Five things you need to know from No. 17 Kentucky’s 109-77 win over Vanderbilt
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Game day: No. 17 Kentucky 109, Vanderbilt 77
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Tuesday’s men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, Tennessee.
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Five things you need to know from No. 17 Kentucky’s 109-77 win over Vanderbilt in men’s SEC basketball at Memorial Gymnasium on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee:
1. Kentucky is short-handed again. UK played its 22nd game of the 2023-24 season at Vanderbilt. For the 22nd time, UK did not have its full roster available to play.
Point guard D.J. Wagner missed his third consecutive game due to an ankle injury and his was sidelined for his fourth game of the season overall.
For the first time in those four games without Wagner, Kentucky won.
Super-senior forward Tre Mitchell (back) was also out Tuesday night. Sophomore Adou Thiero started in his place but Mitchell’s absence allowed a bevy of UK freshmen big men to play extended minutes — and they did good things with their chances.
2. While the Cat is away. With Tre Mitchell sidelined, Kentucky freshmen Aaron Bradshaw, Jordan Burks and Zvonimir Ivisic took good advantage of additional minutes.
In a high-energy outing, Bradshaw, a 7-foot-1, 226-pound product of Rahway, New Jersey, had 12 points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes. He hit 4 of 7 field goal attempts and all four of his foul shots.
Ivisic, a 7-2, 234-pound product of Vitez, Croatia, had 11 points, seven rebounds and two assists. Always aggressive, “Big Z” also packed three turnovers and five fouls into his 12 minutes on the court.
Burks, a 6-8, 202-pound Decatur, Alabama, product scored a career-high 13 points and grabbed five rebounds. The performance by Burks was the epitome of offensive efficiency, as he hit all six of his field-goal attempts, including his one 3-point try.
3. A Justin Edwards breakout. It has not been the freshman season expected for the UK forward who was ranked the No. 3 prospect in the class of 2023 by Rivals.com. On Tuesday night, however, Edwards turned in the kind of performance people anticipated of a player of his recruiting profile.
The 6-8, 203-pound Philadelphia product scored a career-high 17 points, 14 of them in the second half, and also added three assists and two steals.
Rather than rely on what has been an inconsistent, at best, jump shot, Edwards played “down hill” in the second half against Vandy and it paid off. He hit 4 of 6 field goal attempts after the break and got to the foul line six times — and cashed them all.
While it would have been nice to see Edwards make a greater contribution on the glass — he had no rebounds — his offensive performance could be one to build on down the stretch.
4. Reeves the road warrior. Continuing what has been a two-season trend of playing strong in true road games, Antonio Reeves rifled in a team-high 24 points for UK.
In a game in which it felt important for Kentucky to get off to a fast start, Reeves hit 6 of 10 shots, 4 of 5 treys before halftime and scored 16 first-half points.
On the season, Reeves is now averaging 22.3 points in games played on opponents’ home courts.
5. “Nashville Cats.” When Kentucky is in town, Vanderbilt does not have much “Memorial Gym magic.”
With UK’s victory Tuesday night, the Wildcats have now beaten Vanderbilt eight times in a row at Memorial Gymnasium.
The last time Vandy beat Kentucky on the Commodores’ home court was a 74-62 win in 2015-16.
This story was originally published February 6, 2024 at 10:38 PM.
