PREVIEW: Kentucky WBB set to defend Rupp Arena against Arkansas in SEC opener

It’s finally time, folks. SEC play is here for Kentucky Women’s Basketball.

On Thursday night, the ‘Cats will aim to defend Rupp Arena from the Arkansas Razorbacks (12-3) in their first SEC matchup of the 2023-24 season. On Sunday, the Wildcats found their way back to .500, after a 72-59 win against Samford. Now, with a three-game win streak, Kentucky has the chance to make it four with a win over the Razorbacks. Unfortunately for the ‘Cats, beating Arkansas will take more than an above-average second-half performance, which is what we’re used to seeing from this group.

Against Samford, Kentucky started off slow and was only winning by two points at the half. As a team, the ‘Cats went 13-32 (40.6%) from the field, including 1-4 (25%) from the perimeter. As for the Bulldogs, they went 12-25 (48%) from the field and 4-9 (44.4%) from three. With a halftime score of 32-30, the difference maker for the ‘Cats was the five points from the free throw line, compared to Samford’s two.

Whatever head coach Kyra Elzy said to her players in the locker room at halftime must’ve made an impact though. The ‘Cats came out in the second half on a 7-0 run to immediately extend their lead to nine. After that, the ‘Cats dominated the rest of the game and came out on top 72-59.

Kentucky’s leading scorer was Ajae Petty. In her performance against Lipscomb on Dec. 21, the forward had a lackluster performance, only scoring seven points with six rebounds, some of her lowest of the two stats on the season. Petty was in need of improvement, especially since it seemed that other teams, like Lipscomb, were starting to figure her out. On Sunday, the senior marked her seventh double-double of the season, with a team-high 22 points and 13 rebounds. Petty added two blocks, two steals, and two assists.

Brooklynn Miles also had a standout game against the Bulldogs. The junior, who normally averages only 5.2 points per game, finished with 13 points and a rebound. While Miles isn’t considered a ‘shooter,’ she is a leader for the team’s offense and displayed her textbook point guard abilities on Sunday.

The only other Wildcat in double-digits was Maddie Scherr, who had 14. The senior added a season-high eight rebounds and marked her seventh straight game with double-digit scoring. The guard also had five assists, a steal, and a block.

As for the rest of the team, almost every other player who hit the floor scored at least one basket for the ‘Cats. Kentucky has begun to show its versatility, displaying shooting abilities besides Petty and Scherr. Against Arkansas, a versatile, and consistent, offense will be crucial if the ‘Cats want to come out on top with their fourth straight win.

Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. EST at Rupp Arena and can be watched on the SEC Network+.

Scouting Report: Arkansas Razorbacks

Arkansas comes into Thursday’s game on a four-game winning streak and it would seem that they have all the momentum they need to topple Kentucky and move to 13-3. After all, the Razorbacks are led by the best scorer the SEC has to offer in Taliah Scott. The freshman guard is averaging 23.0 points per game on 42.6% shooting from the field.

Then, sophomore Saylor Poffenbarger is currently second in the nation in rebounds per game with 12.7; she’s dominating the glass as a 6-2 guard. Her tenacious rebounding is something that Kentucky will have fits with. Other than Ajae Petty, who averages 9.9 rebounds per game, the ‘Cats aren’t great at crashing the boards. Kentucky is last in the SEC in rebounds per game with 32.5. The next worst team, Auburn, averages 38.9 rebounds per game. Arkansas might have a field day in the rebound column.

When you look at this game on paper, Kentucky shouldn’t win. Arkansas is a good team, no doubt. However, they show some serious weaknesses that the Lady ‘Cats may be able to exploit. The Razorbacks are capable of putting points on the board, but they have a serious struggle with efficiency. Arkansas shoots just 38.9% overall as a team, which is dead last in the SEC. When Taliah Scott and the Razorbacks are cold, they are COLD.

Arkansas sits at 12-3, but their only true signature win came against No. 22 Florida State on the road when they won 71-58. Granted, that is a very impressive win, but they also have a loss that’s just as equally bad. 5-8 Arkansas Pine-Bluff marched into Bud Walton Arena and took down the Razorbacks 74-70. Not to mention, Arkansas only beat Samford by 14 while Kentucky beat the Bulldogs by 13, and Samford happened to drain a last-second three in that game. All this is to say that while Arkansas can be very good, they can also be mediocre to very bad.

We’ll learn a lot about Kentucky and the trajectory of the season on Thursday night. Considering the game is at home, the ‘Cats must escape this one with their fourth consecutive win. If Kyra Elzy and company want to have a real shot at making noise in the SEC and improving from last year, then they need to set the tone against a respectable Arkansas team.