Talking Kentucky with Glenn Logan from A Sea of Blue

The Bearcats play Kentucky Saturday afternoon at around 2:40 eastern. With many burning questions about the game, I talked to Glenn Logan from A Sea of Blue. You can follow Glenn tomorrow @ASeaOfBlue. Questions are in bold.

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The obvious first question, how do you think Cincinnati matches up with Kentucky?

Well, I think they match up much better than the Hampton Pirates, that’s for sure. Cincinnati is known as a hard-nosed tough-guy team, a reflection of Mick Cronin’s toughness. Although I know Cronin is out dealing with serious health issues, his personality runs through your program. Larry Davis, UC’s interim coach, is a twin son from a different mother.

The Bearcats have some size, and that always helps against Kentucky. They obviously are smaller than the Wildcats, particularly in the back court, but they are equally athletic at most spots. They are also quite a deep team with as many as eight players getting significant minutes.

Where Cincinnati does not match up well is that their weakness lies squarely athwart Kentucky’s strength — the Bearcats are offensively challenged, and Kentucky is one of the nation’s best defensive teams. But there is no area where Cincinnati is completely unfortunate against Kentucky.

On the flip side, Kentucky matches up well with everyone, what is their biggest advantage against the Bearcats?

Probably in the backcourt. Kentucky’s back court is huge, and talented. They occasionally struggle to shoot well from the outside, but that’s not really what they want to do anyway. In transition, Cincinnati must get their bigs back to prevent Andrew and Aaron Harrison from having a lot of transition baskets, and that can tend to wear down front-court players, particularly guys like Coreontae DeBerry.

Also, Kentucky’s back court can get looks whenever they want. UC’s guards are not big enough to challenge them off the bounce, and if Kentucky exploits that, it will force defensive rotation and free up the Wildcats’ big guys.

The Wildcats do a lot things well. What do they do the best?

Defend. They defend like you talked bad about their mamas. Kentucky blocks shots, they pressure ballhandlers, they rebound and they force you to alter your shots. Willie Cauley-Stein is an indomitable defender who will take your best offensive player away from you, whether he’s 7‘0” or 5‘11”.

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Is there anything Cincinnati does that worries you?

Yes, indeed. They are experienced, tough, and know how to win. Cincinnati also has significant talent, even if it may be on a different level than Kentucky’s guys. They play well together, they know each other, the defend well and they will be physical. This year’s Kentucky team handles physical play much better than last season, but it’s always a concern for young teams, and Kentucky is a young team.

Also, Cincinnati tries to control possessions so that their lack of scoring does not leave them down too far, and they always have a chance to come back just like they did against the Purdue Boilermakers. Kentucky’s younger guys are slightly more prone to mistakes, and that puts the Bearcats in a likely position of being in the game to the end. That should worry every opponent.

One thing Cincinnati cannot do is get in a running game with Kentucky. That’s a good way to get blown out huge. Just ask Arkansas. You have to control tempo against Kentucky to have any chance at all.

Who’s the one Wildcat that, if they go off tomorrow, it means Cincinnati is in (more) deep trouble?

Devin Booker. Booker is capable of Stephen Curry-esque shooting performances. You don’t want him going nuts, because if he does, you will surely lose. When he has had big games, Kentucky has massacred their foes. See UCLA, Tennessee, South Carolina et.al. The good news for you is that he’s been in a bit of a slump.

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What would it take for Kentucky to lose this game?

Honestly, if they come out and play Cincinnati like they played the Pirates, I think UC has a great chance to win. Kentucky, when focused, are practically invincible. There is no team in the NCAA Tournament that can defeat a focused Kentucky playing well in my opinion. Fortunately for everybody, Kentucky has enough lapses that just about anyone from here on can beat them if they don’t bring their “A” game. If they do, well, bad luck.

Did you have a preference between Cincinnati or Purdue?

Not at all. My point of view is simple — if Kentucky is really the best team in America, it shouldn’t matter who they play. If UC beats UK, they do. Kentucky will get over it, reload, and come back and try again next season. As much as we’d like to make history, we understand the nature of a single-elimination tournament even if the young men who play for us might not.

All we ask is to be competitive for the national title every year, and no matter what happens tomorrow, we definitely meet that standard. We are going to win some and lose some. Hopefully, after last season, we win this one. 🙂

Instead of a prediction, on a scale 1-10, how worried are you about the game tomorrow and why?

Maybe a six or seven. In the tournament, against quality competition, you should always be concerned a little bit. The quality of this team, and the young men who play on it, give me a lot more confidence than I otherwise would have. Kentucky has had some close calls this season, but in every case, they have shown maturity far beyond their years and won the game. They have never once panicked or lost their sense of teamwork. That gives us a lot of confidence, and I think you can understand why.

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Big thanks to Glenn. Be sure to check out his work on A Sea of Blue.

Photo via Getty Images.