Kentucky coach John Calipari and the Wildcats will play four exhibition games in the Bahamas next month and each encounter will be televised by the SEC Network. (Kentucky Today/Keith Taylor)By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Kentucky basketball never stops even during the off-season. All four of the team’s games in the Bahamas will be televised by the SEC Network next month it was announced by the school Tuesday.
In the opener on Aug. 8, Kentucky will take on the Bahamas National Team at 7 p.m. The Wildcats also will play San Lorenzo De Almagro at 7 p.m. on Aug. 9 before taking a one day break. Kentucky concludes the tour against Mega Bemax at 7 p.m. on Aug. 11 and Team Toronto at 4 p.m. on Aug. 12.
The Kentucky radio network and its affiliates also will carry the team’s four games on the air during the seven-day tour. The team of Tom Hart, Seth Greenberg, and Dan Dakich will call the action on television, while Tom Leach and Mike Pratt will handle the call for UK Network.
All games will be played at Atlantis, Paradise Island.
Kentucky coach John Calipari has spent the past couple of weeks getting the Wildcats prepared for the four exhibition encounters and likes the way his team is taking shape, especially in the backcourt.
“(Last year) we were short on guards,” Calipari. “You guys all know it. And our skill set — we had more turnovers than assists most of the year, and that’s just unusual for one of our teams, based on the fact that most years I’m playing three point guards. Or three guards you could consider point guards. Most times last year, we had one on the court.”
Kentucky will be stocked heavily, with returnees Quade Green and Jemarl Baker, along with newcomers Ashton Hagans, Immanuel Quickley, Tyler Herro and Keldon Johnson.
“You have three legitimate point guards, but being able to handle the ball, Keldon Johnson, he could also be a point guard,” Calipari said. “He could be that big guard who starts your offense because of how he plays. But you’re also skilled with Jemarl, skilled with Tyler, and the other thing I’m hoping is that we will be the kind of 3-point-shooting team we’ve been in the past, where it’s a true weapon — we can shoot it in transition, can shoot it off ball screens
“We just weren’t able to [last season]. And someone said, ‘Boy, you should’ve shot more 3s.’ We probably would’ve missed more 3s then. It just wasn’t what our strength was.”
Draft Academy set: Calipari will host a Draft Academy Aug. 1-2 at the Seaton and Johnson Center at the University of Kentucky. The camps will be 8:30-11:30 a.m. and 1:30-4:30 p.m. at both sites.
Former players Hamidou Diallo, Wenyen Gabriel, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kevin Knox and Jarred Vanderbilt will participate in the academy. The cost for the camp is $199 per camper and open for boys and girls ages 7-17-years-old and lunch will be provided. Online registrations can be found at www.ukathletics.com/camps.
Keith Taylor is sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at keith.taylor@kentuckytoday.com or twitter @keithtaylor21.
