LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Kentucky's exhibition opener did not do much to change the narrative around the Wildcats with the season drawing ever closer.
The No. 2 Cats looked strong in the backcourt and thin in the frontcourt during their 80-53 win over Georgetown College on Sunday at Rupp Arena.
Kentucky got a combined 44 points and 12 assists from guards Immanuel Quickley, Ashton Hagans, and Tyrese Maxey on a day when the Cats went 9-of-22 from the arc. Quickley led the way with 16 points, while Hagans and Maxey added 14 apiece.
"Immanuel's gotten so much better. He's shown it," UK head coach John Calipari said.
That was the good news.
On a more concerning note, UK was outrebounded 45-39 by the defending NAIA national champions and saw junior center Nick Richards go down with an ankle injury in the second half after rolling his foot on top of a Georgetown player's shoe.
"Georgetown was physical and rebounded," Calipari said. "Out-rebounded us. And most of it was just scrappiness."
Kentucky's thin frontcourt got a double-double from grad transfer Nate Sestina (11 points, 10 rebounds) but the Cats' other four bigs combined for only 11 rebounds.
Georgetown College coach Chris Briggs said not to read too much into the rebound column. "Because we missed a bunch of shots... Yeah, we outrebounded them, but they took a lot of things away from us."
Kentucky's length and athleticism on the defensive end of the floor was the biggest factor in the game. The Cats held the Tigers to 25 percent (16 of 64) from the field and 3-for-15 from beyond the arc.
*****
In this Cats Illustrated "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK victory...
THE GOOD:
Kentucky's defense looks like it has a chance to be elite. The pressure the Cats can put on opposing guards with Ashton Hagans, Immanuel Quickley, and Tyrese Maxey has to make John Calipari excited, and UK has all kinds of length across the board at every position.
THE BAD:
We didn't see the kind of aggressiveness and productivity that may have been expected from sophomore forward E.J. Montgomery. He was just 2-for-7 from the field and finished with five points. To his credit, he chipped in with five boards and three blocked shots, but the Cats are going to need him to be a bigger factor on the offensive end. Look for Calipari to challenge Montgomery before the second exhibition game and attempt to get him some positive momentum going into the Michigan State game.
THE UGLY:
The Cats got outrebounded 45-39 by an NAIA program. A really good NAIA program, but an NAIA program nonetheless. That can't happen. Freshman forwards Keion Brooks Jr. and Kahlil Whitney played a combined 48:20 and had one rebound between them. Calipari will hammer that point through in the days to come, and look for them to hit the boards a lot harder in the second exhibition game.
GAME BALL:
Immanuel Quickley, Kentucky -- John Calipari has been raving about the sophomore guard during the preseason, and the Maryland native has done nothing but back it up in the Blue-White Game and this exhibition win. Quickley finished with a team-best +/- of 30.
BY THE NUMBERS:
4 - Steals for UK guard Ashton Hagans, the reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year.
11-0 - Run by the Cats to open the game.
16 - Consecutive exhibition wins for UK. The last loss was to the Dominican Republic national team in the final game of the Big Blue Bahamas tour in 2014.
25 - Points for Georgetown College's Jake Ohmer to lead all scorers. The former Scott High School standout thrilled fans by scoring 106 points in three games during the 2017 Sweet 16 at Rupp Arena.
27 - Biggest lead of the first half for the Cats, 40-13.
137-12 - Kentucky's all-time record in exhibition games, including 3-0 vs. Georgetown College.
QUOTABLE:
"I remember sitting here last year playing IUP, and I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, we're up nine at half, luckily, and I'm like how in the world are we going to win any games?' It seems like just about every year I'm in the same mode. How are we going to do this?" -- UK head coach John Calipari
UP NEXT:
Kentucky returns to action on Friday in its final exhibition game against Kentucky State. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET at Rupp Arena with the game broadcast on the SEC Network.
