Kentucky Wesleyan men’s basketball is ready to step up to the challenge and look to overcome adversity when they go toe-to-toe with Top-10 program University of Kentucky at Rupp Arena on Friday.
Coming off a 10-6 season in which they fell in the GMAC quarterfinals, they return a few key scorers in senior Wyatt Battaile (12.1 ppg) and fifth-year guard Jamil Wilson (8.8 ppg) as well as a plethora of upperclassmen.
While they are looking to stay sharp and start the season strong, taking on the Wildcats isn’t just a simple tune-up game to start the year.
They’ll be tasked with facing a team that is ranked 10th in the nation in the AP Preseason Poll and has plenty of reinforcements and a myriad of NBA prospects on its roster.
A few of those NBA prospects that have been included in the first round of 2022 mock drafts include freshman guard TyTy Washington who was the No. 2 point guard in the 2021 class and freshman forward Daimion Collins who was the No. 6 power forward in the 2021 class.
Pair this with a number of transfers and returning players with plenty of experience, the Panthers will have their hands full on Friday—but that’s exactly what Head Coach Drew Cooper and company signed up for.
“The basketball coach in me obviously, we know it’s a lofty challenge and I want our guys to enjoy it,” Cooper said. “We have a responsibility as the men’s basketball program to go up there and represent and I think we have a good group that is mature enough to go up there and give it our best shot fundamentally.”
Knowing the length and size that UK has will make it hard for them to create space, Cooper said they’ve focused on finding a way within their offense to do so in practice leading up to the game.
“We’re trying to begin to learn how to earn unchallenged shots,” Cooper said. “It’s going to be tough tomorrow night, but the way we want to pass the ball and the tempo that we want to play will hopefully allow us to have a respectable field goal percentage. That type of challenge can prepare us for the year.”
It’s a little difficult to scout the Wildcats at the moment given that the only action they’ve seen is their Blue-White Scrimmage, but Cooper said they will keep their recent schemes on both ends of the floor in mind when they hit the hardwood Friday.
“You just know their personnel and you kind of try to base things off of how they’ve played things in the past,” Cooper said. “The thing that is certain for us right now is that we want to limit their transition and not allow them to get up into the open floor as much as they would like to do.”
Knowing how much of a threat UK can be in the open floor, being dynamic offensively and winning the battle of the boards will be crucial for the Panthers.
“We’ve talked a lot about not just transition defense, but how a good offense will limit them in transition,” Cooper said. “So going into tomorrow that’s going to be key for us. That and defensive rebounding. Every rebound is going to be a struggle for us to get… It doesn’t really matter what they run, if you don’t do those two things you’re not going to have a good night.”
While the task of defeating one of the most storied college basketball teams in NCAA history is a tall order, Friday’s game is also an invaluable experience for Kentucky Wesleyan and its fans.
“It’s really good for our community,” Cooper said. “It’s great for Joe Utlee who’s going into his 61st year and it’s great for a lot of Panther fans that also are Kentucky Wildcat fans. I’m happy for our entire college that we’re doing this.”
This marks the second time Cooper has gotten the opportunity to coach against the Wildcats, having coached against them in 2017 in his fifth season at Thomas More University.
Cooper couldn’t be more pleased that his second time around is with Kentucky Wesleyan and is excited to represent the community at Rupp Arena.
“It’s a surreal experience and it’s not one that you’re soon to forget,” Cooper said. “I’m very lucky not just to coach this game, but to be at a place like Kentucky Wesleyan. I have my dream job right now, so I’m constantly considering how grateful I am that I’m doing what I’m doing and I hope we represent well up there.”
Knowing how valuable the experience is and the excitement that comes with playing the Wildcats, Cooper said they have to stay focused to make sure they turn this game into something that will help them as the season progresses.
“We’re trying to use some concentration and maturity to put the adrenaline to the side so that we can make sure we get something out of the game,” Cooper said. “It’s a situation where if you let the adrenaline in the moment get the best of you, you can blink and not only be down by a lot of points, you can also walk away from those 40 minutes and don’t know what you gained.”
All in all, if the Panthers can execute their gameplan and the things they’ve emphasized in practice Cooper feels that Kentucky Wesleyan can overcome some challenges and put forth a valiant effort against the Wildcats at 7 p.m. ET on Friday.
“We’re going to have to handle some adversity,” Cooper said. “I want our guys to begin to learn how to earn unchallenged shots, handle some adversity and go up there and come together and have a great 40 minutes. And walk out of there feeling good about ourselves because we took on some battles and maybe won some battles.”
