Kentucky Needs Rupp Arena Koby Brea on the Road

Koby Brea is one of the best shooters in college basketball. When the sharpshooter is on his game, opponents don’t stand a chance.

You’ve probably seen the stats this week. There are a lot of good ones. There are two that really popped. Kentucky is 10-0 when he scores more than 10 points. Kentucky is 10-0 when Brea makes at least three 3-pointers.

There’s one thing about that stat that sticks out. Almost all of those games were played in Lexington.

In years past, Kentucky fans marveled at how some players actually shot better away from Rupp Arena. That’s not the case for Brea. His home/away shooting splits are staggering.

Koby Brea Splits
Home: 53.5% FG, 52.5% 3FG, 3.1 Made 3P per game
Away: 30.2% FG, 28.3% 3FG, 1.4 made 3P per game

He’s shooting 24.2% better from three at Rupp Arena than he is on the road. That’s unfathomable.

Logically, you could understand how somebody might be more comfortable shooting the ball in a familiar gym. However, the sight lines aren’t great at the cavernous Rupp Arena. You’d think some of these smaller gyms would be an even more ideal setting to let it rain, and yet he’s significantly worse on the road.

Not everyone can perform at their best in a hostile environment. I don’t think many Kentucky basketball fans expect any player to continue netting 50% of their shots in such a setting. Nevertheless, Kentucky needs Rupp Arena Koby Brea at Alabama.

The Wildcats will be shorthanded in the backcourt. They cannot lean on Jaxson Robinson or Lamont Butler to replace some of the lost production. Additionally, Alabama is going to score points in a win or a loss. The challenge for Kentucky is keeping up and that means knocking down a bunch of threes. The Cats only made 11 in the loss to Alabama at Rupp. They need Brea at his best to pull off an upset at Alabama.

The One Time Brea was Awesome on the Road

The splits are clearly not great, but there has been an exception to the norm. When the Wildcats were double-digit dogs at Tennessee, Brea silenced the crowd at the Food City Center. The sensational shooting guard was a perfect 5-5 from the floor with three made 3-pointers in an 18-point performance. Saturday would be a good time to run it back.

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