Alabama basketball looks to score a victory over Kentucky on Saturday.
If it wants to do so, the Crimson Tide better be on its game offensively, because this could turn into an absolute race.
“Maybe the first to 100 wins,” Alabama coach Nate Oats quipped Friday.
Both the Crimson Tide and Wildcats have top 10 offenses in terms of efficiency, and neither defense is elite. So this could result in a barnburner of a game. Alabama will look to remain atop the SEC standings while the Wildcats are still fighting for a chance to contend for the SEC regular season title.
Ahead of the matchup on Saturday (3 p.m. CT, CBS) at Rupp Arena, here’s a look at No. 17 Kentucky (18-8, 8-5 SEC) and how it stacks up with No. 13 Alabama (19-7, 11-2).
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Projected starting lineup for Kentucky vs. Alabama basketball
Guard DJ Wagner (freshman): 6-foot-4, 192 pounds. Averages: 10.5 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1 steal, 0.2 blocks, 1.6 turnovers.
Guard Antonio Reeves (senior): 6-foot-5, 195 pounds. Averages: 19.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.3 blocks, 1.2 turnovers.
Forward Justin Edwards (freshman): 6-foot-8, 203 pounds. Averages: 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.2 blocks, 0.9 turnovers.
Forward Adou Thiero (sophomore): 6-foot-8, 222 pounds. Averages: 7.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 0.7 steals, 1.1 blocks, 0.7 turnovers.
Center Ugonna Onyenso (sophomore): 7-foot, 247 pounds. Averages: 4.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, 0.2 assists, 0.2 steals, 3 blocks, 0.7 turnovers.
Kentucky’s rotation vs. Alabama basketball
The Wildcats feature nine players who received 16.8 minutes or more per game. Outside of the starters mentioned above, Tre Mitchell (33.1 minutes), Reed Sheppard (28.3 minutes), Rob Dillingham (23.2 minutes) and Aaron Bradshaw (16.8 minutes) have also seen a fair amount of playing time.
How Kentucky stacks up with Alabama basketball in scoring, defense and tempo
KenPom tracks adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, which are points scored and allowed per 100 possessions. The Wildcats are similar to Alabama in that their defense isn’t bad but it’s their offense that is elite.
Kentucky and the Crimson Tide will look to play a similar tempo: Fast. KenPom measures the adjusted tempo statistic based on the number of possessions per 40 minutes.
Adjusted offensive efficiency:
Kentucky: 120.4 (9th nationally)
Alabama: 127.3 (1st)
Adjusted defensive efficiency:
Kentucky: 101.2 (78th nationally)
Alabama: 101 (72nd)
Tempo
Kentucky: 71.9 (18th nationally)
Alabama: 72.4 (14th)
Score prediction
Kentucky 92, Alabama 88: This game figures to be a high scoring affair. Two elite offenses facing off, and if this were at home, Alabama would get the slight edge. It’s not, though. So Kentucky gets the close victory.
Nick Kelly is the Alabama beat writer for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network, and he covers Alabama football and men’s basketball. Reach him at nkelly@gannett.com or follow him @_NickKelly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Alabama basketball, Kentucky: Score prediction, Scouting report
