A VIP trip to Lexington
• Courtside seats at a mutually agreed upon Kentucky men’s basketball game
• Access to the team’s pregame shootaround at Joe Craft Center
• A pair of custom, player-worn Cats vs. Cancer Nike shoes

15 runners-up prizes

• A pair of custom, player-worn Cats vs. Cancer Nike shoes

“It’s awesome for my teammates and me to kick off the year doing something so cool for the fans, while bringing awareness to such an important cause at the same time,” Tre Mitchell said. “We’ve seen how passionate BBN is at every single game, so we know they’ll rally behind us to support the American Cancer Society.”

Join the Cats in supporting the American Cancer Society and you could win big!

Enter here: https://t.co/We33Jv3muY #alltroo @alltroo pic.twitter.com/D5LE1bn9R3

— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) December 22, 2023

Shoes are awarded at random to winners, everyone getting an equal shot to win shoes from any player.

Enter for a chance to win at alltroo.com/cats.