Kentucky takes their #1 ranking on the road tonight as BBN invades Starkville, MS to face Mississippi St at 9:00pm on ESPN and it seems to be a game that could be a good one.

MSU comes in to tonight having lost three straight games, two of those being in overtime so the Bulldogs are ready to come out fighting. They currently have a 19-8 record, 6-6 in SEC play so this seems to be a very important game for their tourney resume and I think they seem to believe so as well considering Humphrey Coliseum will be holding a "white out" thanks to Chevron! So expect a rowdy and loud environment that could rattle the guys in general but I think we have all seen over the last few weeks that nothing can mentally effect these guys so if they come to play, I see a 7 point victory.

Now that sounds easy to do but we all know it will be different, especially with guys like Dee Bost running the point guard position and two big bodys down low in Arnett Moultrie and the round one Renardo Sidney. Moultrie leads the team in both points(16.5) and rebounds(10.8) per game while senior guard Bost adds 15.8ppg, Rodney Hood with 11.1 and of course the dough-boy Sidney with 10.4, so they do have scorers in all areas which will test the #1 field goal percentage defense in the nation.

For the Cats, I see the defense being the reason they walk away victorious. Terrence Jones and Anthony Davis will need to control the middle which will cause the perimeter guys to force bad shots, inevitably leading to more UK possessions and points. Also, watch Marquis Teague tonight as he has a good battle on his hands in Bost who has been around and can play, if he controls himself he is the better player but if it's a off night, watch out for the sharp shooting guard to try to take over.

So go get ready as we are less than 4 hours from tip-off and just in case you missed or forgot, Rick Stansbury called out our man Twany Beckham yesterday which was the worst thing he could have done, considering every time something negative has went towards this team, they molded together and took off and it all started with White from LSU tackling Davis. Thanks guys! Go Cats!

Pre-Game Quotes

John Calipari on the rivalry with Mississippi State:
“They have been exciting games. Even our game here last year where it looks like the game is over, we miss three front-end one-and-ones up six and give them a chance. They have played inspired and we expect that they will play inspired this game.”

Calipari on the defensive challenge of Dee Bost for Marquis Teague:
“It’s hard, but they put him in a lot of pick-and-rolls and he’s been pretty good in pick-and-roll defense. You can’t go under, the kid will pull up and shoot the shot, you have to fight over the top. He’s pretty good at going to the basket but Marquis has done fine, he’ll be fine.”

Twany Beckham on his return to Mississippi State:
“I am looking forward to it. It should be fun. Hopefully we go down there and get a win. That’s all I’m worried about.”

Kyle Wiltjer on what kind of challenge Mississippi State could provide:
“They’re a tough team. We’re going to learn a lot about them today in practice and prepare for them. We’re just going to approach it like every other game and hopefully we’ll go in and get the win.”