Kentucky vs. Georgia: Preview, Odds, How to Watch

Kentucky is in a stretch of playing four of six games at home after starting SEC play on the road in two of three matchups. Up next? Mike White and the Georgia Bulldogs, a Quad 3 game for the Wildcats, but tougher than Quad 3 competition. They got off to a cold start, but have since found their groove, winning 11 of 12 games while remaining undefeated in true road games.

Can the Cats break that streak? Let’s preview the matchup.

How To Watch

No. 8 Kentucky (13-3) vs. Georgia (13-4)
6 p.m. ET | Saturday, Jan. 19 | Rupp Arena

• TV: SEC Network (Mike Morgan, Jon Sundvold)
• Streaming: WatchESPN
• Home Radio: UK Sports Network – 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
• Online Radio: iHeart
• Satellite Radio: Sirius 84 and on the SiriusXM App
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Team Records

No. 8 Kentucky: 13-3 (KenPom: 17)

• 11/6: 86-46 W vs. New Mexico State
• 11/10: 81-61 W vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (Wildcat Challenge)
• 11/14: 89-84 L vs. No. 1 Kansas
• 11/17: 101-67 W vs. Stonehill (Wildcat Challenge)
• 11/20: 96-88 OT W vs. Saint Joseph’s (Wildcat Challenge)
• 11/24: 118-82 W vs. Marshall
• 11/28: 95-73 W vs. No. 8 Miami (FL)
• 12/2: 80-73 L vs. UNC-Wilmington
• 12/9: 81-66 W vs. Penn
• 12/16: 87-83 W vs. No. 9 North Carolina
• 12/21: 95-76 W at Louisville
• 12/29: 96-70 W vs. Illinois State
• 1/6: 87-85 W at Florida
• 1/9: 90-77 W vs. Missouri
• 1/13: 97-92 L (OT) at Texas A&M
• 1/17: 90-77 W vs. Mississippi State

Georgia: 13-4 (KenPom: 69)

• 11/6: 82-71 L vs. Oregon
• 11/10: 80-77 W vs. Wake Forest
• 11/12: 64-54 W vs. North Carolina Central
• 11/17: 79-68 L vs. Miami (FL)
• 11/19: 71-64 L vs. Providence
• 11/24: 78-69 W vs. Winthrop
• 11/29: 68-66 W at Florida State
• 12/1: 80-69 W vs. Mercer
• 12/5: 76-62 W vs. Georgia Tech
• 12/16: 66-58 W vs. High Point
• 12/20: 94-82 W vs. Mount St. Mary’s
• 12/22: 78-60 W vs. North Florida
• 12/30: 93-73 W vs. Alabama A&M
• 1/6: 75-68 W at Missouri
• 1/10: 76-66 W vs. Arkansas
• 1/13: 85-79 L vs. No. 5 Tennessee
• 1/16: 74-69 W at South Carolina

Series History

Kentucky leads the all-time series 131-28 including a 64-5 overall record in Lexington while John Calipari is 21-4 vs. Georgia individually and 11-5 vs. Mike White including his time at Florida.

The Cats lost the previous matchup in Athens, though, the Bulldogs earning the 75-68 victory. Oscar Tshiebwe and Antonio Reeves went for 20 points apiece while Jacob Toppin added 12, the team shooting just 38.5% from the field with two combined points off the bench. Kario Oquendo went for 21 for UGA, followed by Justin Hill with 15 and Braelen Bridges with 12.

Kentucky won the previous matchup inside Rupp Arena 85-71, Tshiebwe going for 37 points and 24 rebounds — a historic performance.

Kentucky vs. Georgia Odds via FanDuel

Spread: Kentucky -10.5
Total: 158.5

Kentucky Projected Starters

(Starting lineup based on the last game)

#21 – DJ Wagner
6-4 • 192 • GUARD • FRESHMAN
12.4 PPG, 3.4 APG, 2.1 RPG

#12 – Antonio Reeves
6-6 • 195 • GUARD • SENIOR
19.4 PPG, 4.4 RPG

#1 – Justin Edwards
6-8 • 203 • FORWARD • FRESHMAN
8.6 PPG, 4.1 RPG

#4 – Tre Mitchell
6-9 • 231 • FORWARD • GRADUATE STUDENT
13.0 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.4 APG

#2 – Aaron Bradshaw
7-1 • 226 • FORWARD • FRESHMAN
7.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.0 BPG

Head Coach: John Calipari (32nd season, 15th at UK) – 845-256 overall, 400-116 at UK

Georgia Projected Starters

(Starting lineup based on the last game)

#1 – Jabri Abdur-Rahim
6-8 • 215 • GUARD • SENIOR
12.8 PPG, 4.0 APG

#3 – Noah Thomasson
6-4 • 210 • GUARD • GRAD SENIOR
12.4 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 1.6 APG

#4 – Silas Demary Jr.
6-5 • 190 • GUARD • FRESHMAN
9.2 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.6 APG

#10 – RJ Sunahara 
6-8 • 205 • FORWARD • GRAD SENIOR
2.1 PPG, 2.0 RPG

#54 – Russel Tchewa
7-0 • 275 • CENTER • GRAD SENIOR
6.6 PPG, 6.2 RPG

Head Coach: Mike White (2nd season at Georgia, 13th overall): 29-20 at UGA, 272-148 overall

Statistical Comparison

(via Kentucky’s game notes)

Fun stats from UK’s game notes:

• The 2023-24 Kentucky Wildcats are the first in the program’s history to score 81 or more points in 15 of their first 16 games of the season. UK leads the nation in scoring at 90.8 points per game
• Calipari earned win No. 400 as UK’s head coach on Wednesday. He needed just 516 games to reach the plateau.
• After opening SEC action with two of three games on the road, the Wildcats are in the midst of playing four of six at home.
• Ugonna Onyenso has logged three or more blocks in four of seven games played this season. He has four or more in each of the last two.

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Pregame Storylines

ONE OF THE LEAGUE’S HOTTEST TEAMS

Georgia got off to a rough start to open the season, losing three of its first five games and two by double-digits. From there, the Bulldogs put together ten straight wins and 11 of their next 12, their lone loss being No. 5 Tennessee at home — and they led by 11 with six minutes to go in that one. They followed that up with a solid 74-69 true road win at South Carolina ahead of the team’s trip to Lexington.

THE BULLDOGS HAVEN’T LOST ON THE ROAD

Oh, speaking of that. Three true road games for UGA, three wins — at Florida State, at Missouri and at South Carolina. The Bulldogs have had trouble in neutral site games (0-3), but for whatever reason, they’ve found magic in opponents’ home venues. They are one of only four of 362 DI men’s basketball programs still undefeated on the road this season. On the flip side, John Calipari has never lost to Georgia inside Rupp Arena and UK is 64-5 all-time in Lexington in the head-to-head matchup.

ANOTHER PESKY DEFENSIVE FOE

Kentucky already faced one tough, hard-nosed group in Mississippi State this week, ranked inside the top 10 in defensive efficiency. Up next? The nation’s No. 44 defense who also ranks No. 28 in effective field-goal percentage allowed and No. 21 in three-point defense. The offense isn’t special at No. 109 overall, but they do live at the free-throw line (top-20 in makes and attempts) with eight upperclassmen and just two freshmen in the rotation. And they’ve all got size, seven of the eight listed at 210 pounds or heavier, just one shorter than 6-4.

The Bulldogs may not be flashy, but they’ll provide some pushback on defense and physicality on both ends.

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Rapid Reaction on the KSR YouTube Channel

Miss the game? KSR’s got you covered with a Rapid Reaction live from Rupp Arena on the KSR YouTube Channel. We’ll also have wall-to-wall postgame coverage on the website, including highlights, comments from John Calipari and the players, stats, and takeaways.

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