The highest two groups in the latest males’s AP ballot entered the season unranked, and people two packages (Purdue and UConn) have been mentioned at size in current weeks. However for these groups to rise, somebody needed to fall, and several other groups pegged for elite seasons within the preseason have but to place all of it collectively. Right here’s a have a look at 5 of essentially the most disappointing groups within the nation, what’s gone mistaken and what the outlook is for turning issues round
1. North Carolina
I’m shopping for the North Carolina resurgence.
The Tar Heels could not have fairly the upside I assumed they’d have within the preseason, principally as a result of their depth hasn’t emerged as hoped and sustaining the defensive depth of the group’s March run over a complete season isn’t life like. Nonetheless, I’d wager on this group ending up among the many prime 10–15 groups nationally primarily based on how they’ve performed in opposition to Ohio State and Michigan. After a sluggish begin to the season, Armando Bacot has flourished these days with 28 factors in opposition to Ohio State and 26 in opposition to Michigan. With Bacot once more taking part in like an All-American and enhancing shot choice from Caleb Love and RJ Davis, that is beginning to appear like the Carolina group that made waves final March.
Plus, we all know the NCAA event setting suits the Heels properly. Depth issues barely much less as groups lean on starters, guards who could make performs for themselves off the bounce is extremely necessary and expertise in huge video games is invaluable. The Heels have all three. They could hit a couple of bumps in ACC play, however the final two wins have satisfied me to hold on the UNC bandwagon.
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Cason Wallace (left) is the one freshman amongst Kentucky’s top-six scorers.
James Crisp/AP
2. Kentucky
Kentucky arguably has the best flooring of any group of those “underwhelming” groups. When you may have Oscar Tshiebwe manning the center, a lottery choose within the backcourt and athletes all over the place, even a disappointing yr continues to be going to doubtless finish with a group close to the highest 25. Nonetheless, that’s not the place anybody related to Kentucky males’s basketball units the usual at this blueblood program, and there are some actual issues about this group’s ceiling.
That is nowhere near Kentucky’s most gifted roster below John Calipari; in reality, I’d contend it’s amongst his least gifted teams. That got here with a trade-off: Older, skilled transfers like Sahvir Wheeler, Antonio Reeves, CJ Fredrick and Jacob Toppin as a substitute of NBA-bound one-and-dones who want extra seasoning. However Kentucky has made its fair proportion of “freshman errors” anyway, plus appears to have little lineup cohesion and might’t out-talent top-tier competitors. The Wildcats’ offense simply doesn’t really feel threatening due to moderately restricted weapons from three round Tshiebwe and a scarcity of guards who can create their very own shot. Level guard Wheeler has his limitations, however there are some trade-offs when he’s not within the recreation with out one other true level guard within the rotation.
The Wildcats are nonetheless on the fringes of SEC competition and I’d be shocked in the event that they fall out of the highest 25 typically, however this group lacks the nationwide title ceiling I assumed it had within the preseason.
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3. Creighton
A lot of Creighton’s current shedding skid could possibly be attributed to poor luck. The Bluejays set themselves up with a brutal schedule in late November and early December, that includes journey even an NBA group would wish to keep away from and several other top-tier matchups. They’ve additionally endured the lack of star huge Ryan Kalkbrenner, an important piece on each ends) resulting from sickness for 3 video games and a few capturing struggles from deep. Creighton will not be almost as unhealthy as its document signifies, however even with a wholesome Kalkbrenner wasn’t fairly residing as much as expectations.
With Kalkbrenner again within the center for the Bluejays, this group goes as Ryan Nembhard takes it. On the Maui Invitational, Nembhard was terrific, averaging greater than 20 factors and 4 assists and doing so effectively because the Jays bought wins over Texas Tech and Arkansas earlier than pushing Arizona. Within the subsequent 5 video games, he averaged simply over eight factors per contest and shot solely 32% from the sphere. Topping UConn can be tough, however Creighton could be pretty much as good as anybody else within the Massive East if Nembhard performs properly.
4. Indiana
Indiana bought two spectacular wins in November, successful at Xavier earlier than beating North Carolina, however has faltered in December with three losses. Individually, defeats at Rutgers and Kansas and on a impartial courtroom in opposition to Arizona aren’t trigger for alarm, however IU’s lack of competitiveness in these three video games did increase alarms concerning the Hoosiers’ capability to compete with high-level groups come convention play.
Nonetheless, I’d doubtless take into account Indiana one of many prime groups within the Massive Ten if not for the damage to level guard Xavier Johnson, who is anticipated to overlook important time after foot surgical procedure. The door is open for him to return late this season, however Johnson being out for a big portion of Massive Ten play would additional restrict the ceiling of this group. Indiana is at its greatest when Johnson is attacking in ball screens and placing strain on the protection, opening up alternatives for Trayce Jackson-Davis for lobs and simple finishes. Freshman Jalen Hood-Schifino isn’t a full-time level guard, and bench guards like Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway don’t possess the identical explosiveness off the bounce. In video games in opposition to top-100 opponents, Indiana is greater than 30 factors per 100 possessions worse with Johnson off the ground this season, per Hoop-Explorer.
That is nonetheless an NCAA event group, nevertheless it’s laborious to think about the Hoosiers climbing a lot greater than midpack within the Massive Ten until Johnson’s return timeline is quicker than anticipated.
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5. Villanova
Villanova began 2–5, however has since received its final 5 video games. A part of that turnaround is schedule-related, although wins over Oklahoma and St. John’s ought to age comparatively properly for Kyle Neptune’s squad.
The primary three weeks of the season have been a comedy of errors for the Wildcats. Accidents have been an element, with star freshman Cam Whitmore sidelined till early December resulting from an offseason hand damage and greatest participant Justin Moore nonetheless out after final season’s Achilles damage. Nonetheless, the adjustment from Jay Wright to Neptune appeared extra stark than feared, with Villanova struggling to supply straightforward pictures offensively due to level guard woes and weird perimeter capturing points.
The offense has clearly began coming alongside, although the ‘Cats stay extremely depending on the three-point stroke. One situation Whitmore hasn’t solved has been Villanova’s issues within the paint, the place the Wildcats proceed to battle, notably in opposition to high-major opponents. Nonetheless, this group a minimum of has the look of a bubble group now after some actual concern final month. The ceiling feels restricted until Moore comes again at full energy to present this offense a jolt, particularly given the outlet Villanova dug itself résumé-wise in November with unhealthy losses to Temple and Portland.
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Mason Nicholson’s 20 points helped Jacksonville State defeat Western Kentucky 73-67 on Thursday night.
Nicholson also contributed 12 rebounds and three blocks for the Gamecocks (9-6, 1-1 Conference USA). Quel’Ron House scored 14 points and added nine rebounds and seven assists. Jaron Pierre Jr. went 5 of 18 from the field (1 for 7 from 3-point range) to finish with 12 points.
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Enoch Kalambay finished with 24 points for the Hilltoppers (10-6, 1-2). Julius Thedford added 17 points.
House scored eight points in the first half and Jacksonville State went into halftime trailing 27-24. Nicholson scored 14 second-half points.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Kentucky’s loss to Georgia felt like deja vu in that the issues that plagued the Cats vs. Ohio State and Clemson came roaring back. Once again, Kentucky let a physical team bully them around, turned the ball over too often, and didn’t create enough shots. Even though it feels like the blueprint to beat Kentucky is laminated after Tuesday night, Mark Pope believes all of those issues are fixable, even in the short term.
“Listen, it’s not triage where we have a bad team,” Pope said today. “We have a really good team. We didn’t play particularly well and so there’s a lot of things that were a little bit anomalous, where we just didn’t play great. And certainly, Georgia had some contribution to that.”
Ahead of his team’s trip to No. 14 Mississippi State, which is even more physical and talented than Georgia, Pope outlined two areas of focus: rebounding and ball protection. Georgia outrebounded Kentucky 41-34 on Tuesday, the fourth game in a row the Cats have lost the battle of the boards. On Saturday, they’ll face a Mississippi State team that ranks just outside the top 30 nationally in offensive rebounding rate (35.9%).
“We’re continuing to work on the glass right now. That’s been something interesting because we had been one of the top defensive rebounding percentage teams in the country, and that’s kind of bit us, a little bit. And so we’re rethinking some approaches there that hopefully will see immediate progress on, because we’ve been really good, right? We’ve just got to be good in this league right now, with the physicality and the way this is being played.”
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Pope seemed less concerned about the 14 turnovers the Cats committed vs. Georgia. Kentucky still ranks No. 3 in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.94), but that number would be a lot higher if not for their losses.
“We’ve been really good in terms of ball protection. I think we’ve been number one in the country. I think we’re close so I don’t think it’s reinventing the wheel for us on the ball protection side. We just didn’t do it well in this game.”
“So, there are certainly areas that we’re going to continue to grow and fine-tune, but there’s not a lot of total restructuring going on.”
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All season, Pope has talked about the importance of getting his guys not to default to bad habits. The Georgia loss showed that’s still a work in progress. After the game, Pope talked about how distracted his guys seemed on the floor, whether it be from the crowd, the whistles, a shot not going in, etc. Getting them to tune that out and lock in on each other will be what determines how far they go this season.
“Our guys trust and believe in each other, but when you start talking about trust and belief in where you go for answers, that’s a process that everybody is trying to find. It’s not a matter of not being able to find it. I mean, our guys have found it a lot this season. Like there’s been a whole lot of trust and faith on this team, where we’ve gone to the well, the right well, to find answers in the biggest games that have been played all season, right? But being able to get there every single time is part of the challenge, right? At the end of the year, it’s, can you get there six straight games? Can you go to the right space with all the different distractions, different vibes? Can you keep going right to the same place and keep trusting over and over and over again?
“And so that’s kind of the space we’re living in right now, is, how consistently can we be in the right spot on the floor? How consistently can our faith be placed in the right space? How consistently can we tune out all the distractions that happen around the game and kind of be locked in just to the moment? We’re fully capable. We’ve done it. We’ve done it at the highest level. We’ve done it pretty consistently. But now can we do it every time?”
When it comes to being more physical, Pope said that’s something everyone in the SEC is striving for right now. He just wants his team to understand how to do it and when to do it.
“The game always gets more and more physical in the league, and so our guys understanding — and there’s also a part of understanding where you can be really, really physical and where you can’t, right? And that’s part of our determinations. There are a lot of facets to that. One is just the physics aspect of it, of having a low center of gravity and kind of being the hit-first guy and a first hit and second, there’s all the schematics and the skill of it.
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“And then there’s also the mentality of it, and the IQ of it. The mentality of it is kind of this aggression side of it where you’re always thinking about contact, contact, contact, and then the IQ of it is understanding when and where it’s appropriate and where it can be utilized and where it’s important.”
COVINGTON, Ky. ‒ Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman announced Thursday a $110 million settlement with Cincinnati-based Kroger in his lawsuit against the grocer for its role in the opioid crisis.
Speaking at a press conference event at the Life Learning Center across the Ohio River from Cincinnati in Northern Kentucky, Coleman said Kroger fueled the opioid epidemic by prescribing the drugs with “shockingly” little oversight or means of reporting suspicious activity.
“(They) allowed the fire of addiction to spread,” Coleman said.
Kroger did not have an immediate response.
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Why Kentucky sued Kroger
His office said the agreement is one of the largest opioid settlements in recent Kentucky history and ends one of his major lawsuits launched in 2024.
Last year, Coleman sued Kroger and pharmacy benefits managers Express Scripts and Optum Rx in separate lawsuits for their roles in Kentucky’s opioid epidemic.
Kroger is a $150 billion retailer with a pharmacy business that accounts for $14.3 billion of its annual revenues. Express Scripts is a subsidiary of Connecticutt-based health company Cigna Group. Optum is part of Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group.
Coleman, a Republican, took office last year after being elected in 2023.
