Basketball
Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs are set for a top-20 matchup with the Kentucky Wildcats on Friday. It is the fourth of a six-game series that started in 2022 between Few and then Kentucky coach John Calipari.
Calipari lost the first two matchups to Few, first in the Spokane Arena in 2022 and again in February 2024 at Rupp. Cal took the Arkansas job after that season and was replaced by Mark Pope, who is plenty familiar with Gonzaga from his days at BYU. Pope and the ‘Cats were down 16 at half to Gonzaga at Climate Pledge Arena last season, before storming back and winning in overtime in front of a stunned Seattle crowd.
Now the Zags are hoping to push the series to 3-1 on Friday, and to further put last week’s 40-point massacre via Michigan in the rearview mirror.
Kentucky, for its part, is coming off a frustrating loss to a ranked team as well after falling to North Carolina at home on Tuesday, 67-64, as part of the ACC-SEC challenge. The ‘Cats shot 1-13 from three and went ten full minutes without a made field goal in the second half – although amazingly they held a lead for most of that time, before UNC freshman guard Derek Dixon put the team on his back and scored five points in the final minute to win it for the ‘Heels.
Both Gonzaga and Kentucky are looking to get back into the win column and re-establish themselves as true contenders heading into conference play.
Kentucky is also going to have to do it without its complete squad, which has been the case all season long. Jayden Quaintance, an elite rim-protecting big man who transferred from Arizona State, has yet to debut this season after offseason knee surgery. It does not sound like he is particularly close to returning. The same is true for Pitt transfer point guard Jaland Lowe, who has dealt with shoulder issues since the preseason and is “loosely practicing” without doing any five-on-five.
Kentucky could also be without big man Mo Dioubate, who suffered an ankle injury against Michigan State that coach Pope called “a pretty nasty sprain”.
Gonzaga will still have to bring their A game to win in an expected hostile environment in Nashville. Kentucky is a strong rebounding team that, like Michigan, boasts one of the better interior defenses in the country. A lot of their success has come against bad teams, with no wins against teams ranked higher than 192 at KenPom.
If Gonzaga can get back to dominating on the boards, forcing turnovers, scoring in transition, and maybe hitting a few outside shots, they should be able to come away with another Quad 1 win and a commanding 3-1 lead in this six-game series.
Below is how and where to watch Gonzaga take on Kentucky this Friday:
How to watch Gonzaga vs. Kentucky
Date: Friday, Dec. 5
Game time: 4:00 p.m. PT
Where: Bridgestone Arena (Nashville, TN)
How to watch: ESPN2
How to listen: 96.1 FM (local) and Varsity Sports App
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