Matt Norlander and I just recorded a (super long) #MailbagEpisode of the Eye on College Basketball Podcast which will be published on Friday. Among other things, we were asked which storylines we’re most interested in as this season progresses.
One of my answers: Kentucky.
The Wildcats defeated Bellarmine 99-85 on Tuesday to extend their winning streak to four games, improve to 9-4 on the season and remain No. 21 in the updated CBS Sports Top 25 and 1 daily college basketball rankings Wednesday morning, where Michigan is No. 1 for the 15th straight day. That’s the good thing. But the bad thing, or at least the worrying thing, is that it’s only three days after starring in the second half After UK’s 78-66 win over St. John’s in the CBS Sports Classic, Jaland Lowe, the team’s top point guard, was once again sidelined by a shoulder injury that dated back to the preseason and has now led to Pitt missing seven of Kentucky’s first 13 games.
According to coach Mark Pope, the move was mostly a precautionary measure — and Pope added that he expects Lowe to “play every game going forward,” starting with the SEC opener at Alabama on Jan. 3. But the truth is, no one can predict with any degree of certainty how Lowe’s season will develop. Remember, he tried to play in the first half against UNC, entered the game a few minutes after tip-off, but then abruptly quit after re-aggravating it just seven seconds later.
Lowe missed the rest of the half.
At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, how Lowe’s shoulder holds up could actually be the difference between the Wildcats making the 2026 Final Four or them struggling through parts of the SEC schedule. So yeah, that will be one of the biggest storylines to follow as the calendar shifts to January – whether Britain can find a rhythm with Lowe leading things consistently, or whether he’s in and out of the line-up too much to matter.
Top 25 and 1 rankings
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