Kentucky vs. Indiana game thread and pregame reading

SB Nation

The Kentucky Wildcats will take on the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday night in Lexington. Game time is set for 7:30 PM ET on ESPN.

Mark Pope’s squad now sits barely over .500 at 6-4 on the season. Kentucky

has continued to dominate the weak squads on its schedule, but it’s been outright embarrassing to watch them play any team with a pulse. The Cats have dropped games to the Louisville Cardinals on the road, the Michigan State Spartans and Gonzaga Bulldogs at neutral sites, and the North Carolina Tar Heels at home.

Pope has now won eight of his last nine games against ranked opponents, and he is under .500 against Power Conference teams, so while Indiana isn’t ranked, they are a P4 team, and expectations should be tempered. Beating good teams isn’t easy, but it shouldn’t be as hard as Kentucky’s made it look this season.

Aside from the obvious negatives, there are some positives to look forward to. First, Jaland Lowe has returned and is hopefully ready to see increased minutes. Jayden Quaintance is not far behind. Second, Otega Oweh has looked more like himself over the last few games.

And finally, Mark Pope finally put his foot down in the last game, which included sitting Lowe and Kam Williams for the first half (obvious suspensions) and sitting Brandon Garrison the entire second half after loafing in the first half.

As for the Hoosiers, Darian DeVries is in his first season as IU’s coach. Their record is 8-2, including wins over Marquette and Kansas State, as well as a 41-point thrashing of a then-8-1 Penn State team. Their losses came against Minnesota and Louisville.

It’s unclear how good IU is, but it is clear that Kentucky isn’t very good. This game is going to be a challenge. The Hoosiers really bounced back after losing back-to-back contests. It’s another opportunity to boost the resume, or hurt it—we’ll just have to wait and see.