KSR Gameday: Kentucky hosts Vanderbilt on Senior Night

Good morning, folks, and welcome to March! What better way to kick off the best month in all of college basketball than by sending off Kentucky’s seniors in style?

Later tonight, all six of Kentucky’s seniors — Oscar Tshiebwe, Jacob Toppin, CJ Fredrick, Antonio Reeves, Sahvir Wheeler, and Brennan Canada — will go through Senior Night festivities as they potentially play their very last game at Rupp Arena. Five of them are expected to fill out the starting lineup, with Wheeler the only one missing out due to his ankle injury. This will be Kentucky’s second matchup against Vanderbilt this season (the first being a blowout win in Nashville), as the Commodores come into Lexington as one of the SEC’s hottest teams.

With tipoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EST, make sure to arrive at least 30 minutes early if you want to send off this year’s seniors in style.

Vanderbilt will look like a much different team when they step inside Rupp Arena than it did a few weeks ago. The Commodores are 6-3 over its last nine games, led primarily by seven-footer Liam Robbins, who was sidelined with an injury during the first matchup against UK but has been on an absolute tear ever since. Over his last seven games, the fifth-year senior is averaging 22.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 4.6 blocks per outing while shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 60.9 percent from distance on 3.3 attempts per game. He’ll be priority No. 1, 2, and 3 for the Wildcats.

But on the other end, Kentucky is arguably the hottest team in all of college basketball, or at least one of a handful in that group. The ‘Cats have won four straight games and are coming off a 32-point drumming of the Auburn Tigers this past weekend. Head coach John Calipari has his team peaking at the right time — shocking, right?

It should be a fun one at Rupp tonight.

How to Watch, Listen: Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt

Tonight’s game tips off at 7 p.m. ET on SEC Network with Roy Philpott and Mike Wise on the call. Here’s how you can watch and listen:

• Time: 7 p.m. ET
• Location: Rupp Arena (Lexington, KY)
• TV: SEC Network (Roy Philpott, Mark Wise)
• Stream: WatchESPN, ESPN app
• Radio: UK Sports Network (Tom Leach, Jack Givens), 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio
• Satellite: Sirius 381, SXM App 971

The KSR Pregame Show will start at 4:30 p.m. ET live from KSBar and Grille, so if you’re going to the game, stop by on your way to Rupp or listen on 630 WLAP or iHeart Radio.

Vegas, Computers

After opening as a 10-point favorite on Tuesday, the line for Kentucky has stayed the same the morning of tipoff. The total has been set at 146.5.

Kentucky is 20-9 this season, 14-15 against the spread. The ‘Cats have covered in their last four games, all wins. Vanderbilt (16-13 overall, 15-14 ATS) has covered in five of its last six games, the lone exception being the 84-77 loss at LSU on Feb. 22 — the Dores’ only loss since Jan. 31.

Looking at the computers, Kentucky is a heavy favorite. ESPN’s Matchup Predictor gives UK an 88.5 percent chance at the win, KenPom gives them an 80 percent chance (projected score of 79-70), and BartTorvik also gives them an 80 percent chance at the victory (projected final score of 79-70, as well).

Statistical comparison

Oscar Tshiebwe, Brennan Canada, Jacob Toppin preview Senior Night

Three of Kentucky’s six seniors spoke with the media on Tuesday to answer questions about tonight’s game and do some reflecting along the way. The trio of Oscar Tshiebwe, Brennan Canada, and Jacob Toppin all gathered at one podium to preview Auburn, discuss what the emotions will be like ahead of tipoff, some of their best memories from their times in Lexington, and plenty more.

• Oscar Tshiebwe “locked in” on title dreams as Senior Night approaches
• Jacob Toppin’s transformation from “12-year-old” to team leader
• From walk-on to scholarship, Brennan Canada’s impact at UK goes deep: “He makes all of us better”

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Updated SEC standings

TEAM	CONFERENCE	GAMES BACK	OVERALL
Alabama	15-1	—	25-4
Texas A&M	14-3	1.5	22-8
Kentucky	11-5	4	20-9
Tennessee	11-6	4.5	22-8
Missouri	9-7	6	21-8
Auburn	9-7	6	19-10
Vanderbilt	9-7	6	16-13
Mississippi State	8-9	7.5	20-10
Arkansas	8-9	7.5	19-11
Florida	8-9	7.5	15-15
Georgia	6-11	9.5	16-14
Ole Miss	3-14	12.5	11-19
South Carolina	3-14	12.5	10-20
LSU	2-14	13	13-16

Kentucky WBB hopes to fight another day

Kentucky women’s basketball is in Greenville, SC this week for the 2023 SEC Tournament, but they’ll need plenty of luck if they want to make a repeat of last year’s championship run. Kyra Elzy’s group comes into the first round as the conference’s bottom seed (14) and will go up against the 11-seed Florida Gators this afternoon.

The Wildcats come into the postseason riding a seven-game losing streak, including four losses of 15 points or more. Injuries have derailed the roster down the stretch, but the vibes were never all that high before then. Kentucky will have to lean on its backcourt trio of Maddie Scherr, Robyn Benton, and Jada Walker — all of which were left off the 2023 SEC Women’s Basketball Awards list — to make it to round two on Thursday. But if you’re looking for something positive, one of UK’s two conference wins this season came against Florida on the road. So there is certainly reason to believe.

Tipoff is scheduled for approximately 1:30 p.m. EST on the SEC Network. KSR’s Grant Grubbs, who is driving to Greenville as we speak, has a preview of today’s game that you can check out here.

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