Kentucky is back on the floor Friday night, and the opponent comes with a familiar face. Preston Spradlin brings James Madison to Rupp Arena at 7 p.m. ET on SEC Network, putting a former UK staffer on the other sideline just days after the No. 23 Cats opened with an 85-57 win over Manhattan.
The timing gives this game a little more edge than a normal early-season nonconference meeting. Mark Pope said after the Manhattan win that he and Spradlin have had really long basketball-based and spiritually based conversations over the last few years, and that he really admires him. Pope also called Spradlin one of the great human beings in coaching, a big-time coach and a Kentucky guy, which is why Friday feels less like a routine matchup and more like a reunion with a competitor.
Kentucky’s opener showed a team that already has some rhythm. Milan Momcilovic scored 24 points and made six of nine shots from behind the arc, Zoom Diallo added 12, and Alex Wilkins finished with 11 points, seven steals and five assists. The Cats shot 32 of 60 from the floor and made 12 of 31 from three-point range, good enough to leave Manhattan little room to recover.
James Madison arrives with a different kind of urgency after its own opener. The Dukes led at halftime against Miami (Ohio) before losing 86-77, and the collapse deepened in the second half when Miami (Ohio) scored 51 points. Paul Jones III led James Madison with 14 points, but the late swing showed how quickly a game can get away from a team even after a strong start.
That is the balance Friday presents for Kentucky. Spradlin is bringing a team that has already shown it can punch first, but also one that has already shown how vulnerable it can be when a lead slips away. For Kentucky, the question is not only whether the offense carries over from Tuesday, but whether the home crowd sees Pope’s team handle a coach he knows well and respects even better.
The game will tell something about both teams. For Kentucky, it is another chance to keep building after a clean opener. For Spradlin, it is a first shot at his old program in a setting where he already has history, and where the conversation is likely to be as familiar as the matchup is fresh.
