You’ll see Kentucky’s Allen on the court Saturday, but he’s not ready to play yet
Takeaways from Kentucky’s men’s basketball media availability Friday previewing Saturday’s game against Georgia Tech:
▪ Freshman Dontaie Allen will be presented his 2019 Kentucky Mr. Basketball ring in a pregame ceremony. It should come with about 12:30 showing on the clock running down the time until the introduction of starting lineups. Allen, who is recovering from a torn ACL, is still “a ways away” from playing, UK Coach John Calipari said. Allen will practice, then need two days to recover.
▪ Calipari said he expected Georgia Tech to play zone and try to make Kentucky win by shooting three-point shots. Not for the first time, Calipari said UK should be a team capable of making eight or so three-point shots a game.
▪ Allen credited his family for helping him deal with the shock of a torn ACL, which was made more stunning by happening in a non-contact situation. “My family let me know it wasn’t the end of the world,” he said.
▪ Ben Jordan, the UK baseball pitcher helping the basketball team as a practice player, is sidelined because of what Calipari said was a head injury.
▪ Calipari acknowledged how Georgia Tech guard Bubba Parham scored 35 points against UK last season while playing for VMI. “He hasn’t slept for two days waiting for this game,” Calipari quipped.
This story was originally published December 13, 2019 at 2:27 PM.
