UCLA Takes On No. 1 Kentucky in Chicago
The UCLA Bruins will battle the No. 1 ranked Kentucky Wildcats on Saturday in a showdown between two storied college basketball programs.
Looking quickly at the matchup suggests that UCLA could find it difficult to keep up with the platoon system of Kentucky.
The Wildcats are 11-0, played 10 players on a regular basis in double digits victories over Texas and Kansas, and handily beat North Carolina last week without Alex Poythress, who was lost for the remainder of the season with an ACL tear.
Even minus Poythress, Kentucky has a much deeper bench than the 8-3 Bruins do.
However, the Bruins have a very balanced attack that cannot be written off too soon by Kentucky.
The starters for UCLA each are averaging 10.8 points or higher per game with Bryce Alford a sophomore guard and son of Steve Alford the UCLA head coach leading the team in scoring at 18 points per game. He is also leading the team in assists at 6.7 per game.
The game on Saturday will be played at the United Center in Chicago. It will be the second of a doubleheader with North Carolina playing Ohio State in the first.
This is the first time that UCLA and Kentucky have played head to head since 2006.
The two teams are starting a series of three straight meetings that will continue at UCLA next season and Rupp Arena the year after.
Besides Alford, Kentucky must contend with Norman Powell who is averaging 17.4 points per games and Kevon Looney who is scoring 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds per game.
UCLA coach Alford is focusing on the depth of Kentucky.
The Wildcats can overwhelm their opponents for the full 40 minutes on each end of the court, which means UCLA must play well in many different areas to compensate for its lack of depth.
Alford calls Kentucky the nation’s best rebounding team and says his team must finish each possession. The Bruins must play very good defensively while being extremely efficient on offense to have a chance over the final five minute to pull out a win.
However, the Kentucky platoon system might just prove too much for the Bruins to handle.
Tyler Ulis a freshman guard for Kentucky said that the idea behind head coach John Calipari’s platoon system is to have fresh bodies in at all times to wear the opponent down.
Pick: Kentucky has a much deeper bench with 10 players who could likely start for any team in the country. UCLA has less depth but plays a very team oriented balanced attack. Nonetheless, the Wildcats will wear down the Bruins and win by double-digits to push their unbeaten streak to 12.
