Arkansas starts seniors. Kentucky starts freshmen. Will that make a difference?

Kentucky starts five freshmen. Arkansas starts four seniors.

“It’s a hard game for us,” UK Coach John Calipari said of his Kiddie Cats playing at Arkansas on Tuesday night. “But it’s another chance to learn and grow and see where we are . . . playing a team that understands what it takes.”

When asked what he would be looking for to indicate whether Arkansas’ experience was impacting the game, Calipari said, “I’m just concerned about us being in a mode, that desperation mode.”

Of course, Kentucky’s freshmen have a growing understanding of what it takes 27 games into the season.

Assistant coach Joel Justus, who worked the regular day-before-the-game news conference after Calipari participated in a Southeastern Conference teleconference, said the hope was that the experience gained so far would show itself before the game as well as in Bud Walton Arena.

“It’s how they prepare,” he said. “How they go into it. What (Arkansas’) approach is and what our approach is. That is the most concerning thing for us at this point. OK, what are we doing? What are our guys doing to best be prepared?”

Preparation — not the four-game losing streak — was Topic 1 for Kentucky going into last weekend’s game against Alabama, Justus said.

“We talked just about preparing for each game, and controlling the things you can control,” he said. “And that’s your preparation. That’s your sleep. That’s your habits you’re building. That’s your eating. That’s your lifting. Get yourself ready. That’s what we talked about.”

Nick Richards, the center in UK’s all-freshman starting lineup, seemed to suggest the experience factor can be over-rated.

“They’ve got more experience than us,” he said of the Hogs. “At the same time, it’s just basketball. You’ve just got to go lace your shoes up and fight and play hard.”

Senior guards Jaylen Barford and Daryl Macon lead Arkansas. They are among the SEC’s top five in scoring, overall shooting and shooting accuracy from three-point range. Justus suggested that Anton Beard gives the Hogs a third senior in the backcourt.

“They are three guys who can give you fits at different points of the game and throughout each possession . . . ,” Justus said. “So you’ve got to be engaged on the ball. You’ve got be engaged off the ball. You’ve got to be ready to play fast. You’ve also got to be ready to play the possession out.”

The exception in the senior-dominated lineup, freshman center Daniel Gafford, ranks second in blocks and 14th in rebounding.

Arkansas’ signature pressing, trapping style of play figures to test the ability of UK freshmen to pay attention to the game plan throughout an entire possession on both ends of the floor.

“They play with a fever on defense,” Justus said of the Hogs. “They’re a team that really tries to get after you and put pressure on you on both offense and defense. . . . You have to be alert. That’s something our guards aren’t always alert off the ball, and we have to be ready to play the entire shot clock.”

Of course, the Arkansas pressing and trapping might benefit UK. That is assuming the Cats don’t turn the ball over and therefore get in position to exploit an open floor with Arkansas’ defense not set.

“Ah, we get excited about those games when we get to play up and down,” Wenyen Gabriel said of the likelihood of a fast-paced game. “In the open floor I think that’s when we’re at our best.”

But first, UK must limit turnovers. The Cats went into last weekend’s play ranked 10th among SEC teams in turnovers and last in assist-to-turnover ratio.

“It’s the No. 1 thing for us,” Justus said when asked about limiting turnovers.

In that, Justus was echoing what Calipari said on the SEC teleconference. The UK coach conceded that his team will probably have turnovers.

“They’ll force you into bad situations and they’re really good at it,” he said. “But you can’t have unforced turnovers. You can’t have guys just drive it and lose the ball and say, ‘My fault.’”

Calipari said he counted six unforced turnovers in the first half at West Virginia. “That’s why you’re down 14 at halftime,” he said.

Of the Hogs, Calipari said, “They’re not going to give us the game. So we’re going to have to try to take the game from seniors. It’s a hard task.”

This story was originally published February 19, 2018 at 3:06 PM with the headline "Arkansas starts seniors. Kentucky starts freshmen. Will that make a difference?."