KSR Gameday: Kentucky Returns to Rupp to take on Colgate

It’s been four days since the Kentucky basketball team pulled off an improbable comeback to take down a Top-10 Gonzaga team. I still can’t believe it happened. We’re also only three days away from Mark Pope’s first matchup with Louisville.

In the middle of all that is a matchup against Colgate. It feels a little odd to play a 2-win team on a Wednesday night at 8 pm in between a pair of highly-anticipated matchups, right? Some might describe it as a trap. These Wildcats are unwilling to fall into that trap.

“Tomorrow is a big game — the biggest game of our lives. We’re going to go out there and try to take care of business,” Ansley Almonor told KSR. 

“Coach tries to preach to us every day we’re not about wins and losses, we’re about getting better every day,” he continued. “As long as we’re getting better every day, we’ll get where we want to end up. That week was a big week for us, big win, but each day we’re just trying to get better. Today is another part of that.”

It sounds like it’s a great day to get better. We’ll see if Kentucky can keep its foot on the gas following the win, even if they have to play another game without their two point guards, Lamont Butler and Kerr Kriisa.

Kentucky vs. Colgate: How to Watch, Listen

• Time: 8 p.m. ET
• Television: ESPN2 (Tom Hart, Dane Bradshaw)
• Home Radio: UK Sports Network – 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
• Online Radio: iHeart
• Satellite Radio: Sirius 106 or 190
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

You can also follow the game via our new LIVE BLOG on the website, which will begin an hour before tipoff, or join the conversation on KSBoard.

Point Spread for Kentucky vs. Colgate

The Kentucky Wildcats are 30.5-point favorites over Colgate with a total of 157.5. Kentucky is 6-3 Against The Spread (ATS) this season and the over has hit in four of the last six games. They’re 4-2 ATS as double-digit favorites, failing to cover in the last two similar contests at Rupp Arena. Colgate is just 2-8 this season with a 4-5 ATS record.

Hear How the Wildcats are Preparing for the Game

If you’d rather not hear from Brandon Garrison and Ansley Almonor, I have one other recommendation. Zack Geoghegan and Brandon Ramsey broke down the Xs and Os behind the victory over Gonzaga in a brand new edition of Zoom Action.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.

Wingsday at KSBar and Grille

This feels like a very special occasion. Wingsday and a Kentucky basketball game collide, giving you the chance to eat $1 wings and .70 boneless at KSBar while watching the Cats. What a perfect night. Not feeling wings tonight? What if we took care of your Christmas dinner? Sounds like a sweet deal to me.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! 🎄

Order your holiday feast today from KSBar and Grille pic.twitter.com/rYe1V0eyRp

— KSBar & Grille (@KSBarAndGrille) December 10, 2024

Zero Kentucky Football Players Entered the Transfer Portal

Kinda weird, right? It had been almost a daily occurrence for the last week, but the chaos appears to have temporarily subsided. We may have hit a plateau at 19 as the focus shifts away from departures to arrivals.

Adam Luckett has created an early Big Board of Kentucky’s top targets on KSR+. We also know of at least five players who are planning on visiting in the next week and that number is growing. Jacob Polacheck has been on his A-game, speaking with various players who are in contact with the Kentucky coaching staff. Don’t miss any of the action. Join KSR Plus today! You’ll get exclusive access to bonus content throughout the hectic transfer portal season.

If you’d rather just listen to us talk shop from the other side of the paywall, you’re in luck! We dropped a new 11 Personnel on Tuesday afternoon. You can expect another on Thursday, with two a week throughout roster construction season.

North Carolina Still Hasn’t Hired a Football Coach

If this school mattered more, we’d all be pointing and laughing. North Carolina had Jon Sumrall lined up, then he turned ’em down. They interviewed Bill Belichick and probably didn’t take him too seriously. They had to start taking him seriously when nothing materialized with Matt Campbell. Now he’s sharing some public demands, all while they add new candidates who aren’t good, namely Steve Wilks, who has been objectively bad at the NFL and college ranks for quite some time. It’s a real poop show, one that’s being compared to Tennessee’s failed courtship of Greg Schiano in 2017. Will it end today? Stay tuned.

Arkansas Won a Thriller at MSG

John Calipari secured his first signature win in dramatic fashion. The Hogs trailed by 15 in the first half, then led by as many as 18 points with under ten minutes to play. Michigan clawed back and had multiple shots to win or take the lead during a lengthy finalf three minutes, but the final shot was short, giving the Razorbacks a 2-point win. Boogie Fland had 20 points and 7 assists while DJ Wagner tallied 16 and 5 assists.

A Salute to Bob White

Bob White passed away on Tuesday at 89. For more than four decades White diligently reported from high school gyms and fields as a preps writer for The Courier Journal. If Bob White was at the game, you knew it was a big one. White covered my Dad at Butler High School. Nearly 50 years later I received that rite of passage when I was interviewed by the legend after a last-second win at Butler High School. He was an icon in the community, one that will be dearly missed.