The No. 5 Kentucky Wildcats welcome the Eastern Kentucky Colonels to Rupp Arena. The game starts at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Dec. 9 and can be seen on ES2 and ES3.
The Wildcats are hoping to rebound after their 87-77 loss to UCLA the last time they played. Isaiah Briscoe was the team’s high scorer with 20 points. The Colonels are coming off a 74-71 win against Savannah State in their last game. Jarelle Reischel claimed his third double-double of the season with 24 points and 12 rebounds.
This one isn’t expected to be close when Kentucky, a heavy 23-point favorite, takes on Eastern Kentucky. The matchup has an estimated Over/Under (O/U) of 162 points. The Wildcats have gone 7-1 Straight Up (SU) and 2-6 Against The Spread (ATS). Expect to see a lot of second-chance opportunities for Kentucky in this matchup, which is one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with an average of 14.5 offensive boards per game. Eastern Kentucky has a habit of getting in foul trouble (23.4 fouls per game), so expect the Wildcats to get a number of opportunities from the free throw line.
On the other side, the Colonels have records of 3-1 ATS and 7-2 SU. The Colonels are getting to the foul line at a high rate. Their 164 free throws made ranks 21st in Division I.
This game marks the season’s first head-to-head clash between Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky. Their previous game was a Wildcats victory, bumping their SU record to 4-0 over Eastern Kentucky. The teams have an even record ATS, 2-2.
Predictions: SU Winner – Kty, ATS Winner – EastKy, O/U – Over
Notes
Kentucky is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Kentucky’s last 9 games.
Kentucky is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Kentucky’s last 6 games at home.
Kentucky is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Eastern Kentucky.
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels rank 13th for their offensive rating of 121.4. The Kentucky Wildcats have a defensive rating of 93.8 (ranked 61st).
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking sixth in the nation with a FG% of 52.4%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Kentucky Wildcats are winless with a 0-1 record.
The Kentucky Wildcats average 15.0 three point attempts per game, and the Eastern Kentucky Colonels attempt 22.0 per game. When going for at least 20 three pointers in a game this season, Kentucky is an even 1-1, while Eastern Kentucky has a superb record of 7-1.
Eastern Kentucky ranks 68th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.31. Kentucky is ranked lower at 166th with an A/TO of 1.07.
Kentucky, the 80th-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 40.2 rebounds per game. Eastern Kentucky does worse, ranked 308th with 33.3.
The Eastern Kentucky Colonels average 7.9 steals per game. The Kentucky Wildcats are undefeated with a 1-0 record when they give up at least 7 steals.
