Missouri is bringing out Red Panda for the Kentucky game

When Kentucky Basketball travels to Columbia to open up Southeastern Conference play on Wednesday, the Wildcats will be challenged with playing in front of a packed crowd at Mizzou Arena. In fact, the game is completely sold out as of Christmas Eve, marking the first time Missouri Basketball sold out back-to-back games since the 2017-18 season.

The excitement is, of course, because Mizzou just beat its 16th-ranked rival by 22 points (the largest win over a ranked opponent in over a decade) before the Tigers take their turn at hosting “everyone’s Super Bowl” in the first game of league play. At 11-1 on the year, it’s no surprise the gold and black faithful are fired up and at full capacity for a shot at the Wildcats.

Adding to that excitement, Missouri will have the best halftime show in the history of halftime shows* because Red Panda is set to perform when the two teams break for intermission Wednesday night. Red Panda is a regular performer at NBA and college basketball games with her bowl-stacking acrobatics while riding a unicycle, which has gained her a huge following in the sports world and beyond.

KSR’s own Ryan Lemond was mesmerized when a KSR Road Trip crossed paths with Red Panda in Chapel Hill.

We should all be lucky enough to be as happy as @RyanLemond is while watching Red Panda pic.twitter.com/IKUpjH4eQW

— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) December 3, 2017

Working in the Wildcats’ favor, Missouri rolled out Red Panda when the Tigers hosted 11th-ranked Kentucky in 2017. Kentucky led by one point going into halftime (and Calipari had that awkward moment with Laura Rutledge) that night, only for Kentucky to pull away in the second half to win by 10.

Let’s do that again.

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(*Not counting the Firecrackers jump rope team, obviously)