Wednesday Morning Shootaround

Kentucky 90, Tennessee 72: Think about all the basketball tradition and all the great players that are associated with the University of Kentucky basketball team.

Now think about this: Jodie Meeks is the new record holder for points in a game after he dropped 54 on Tennessee last night. There were a lot of things that impressed me about Meeks' performance, but first and foremost was the fact that he did it all inside of Kentucky's offense and game plan. In the first half, he was getting his shots coming off of screens or on a second rotation of the ball. In the second half, it was more of the same until the stretch run. Kentucky was struggling a bit against the Tennessee pressure, so Gillispie had Meeks bring the ball up and control it until he would make a move at the end of the shot clock. It wasn't like he was coming up and jacking every time he touched. Yea, he did force a couple, but in general, throughout the entire game, Meeks played within what his team was trying to do.

The second most impressive fact about that performance is that he scored 54 on just 22 shots. He finished 15-22 from the field and 10-15 from three, hitting all 14 of his free throws.

After this performance, there are two questions you have to ask. First, is Kentucky now the best team in the SEC? It's a tough question for two reasons. Outside of the unbelievable performance by Meeks, the Wildcats looked like the same old team with the same old problems. They turn it over too much, don't have much PG play, are young and inexperienced at a lot of positions, and they just don't have enough help for Meeks and Patterson. That said, the SEC is really weak this year (seriously, how does one of the BCS leagues not put a team into one of the top 25 polls?) and there aren't any complete teams in the league. I still really like Florida, and Arkansas looks like a team that will make some noise, so I'll leave it at this: after going into Rocky Top and smacking Tennessee, Kentucky is now the team to beat in the SEC. Enough of a hedge for you?

Now, what does this performance say about Meeks? We knew that he could score before this game, but 39 against VMI or 46 against Appalachian State or 32 against Tennessee State isn't the same as scoring 54 on Tennessee in Tennessee. Even the 37 he put on Kansas State should be taken with a grain of salt. I don't like saying one game makes or breaks what a player or a team is, but this performance certainly legitimizes that 25.9 ppg. First team all-american? Possibly. At the very least he's got to be in the discussion.

As for Tennessee, I can't figure this team out. I thought that they actually played a pretty decent game last night if you factor out their defense on Meeks. They forced 15 turnovers. They got 19 offensive rebounds. Their biggest issue? 38% shooting (26% from three) and the fact that they only had 9 assists on 25 field goals. They have too many guys that don't understand basketball offensively quite yet.

So why doesn't Bruce Pearl press and trap all over the court the entire game? Lord knows he has the athletes to do it. Look at their roster. It is loaded with guys 6'5"-6'8" that are long and athletic. This team isn't going to win a game in the half court, but they will win games that are played at an up and down pace. What better way to get a game at a faster pace than to press?

One last note about Tennessee - I really like Wayne Chism's game. Sure, he takes a couple too many three's, but the kid is a work horse on the glass, plays hard the entire game, is a good defender, and has really developed a solid, if unspectacular, post game. He finished last night with 18 points, 9 boards (7 offensive), and 3 steals.

The rest of the games from last night:

• Florida State 78, NC State 65: The Wolfpack went up 63-59 with 6:00 left, but the Seminoles reeled off 12 straight points to take the lead. Toney Douglas had 21 for FSU.
• Bradley 63, Indiana State 52
• Ohio State 77, Indiana 53: William Buford led the Buckeyes with 19 and 7 boards.
• Memphis 55, Tulsa 54: Tulsa took a one point lead on two free throws with 4.5 seconds left, but Antonio Anderson made a driving lay-up to win it. Tulsa's Jerome Jordan, a 7-footer climbing the NBA Draft boards, finished with 20, 13, and 4 blocks. Memphis was led by 23 from Tyreke Evans.
  

• Kansas 87, Kansas State 71: The Jayhawks scored the first 18 points of the game, but allowed K-State to close to within three early in the second half. But a quick 11-2 run put the game out of reach. Sherron Collins scored 19 of his 24 in the second half.
• Northern Iowa 58, Evansville 47
• UAB 60, Central Florida 52
• BYU 73, TCU 61