2025-11-11 - LEACH REPORT

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This podcast of the Leech Report is presented by Boone's
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(00:22):
Is Game day for the Battle of the Bluegrass Kentucky
and Louisville tonight at the Young Center in Louisville, and
we will talk about that with Larry Vaught, with Brandon
Ramsey from on three Sports KSR, Larry from your Sports
Edge dot com, see how Brown from the Courier Journal

(00:43):
as well. We'll work in a little football into the
conversation as well as we move through the program. Today,
Wildcat News of the Day presented by just Sepies of Lexington.
Game time eight o'clock tonight in the Ville and it'll
be on ESPN T for TV coverage. UK Radio network
coverage starts at six point thirty with David Cameron and

(01:05):
Andrew And if you are a YouTube customer then you're
welcome to join us. If you can't find it on TV,
and always go to UK Athletics dot Com backslash sink
and you can find the way to sync the radio
broadcast with whatever platform you're watching for the TV coverage.

(01:26):
So that's available, and if you're already doing that, spread
the word to your friends. A couple of players, Colin
Chandler and Otaka Oway, talk to the media ahead of
the rivalry showdown tonight. Here's what Otega had to say
when he was asked about how quickly he assimilated himself

(01:46):
into this rivalry.

Speaker 2 (01:48):
You know, I just kept when I got here on
Campaus last year.

Speaker 3 (01:50):
I just kept going here. And I want to say,
you know, we don't care.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
How the season goes. Obviously that's not you either, but
as long as you win the whole game.

Speaker 4 (02:01):
Nice that I kind of.

Speaker 5 (02:02):
Figured out quick.

Speaker 3 (02:03):
It was like being in the first one under Pope
and it's kind of the Kelsey Pope back and forth
for the first one.

Speaker 1 (02:10):
Yeah, that was cool.

Speaker 4 (02:11):
It was a great environment, especially since it was home
last year, seen the n the ray Verse Blue.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
It was really cool. Oh take it away. Yesterday chatting
there with a question from Jack Pilgrim of On three
and ks R. So it doesn't take long to learn
about that rivalry, and like he says, they understand that
it's not the be all end all. The whole season

(02:38):
does matter more, but it's it's still really big and
it's a game that has you know it as people
obviously talking all throughout the season. One of the more
interesting storylines to this has been some of the unexpected
heroes over the years for the Wildcats, guys that on

(03:01):
paper didn't figure to play the role that they did
in the outcome. And I went back and looked at
some of these yesterday. We've got the Leach Report on
LAX eighteen around five point fifty every afternoon, so there'd
be a graphic showing this in the report tonight. But
Lamont Butler last year, for example, had thirty three points,

(03:23):
six of six threes. He had made seven threes in
eight games to that point. In twenty twenty three, Jacob
Toppen had a career high. In twenty fifth. Twenty eleven,
Josh Harrelson had a career high two thousand and six.
Rajon Rondo had a career high. Not that Rondo would
be an important player in the game, certainly, but to

(03:45):
score at that level was not something he had done
to that point. Jody Meeks had his freshman year high,
so did Tyler Ulis twenty seven, twenty seven, and twenty
fifteen respectively, and finally Dominie Hawkins in sixteen his first
career double figure game, and probably others. Those are the
ones that I scanned through and came up with quickly.

(04:05):
So who will it be tonight? Well, if somebody does
that tonight, I would say my money be on Trentonoa
or Cam Williams. There combined oh seven on three so far,
and you know that isn't going to continue for very long.
So we'll talk about all of this with Larry and
Brandon and cl as we moved through the program today.

(04:27):
A couple of the notes football. Yesterday, Mark Stoops had
his media session and radio show. Bad news on the
injury front for the defense. Sam Green, who was playing
his best football, is out for the rest of the
year with an injury. Same for Jordan love It, veteran
in the back end of the defense career nine interceptions,

(04:47):
including the game clincher down at Auburn. So Cam Dooley
will step into that role. He played pretty much the
whole game Saturday and he's playing well. It's just that
Jordan has all of that experience that you lose out on.
So it's a tough break for the defense in that regard,
and obviously tough for those two young men with this

(05:08):
team starting to play its best football of the year
and now they're on the sidelines for the rest of
the way. Alex Afari, he has an injury that kind
of sounds like you might sideline him this week. We'll
see when the availability report comes out later in the week,
but it doesn't sound like it is something that you
will keep him from getting back on the field at

(05:28):
some point. Cutter Bowley named Freshman of the Week in
the SEC. David Rayner co Defensive Player of the Week
in the SEC. Thanks to the stories that we talk
about each day, you can find them on the bud
lightly to Report page at Tom Leachky dot com. Well
Ahead to a Break come Back Chat with Larry Vaught.
Opening segments presented by Giuseppes of Lexington. Get to Open

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Speaker 4 (06:20):
I mean that's cool. I mean they're gonna talk as
it's a rivalry. You want that, that's what makes it fun.
So by all means, you know, they can churp, you know,
I think we'll save our chirpet during the game and
then after the game when we went and.

Speaker 2 (06:37):
You know, we'll just leave it at that. Jalen, how
are you feeling tonight?

Speaker 4 (06:40):
You're just getting in the groove having to play with
that breaks.

Speaker 2 (06:44):
How are you feeling right now?

Speaker 4 (06:45):
I'm feeling good. You know. It's it's different. You know,
never has something that kind of restricts my arm or
you know that's just on me like that. But it's this,
you know, just something I gotta figure out. And it
was great feeling out there, you know, I just I
think everybody knew it coming in today. Just got to
get my win back, you know, feel a little bit
better going forward. How do you feel about this robbery

(07:05):
you've been parted for the first year.

Speaker 2 (07:07):
I'm super excited for it.

Speaker 4 (07:08):
I mean, you know, this is something that everybody looks to,
looks forward to playing a robbery game, and then you know,
being this Kentucky Louisville rival being one of the best rivalries,
and then the country just super excited playing it. We
know what comes with it, and you know, just hoping
that we go down there and play our game, you know,
and come out with a win.

Speaker 2 (07:27):
Was that like a goal for you to try to
get back in time for that one specifically?

Speaker 4 (07:31):
Definitely easily. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (07:34):
That was j Lowe after the game on Friday night,
as Kentucky gets set to take on Louisville, starting out
talking about Case and Pryor's comment the postgame news conference
after a Louisville win the night before with an expletive
about the Wildcats as we welcome in Larry Vott from
your sports Edge dot com and Vaught's views and always

(07:59):
a little I surround this rivalry, Larry, But something like
that just was naturally going to be a topic of
conversation for the media with the Kentucky players, and we'll
see how it all plays out tonight.

Speaker 6 (08:13):
Yeah, I think Mark Pope probably appreciates what was said
up there. It probably help helps a little bit. And
I think there'll be a lot of spice tonight. I
hope you and Jack don't have too much spice and
going on there early in the game, kind of like
what happened last year. I hope he just kind of
settles down and they just play. That could be a
really really interesting game, But I think there's gonna be

(08:35):
a lot of intensity, especially on a Louisville side. I mean, Kentucky.
One thing about John Caliperian, no matter what you thought
about him, he pretty much owned Louisville, and Kentucky has
owned this series since two thousand and nine. I think
what louis was only one three times since then. So
I think the Cardinals are going to be really wanting
to chirp a lot if they get a chance tonight.

(08:55):
So we'll see, And you know, it's.

Speaker 2 (08:58):
A game that was close last year ninety three eighty five.
Both teams ended up making the tournament. Louisville went through
a rough patch before that and Kentucky had its down
season under cal and still nearly one down at the
Young Center, Saw had a shot that would have I

(09:20):
think tied it or put them ahead late in the game.
The win before that was seventy three seventy That was
when Kentucky was coming off that shootout with North Carolina,
and then it was another three point loss in the
December of twenty twelve. So the games that Louisville has

(09:42):
won there have been close last couple of years have
been blowouts for Kentucky. What are you expecting tonight?

Speaker 6 (09:50):
I expect to see Kentucky play better than it's played
all season. Of what I'm looking the most forward to
is kind of seeing how work might work that rotation
in a game like this, maybe give us an indicator
of what he'll do in SEC play. There's some guys
that are going to play a lot more minutes than

(10:11):
maybe what I expected, some of that won't play quite
as many minutes, and all like that. I think that's
one thing that I'm looking forward to that I'm also
hoping that you're going to be talking about. I'm making
a decent number of three point shots. I think that's
something they've got to still be able to convince us
they can do in a really big setting. I know

(10:32):
we've heard how well they shoot another one practice that
I got to go to, the family day practice. They
shot great, but still kind of waiting to see all
that in a big time setting like tonight. So I
think Kentucky will probably show a few things they haven't
shown so far this season. I think Mark's probably gone
a few things he's saved, and I think it'll be

(10:53):
a really fun game. And I'm kind of like Colin Chandler,
I'm anxious to see how much Blue gets in the
building tonight.

Speaker 2 (11:01):
Eighteen and fifty five threes for the Cats through their
two games, Trent Noa, Cam Williams a combined zero for
seven to start the season. So you know that's going
to turn around sooner rather than later, Well, I guess
you could. We don't know anything, but we feel very
confident that will turn around. I was going through the
list in the opening segment of just all the different

(11:23):
Kentucky players who have been the unexpected stars in this
game and was saying, either one of those two guys
could be a candidate to add their name to that
list with a big game tonight.

Speaker 6 (11:34):
Yeah, if they plus him came out and went five
for seven from three or something like that, because last year,
I don't think any of us thought Laman Butler would
be doing what he did shooting wise. And that's going
a game like this, you probably need somebody unexpected to
do something more than what.

Speaker 5 (11:51):
Is the normal.

Speaker 6 (11:54):
Game for them. And one of those two would be
great because we know that they can shoot. I mean,
I just don't think that Mark Pope, his staff and
that many teammates can be wrong when they tell us
how well those guys shot the ball all summer and
they don't forget how to shoot it, but so far
they just haven't made shots. And this will be a
really good night to see that change.

Speaker 2 (12:16):
Let's shift the gears to the football side. And when
we were starting the broadcast Saturday, I opened it by saying,
the last time that we were all in Kroger Field,
Kentucky had been left for dead. And in just two weeks,
how things have turned around.

Speaker 6 (12:36):
Yeah, I mean it's pretty amazing. I mean, Kentucky Beats
get to win over Auburn in the ESPN. This goes
off the air on my YouTube TV. Any watch had
anymore Kentucky Beats Florida and it snow's the first part
of November, so everything is kind of out of whack.
It seems like right now everything's turned around from what
we were expecting, but not just to beat Florida, but

(12:58):
just to dominate Florida. That it did, and this defense
three of the last four games has been so good
and you try not to get ahead of yourself and
think about man all of a sudden, I think Kentucky
can maybe run the table and you think, well, wait
a minute, settled out here. But when when that defense
is playing like it has three of the last four games,

(13:18):
and then you can just see Cutter, especially those young receivers,
seeming to get better every game because Seth McGaw it
has been pretty good every game he's played. And now
that offense is clicking and scoring. I mean, you've got
to feel really good about what the next three weeks.

Speaker 5 (13:34):
Could be like.

Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, it's it's been an amazing reversal of form. And
Stoops has talked about this thing, mentioned it last night,
but I think it's absolutely the case. It just all
I think feeds a lot of it anyway, feeds off
Cutter Bowlie. There's nothing like a quarterback that that's playing

(13:56):
well that creates hope on all for the whole team.

Speaker 6 (14:00):
No, it's exactly right, and it makes me feel good
that I was wondering all along why Cutter wasn't starting
when the season began. And also I'm sure marketing and
staff we're seeing a lot of things that I didn't see,
but I just didn't quite get it out. And I'll
give them credit. They have him come right out and
just said, yeah, we just blew and made a mistake.

(14:20):
But they have certainly been on the Cutter bandwagon, and
now it's clear he's the It really is the future.
When they talked about him being the future of the program,
that's really the case. And he's just just making play
and showing how he can throw them all into tight spots.

Speaker 5 (14:37):
I know.

Speaker 6 (14:38):
I was talking to a couple of people that had
talked to him couch. They said that he told them
that was the best he's ever seen cut Or play
was against Florida. Remember he watched him off through high
school because his son played with Cutter. So I think
and talk with Anthony White. I think every game that
a quarterback does like what he did against Florida, it

(14:58):
just makes everybody on that team believe being heeded more.
All of a sudden, receivers work a little bit harder
to get open. Lineman work us a little bit harder
to make that block. A running back, all work this
a little bit harder to make sure he gets that
extra yard or two. And as you said, it just
kind of snowballs and everything just kind of takes up the.

Speaker 2 (15:14):
Right way for you, Larry, var you read them at
your sports edge dot com. Hear them here on Tuesdays
and on the Sunday Morning sports talk show each week. Larry,
thank you much.

Speaker 4 (15:23):
All right, Tom.

Speaker 2 (15:24):
Twenty five past the top of the hours. The Leach
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we welcome in Brandon Ramsey to the program from on
three Sports KSR. Game Night for the Cats and the Cards.
So what do you think about November the eleventh earliest
date ever for this matchup.

Speaker 5 (16:46):
Yeah, it's a little bit different, but I guess the
sack that it's pretty cold at least up here in
Indiana and there's some snow on the ground at least
makes it feel a little bit more like the typical
Kentucky Louisville date.

Speaker 2 (16:57):
I guess I didn't thought of that, but you know,
there's little snow on the ground here, so maybe that
helps a little bit. The previous earliest date was when
they renewed the series in It was on November twenty sixth,
nineteen eighty three, the first game after the Dream Game,
and the Cats were dominant. There's that great Sports Illustrated
cover with Sam Buie swatting away a shot. Kentucky won

(17:20):
sixty five to forty four. I think there'll be a
few more points to that tonight.

Speaker 5 (17:23):
Right probably, So yeah, I think the pace is going
to be played a little bit, a little bit faster
than than that last one.

Speaker 2 (17:31):
Yes, we're gonna chat with Brandon about this matchup. We've
got coming up in the herd break at the bottom
of the hour, So I've got just a few seconds here, Brandon,
Tell folks where they can find your work with the
preview of this game, and obviously on three Sports and
KSRS the first place, but where else?

Speaker 5 (17:51):
Yeah? Yeah, you can find my pregame scutting report on
Kentucky Sports Radio dot Com, part of the on three
Sports network. Also have a video out this morning on
my YouTube channel, Brandon Ramsey College Basketball Show. We dive
into the film of breaking down the Louisville game as well,
and you can follow me on Twitter at b Ramsey
KSR to find all that good stuff.

Speaker 2 (18:09):
So we will continue with the breakdown from Brandon of
this matchup tonight between the Cats and the Cards. When
we come back, it's the Leach Report from the Clark's
Pumping Shop studio, Return, Refresh and Refuel Leechard Park percent
of by Bob Cat Enterprises. As we welcome back in
Brandon Ramsey from on three Sports KSR. It is a matchup,

(18:31):
as we said, that figures to put a lot of
points on the board. UFL has been over one hundred
in both of its wins. Before we start talking about
this specific matchup, give me your take on what you've
seen out of the Wildcats through two exhibitions and the
first two games.

Speaker 5 (18:50):
I think at this point the story really has to
go on the defensive end of the floor. That's with
how far along Kentucky is defensively. I think we all
expected this team to be quite a bit better than
they were last year on this and on that end
of the floor, and certainly in the metrics going into
the year supported that, but but the idea that they're
already where they are offensively, in my opinion, one of

(19:12):
the one of the best in all of college basketball
without what also could be one of the best defenders
in college basketball, and Jayden Quaints who could still be
plugged in there, you know, in a month or however long,
you know, but before we see him. So I think
I'm really encouraged and excited by what we've seen defensively
so part. And that's not just against you know, a

(19:33):
couple of the you know, admittedly lesser opponents and Nichols
and Vaparaiso, but obviously we saw it against Purdue in
an exhibition setting as well. So I'm really anxious to
see how that defense translates to a team that's gonna
put a way the most pressure on us that we've
seen this year, and that's including Purdue in Louisville's because

(19:53):
of the pace of which they play, the way they
shoot it from three point range, it's really gonna spread
out Kentucky more than they's been spread out to this point.
It makes to see how that translates to tonight.

Speaker 2 (20:03):
There are multiple ways to be very good defensively. Kenny
Brooks with the women's team talks about being the kind
of defensive team that's not going to get a lot
of steals. Their aim is to block a lot of shots,
make it tough to score when you get in around
the basket. Other teams are going to try to force

(20:24):
a lot of turnovers, get the high points off turnover number,
it seems for Kentucky. See if you agree that it's
going to be a defensive approach that is trying to
make it hard to get a shot off to contest.
Mark always talks about legally contesting shots and then to

(20:44):
make sure you rebound it. And they're rebounding at almost
ninety percent of the mishots by their opponents right now.

Speaker 5 (20:50):
Yeah, I think the defensive rebounding has really been one
of the biggest revelations of this season so far. And
again that includes the exhibition games against some higher quality
opponents than what we saw to start the regular season.
But yeah, that this team was dominated at the defensive blast.
And I thought that their willingness to switch, not just
one through four with Mo Diabate and how versale he is,
but even one through five when Brandon Garrison is in

(21:13):
there because he's very talented at guarding guardsman. I think
back to the jobs he did against Jeremiah Fears at
Oklahoma last year. I think that you're going to see
him do that tonight against Mickel Brown and some of
the louisvill guards. He's gonna be asked to switch out
is to kind of stay between them in the basket,
keep a guy on a guy, and not give them
so many defensions to make off the ball with some

(21:34):
of their cutting, certainly with the way that their guys
can space the four as three point shooters. I think
the more you can switch, the easier it is to
do what you said, which is legally contest a lot
of shots. If you're constantly in scramble mode and you're
having to rotate on the backside or off the ball,
it makes a lot harder to do that, especially with
the spacing that Louisville is going to have. So I

(21:55):
think that that Kentucky's ability and willingness to switch it
is gonna be a big the big part of the
the of this one of nine that obviously cleaning the
defensive glasses they've done at least so far this year,
will be a big part of ending those possessions as well.

Speaker 2 (22:09):
That defensive skill that you referenced for Garrison, to me
seems to be like at the first thing that you
put on his NBA resume tape.

Speaker 5 (22:18):
If he's good at that, absolutely, I think that, you know,
as he continues to develop throughout this season into what
I really do think will be an NBA player in
his future. Yeah, well, what he can do defensively out
on the perimeter, honestly, is probably even more impressive than
what he does as an interior descender. Right there.

Speaker 2 (22:38):
Malachimarno eighteen and ten in his second college game, is
he giving more than you expected to this point.

Speaker 5 (22:47):
Absolutely. He's a guy that he played on an Indian
Elite AAU team, so I got to watch him a
lot as I cover, you know, the Indian recruiting team
quite a bit, and then I saw up closed a
personal on the Kentucky All Star Game some different settings
like that, and you know, quite frankly, I wasn't sure
what he was going to bring, especially on the offensive
en to the floor. I was a little skeptical as to,

(23:08):
you know, what his role might be. But he's been
so good on the role like as a pick and
roll role, may a finisher at the grim, he's been
a lob third. He's been good on the rim, run
and transition. Anytime he can utilize his footwork, his athleticism,
he's really really good. And then man, he is so
good on the offensive glass, but the defensive rebounding as well,
but especially on the offensive glass. I feel like that

(23:30):
he's really stood out and got in Kentucky some extra
possessions and obviously got himself some extra points that way
as well, and he's really advanced as a defender as well.
As the way he processes the game for a young
big man is pretty special in my opinion. So, I mean,
obviously I think Jasper Johnson has been excellent as well,
but in terms of this kind of exceeding expectations, malachoim

(23:52):
Mareno continues to exceed my expectations pretty much every time
he steps on the floor.

Speaker 2 (23:56):
Mike hel Brown is the player that's generally the most
buzz I think on the uf L side. Leading into
this season. We saw him with Jasper Johnson on the
US FOBA team that won gold this summer overseas. What
is the challenge he presents to Kentucky tonight.

Speaker 5 (24:15):
This is such a dynamic playmaker. He's a guy that
not completely dissimilar to a Brayden Smith, just puts so
much pressure on you in ball string and handoff situations
at all time because he's a threat to shoot it.
I mean in the Bucknell exhibition he was eight of
eleven I believe from the three point range. So even
though he's a little bit of a streaky shooter, he

(24:35):
certainly can get hot from three. He's not a guy
you can just back up off of and let him
shoot it. It's gonna hurt you that way. Then, like
I said, if you put yourself in a bunch of
rotation situations off of the ball, then he's going to
pick you. Apart as the passer, he's a high assist guy.
I think he's averaging seven and a half assists right now.
So yeah, he's a really good decision maker. He's explosive

(24:55):
getting downhill. He's a threat to shoot it. He's just
one of those guys that you know you're kind of
picking your poison anytime you're figuring out the scattering import
for guarding him. There's not necessarily a good answer to
how you guard him. There's just a lesser of a
few different evils because he's that good of a player.

Speaker 2 (25:13):
Who else is a particularly challenging matchup.

Speaker 5 (25:18):
To me, it's all about Ryan Conwell and Isaac McNeely
because those guys can just shoot it at such a
high level. Both of those guys are honestly two of
the best shooters in college basketball this season. They're guys
that have made ninety to one hundred and threes in
seasons in their past at different stops, Virginia and Xavier
most recently for each of them respectively. But those guys

(25:40):
are are the ones that kind of make mckel brown
tick because they space the floor so well and that
you know, that word spacing keeps coming up, and you know,
Louisll's not completely dissimilar to Kentucky in the way they
run their half court offense and the way they like
to get out in transition. So I think that tonight,
especially at home, you know, if Louisville wins, I think

(26:01):
we're gonna look at the box score and we're gonna
see that Conwell and McNeely, you know, made a combined
you know, nine, ten to eleven threes. I think if
Kentucky goes in there and wins, We're gonna look at
the box score and that number is closer to a
four to six maybe, So I think how many threes
those guys make probably goes a long way to determine
the outcome of the game tonight.

Speaker 2 (26:22):
I think gool made fourteen threes in the game last
year that Kentucky won ninety three to eighty five. I
think the Cats made eleven. Do you with certainly with
the Kentucky side, with so much of the focus being
on improving defensively, do you think it is a little
bit of a lower scoring game than the one last year.

Speaker 5 (26:40):
I wouldn't want to bet on that necessarily, just because
I think the pace is going to be so high
and I think both of these teams are so good offensively. Yeah,
I mean, I obviously Kentucky defensive unit is completely different
than what with than what it was last year, and
that that at least gives you a chance for a
lower scoring game. But I mean, I think a game

(27:02):
where the first team to ninety wins, sort of like
last year, It wouldn't really shock me at all if
you saw that last night, just with the shooting, with
the pace with the Guards in this game. I think
it'll be another high sport affair.

Speaker 2 (27:14):
Honestly, Brandon Ramsey, the former coach, you now I see
him as an analyst on three Sports KSR and then
the YouTube channel, and it fears to be a fun
run to be chatting regularly over the next few months, Brandon,
So enjoy tonight and beyond.

Speaker 5 (27:32):
Yeah, look forward to it.

Speaker 2 (27:33):
Thanks Tom, Thank you, Brandon. It's seventeen away from the
top of the hours the lead report, and we come
to here from the Clark's Pump and Shop studio, return,
refresh and refuel at Clark's. Ceel Brown from the Career
Journal joining us when we return Leachapart presented it by
Bobcat Enterprises. As we welcome Cel Brown to the program

(27:54):
from Courier Dash Journal dot Com at Cel Brown Hoops
on X. We have the earliest ever meeting between the
Cats and the Cards and men's basketball tonight, fifteen days
earlier than the previous earliest installment. Any merit to play
against this earlier? Do you hope it goes back later

(28:15):
next year?

Speaker 3 (28:17):
I hope it goes back later. I do enjoy having
marquee games early, but not privary games, not a roddy
like this. You know, I would like for both teams
to have had more games under their in their bank
and some more continuity. They're still really figuring any other out,
especially with both teams adding new pieces, new important pieces.

(28:41):
Back to the puzzle for you know, Jalen Lowell coming
back for his first game their last game out and
at ufl case and Pryor also playing one game so
far after doing some rehabs on his knees. So I
hope we get a fun, clear, efficient game and I
hope it's not rock throwing. This early in the season.

(29:05):
You don't know though, third game in, you don't know
how it's going to be.

Speaker 2 (29:09):
They both played outmanned opponents in the lead up to this,
but they did. We did get to see them tested
against top twenty five caliber competition in the exhibitions with
Kentucky against Purdue and u of L against Kansas. Anything
that has come out of the two exhibitions in the
two games last week that has changed any opinion you

(29:31):
had coming into the season about either.

Speaker 3 (29:33):
Team, not really. I think both can still be really good.
I do think in that Georgetown game with UK being
short two guys at point guard. I think that I
felt like it kind of maybe hinted that they might
have some problems later on down the line with teams

(29:55):
that are both athletic and physical. But I'm it's it's
one of those things where it's just like, kind of
my flag went up. But we'll see, because, like I said,
they weren't that full strength and Aberdeen and Low would
have made a big difference in that game. So it's
just something to keep an eye on. But it's also
something that I feel like like Louisville and Kentucky are

(30:18):
both kind of made in a similar The roster was
constructed in a similar fashion and so and they play
similar styles, and I feel like the situation like that,
I'm gonna give you an early prediction. I don't think
Kentucky will be beat by a team that plays that
style with them like don't, I don't. I think they're

(30:40):
just the edge above Louisville personnel wise, and I think
they're gonna win tonight, but I think they'll have trouble
with with a different style of team, more of a
rough and tumble kind of half court team than a
team that wants to go up and down and shoot
from the perimeter.

Speaker 2 (30:59):
Both of these coaches had to completely remake rosters when
they came into these jobs, and it certainly seems from
the Kentucky side that coach Pope went through the SECS
schedule and wanted to get better defensively after going through
the season they had last year. Hopefully they stay healthier,

(31:19):
but to get better defensively, and it looks like they
have done that better rebounding, They've looks like they've off
to a good start at least in that regard. What
do you think how do you think year one affected
the roster that Pat Kelsey put together for year two
at U of L.

Speaker 3 (31:37):
Yeah, I feel like he kind of got what he
wanted both years to an extent. The thing about the
first year roster was just it was it was so
I'm not going to say last minute, but he got
hired when he got hired in March or maybe April,
I forgot exactly the time. It's like they're basically picking

(32:01):
from the best of the rest, almost in the transfer portal,
So it wasn't like he had his whole year of
recruiting under him and he could kind of figure everything out.
So obviously having more time helped out, but he kind
of got the same you know, he got better depth,
he got more of what he wanted, but I feel

(32:21):
like he kind of put it together in the same
way as he did the first season. So which which
is gonna be an emphasis on shooting and they've got
some shooters, and I think it could be a team
that ends up being streaky and they if they're hot,
they're going to be tough to stop. But they might

(32:41):
have some games like the Kansas exhibition game, where they're
not hitting and they end up taking a loss.

Speaker 2 (32:47):
What's the most challenging part of the matchup for each
of these coaches?

Speaker 3 (32:53):
For Louisville, I feel like it's gonna be last year
Chucky Hepburn and Terrence Edwards, we were two great perimeter defenders.
This year, I don't know that they have a defensive
stopper like either one of those players. So I think
for U of L it's gonna be finding somebody to
stop otega Oway and and even uh even Denzel Aberdeen

(33:18):
to an extent with the way that they like to
slash and they can get inside the lay. For Kentucky,
I feel like it's gonna be the I think getting
case In Pryor back with Hughes for Louisville because I
don't I don't think that their other front court guys
really had They're not season yet, they're really green with

(33:42):
with a league Khalifah.

Speaker 2 (33:49):
Were losing in connection just a little bit, Ohno, Let's
take a quick break and we'll come back and try
to get a couple of minutes with c get the
connection short up. We'll be right back and is the
Leach Report Radio Network. We're back with Ceel Brown Career
dash Journal dot Com at Seal Brown Hoops on X

(34:09):
and asking you about the toughest matchup for each coach?
What does that look like tonight?

Speaker 3 (34:19):
Yeah? So I for Louisville, I think that they will
have problems with otega Oway and Denzel Aberdeen, especially given
that I don't think they have a defensive stopper on
the perimeter like they did last year with with Chucky
Hepburn and Terrence Edwards being guys who could really disrupt

(34:40):
things for for opponents. I don't think they have that
this year. For Kentucky and Mark Pope, I feel like
the the front court, especially with Cason Pryor coming back
for Louisville, and I think Canai roots off the bench
being a real versatile athletic guy. That's that's what I'm
curious to see.

Speaker 5 (35:01):
Now.

Speaker 3 (35:01):
I'm not saying that that Louisville is going to dominate
the front court matchups, but I feel like they have
an edge there and they're just a little bit a
little bit better at what they.

Speaker 2 (35:13):
Do for U of L than.

Speaker 3 (35:17):
Than Kentucky's guys are for what they do for UK.
So I expect it to be close all the way,
though I do give the edge to UK ultimately.

Speaker 2 (35:27):
Though, one other things I want to ask you about
last week we had the story out of Lexingdon. Was
that Calzada and an immature reaction to an internet or
a social media troll, but something to a whole other
level story broke out of UFL last night with respect
to the Cardinals football team.

Speaker 3 (35:46):
Right uh, you know what, I am not aware that
I had a family emergency, understand, and I'm not up
to speed on that right now.

Speaker 2 (35:57):
All right, we'll move past that one back to the basketball.
Then what it's a It's a series, at least on
the Kentucky side. I know this frustrates U of L. Fans,
how there been some unexpected heroes for Kentucky, the guys
that have career games in this matchup. Any idea why
that happens. Is it just because it's a rivalry?

Speaker 3 (36:18):
Yeah, I'd say I think it's just kind of the
build up to the game and someone always, regardless, somebody's
going to have an opportunity for to step up and
etch their name in the in the rivalry and the
lore of this rivalry, uh, with with how they play,
and I don't know what it is, but it does

(36:40):
seem like just a year after year when UK wins
the game, that it's somebody who takes a starring role
who might not have that kind of game the rest
of the year. But I mean, last year, we knew
Lamont Butler was a key part of that team and
was a good player. Now, he didn't necessarily shoot as
well as he did against Louisville US of the Year,

(37:00):
but he was capable of that in any at any
given time. It's not like he was some walk on
that was never used and they put him in a
game and he had that kind of game.

Speaker 7 (37:11):
So they obviously both both rosters have have capable guys
who who might just step up in this spotlight and shine.

Speaker 2 (37:23):
You can read cels coverage of leading up to the
game and afterward at Courier dash Journal dot com and
at cel Brown Hoops and podcasts and more as well.

Speaker 5 (37:33):
Thank you, sir, all right, appreciate suh quick uh well.

Speaker 2 (37:38):
And I actually we've already done the break, so let
me just give you a quick word about our friends
at shuffle Being Coffee. They have been a longtime partner
of ours. It's a group of Kentuckians that put together
this company more than a decade ago with a commitment
to being the very best when it comes to coffee,
and you need to try it and you'll agree they've
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(38:00):
order it through Amazon, or go to the company's website
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product there and find out a little bit more about
the company. The Day a wild Cat History presented by
Kentucky road Show, Sports Cards and Memorabilia The Day in
nineteen seventy two, it was the last game at Stallfield
before Kentucky moved to its new stadium the next season.
Kentucky beat Vandy fourteen to thirteen. Happy Birthday, Ray Davis,

(38:21):
former Kentucky running back. Happy Birthday brand Caliperi Kentucky women's
soccer they picked for the NCAA Tournament. They will play
at number six Louisville on Saturday at two pm at
Lynn Stadium in Louisville. See it tomorrow on the Leads
Report