The North Florida Ospreys (1-3) should not present a real challenge to Kentucky, however stranger things have happened. Surprisingly, North Florida and Kentucky have two common opponents already this season: Gonzaga and South Carolina State. The two teams have equal records against those opponents.
Kentucky fell to Gonzaga, 88-72 while North Florida lost in their opening game at Gonzaga, 104-63; in both Kentucky and North Florida defeated South Carolina State (Kentucky 106, South Carolina State 63; North Florida 72, South Carolina State 66).
Kentucky is favored in this afternoon's game by 26.5.
In the game against Gonzaga, Kentucky was thoroughly outplayed, and appeared unprepared, outcoached, and not matching the energy level of Gonzaga. Building off of those deficiencies, there are three things to look for in this afternoon's contest.
1. Will Kentucky improve their energy level today? The game is being played against an uninspiring opponent, the day before Thanksgiving when school is out and players may have other things on their minds, and the team is coming off a low performance against Gonzaga. Despite the opponent, I believe it is important for Kentucky to regain the motivation to play hard.
2. Continuing that theme, will Kentucky's defense provide an all out effort? One of the disappointing things we have seen since late last season is an absence of the famed John Calipari defensive effort from his team. The offense has had issues from time to time (okay, most of the time), but rarely have we seen defense not perform at fairly high levels, with John Calipari able to motivate both young and experienced players. Blocked shots, rebounding, and steals provide opportunities for transition points and easier offense of abilities, and lacking this, we are left to the much-maligned half-court offense to provide points. Again, despite the opponent, I believe it is important for a strong defensive effort to be displayed today.
3. Will we see some offensive scheme that makes sense? Many national commentators and local writers have written harsh comments concerning the lack of an offense scheme, or one that is very easy to defend. To see how Kentucky's half-court offense is performing today, don't watch Kentucky players, but focus on the North Florida defensive players instead. Are they required it to move much in the half-court? Do they appear unbalanced on the floor? Are they scrambling to cover players (much like we have seen Kentucky's defense too many times this season)? If so, our offense of scheme is probably working. If we are scoring despite lacking these things, it is likely due to a simple talent disparity rather than improvement on the offense of scheme.
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