Kansas' Jalen Wilson, Gradey Dick Present Obstacles Kentucky's Defense Has Previously Failed to Hurdle

On Saturday night inside Rupp Arena, Kentucky basketball will host a battle of blue-bloods, as the struggling Kansas Jayhawks will meet the Cats in the final rendition of the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

Momentum is all the way with the Cats entering the showdown, as UK is riding a four-game winning streak, while coach Bill Self's squad is amidst a three-game skid — just the fourth time that's ever occurred under his watch in Lawrence.

It's hard to fault the Jayhawks, however, as all three losses have come against teams currently ranked inside the top-20 of the latest AP Poll. KU fell in overtime to No. 5 Kansas State on the road, took a beating at home from No. 11 TCU and most recently dropped another away contest, this time at No. 17 Baylor.

Kansas is still considered a two-seed in Joe Lunardi's latest edition of Bracketology, while UK has crept up to the "last four byes" section, slowly crawling off of the bubble. Anytime these two historic programs square off, it's considered must-see television, but the game will once again have an extra oomph about it this weekend.

A win for the Jayhawks would serve as a reset of sorts, re-focusing a season that is still filled with Final Four hopes. Victory for the Wildcats would equal a five-game stretch with two wins over top-Quad 1 opponents, confirming that the once-forgotten John Calipari-led group has indeed turned a corner.

For KU, all eyes will be on the dominating duo of Jalen Wilson and Gradey Dick. The three losses haven't been due to a lack of production from the pair, specifically the junior Wilson.

The 6-foot-8 forward out of Denton, Texas has been on a tear, notching a total of 91 points and 21 rebounds in the trio of losses. In the Sunflower Showdown against K-State, he dropped a career-high 38 points, then following up that performance up with 30 the next time out against TCU.

Wilson's 21.4 points-per-game is the 12th-best mark in the nation, while his average of 8.6 rebounds is 57th.

Dick will enter Rupp Arena fresh off a 24-point night against Baylor, a game that saw the freshman shoot 8-13 from the floor. it was the fifth game of the season that the combo guard-forward scored at least 20 points. The Kansas native has played the latter role of the Jayhawks' one-two punch, averaging 14.9 PPG and 5.2 RPG.

Containing the duo will be a tall task for Kentucky, as the Cats have struggled against star-power on multiple occasions this season.

Going all the way back to the Champions Classic against Michigan State on Nov. 15, it was senior sharpshooter Joey Hauser — the Spartans' leading rebounder (7.7) and second-leading scorer (13.8) — who lit up the Cats late, going for 23 points in a double-overtime win.

Just two games later in Spokane, it was All-American Drew Timme shooting 9-13 en route to a 22-point night that was accompanied by seven boards and three assists in a comfortable 16-point win over UK. The Wildcats first win over a Power-5 opponent this year came in London, England against Michigan, but Wolverines' big man Hunter Dickinson still dominated in the paint, going for 22 points and nine rebounds.

In one of the many low points of the campaign for Kentucky, Jaime Jacquez Jr of UCLA compiled a 19-point, 12-rebound double-double as the Bruins held the Cats to just 53 points. In conference play, Alabama's freshman sensation Brandon Miller (19 points, seven rebounds) and Missouri's Kobe Brown (30 points on 10-16 shooting, six rebounds) followed suit in crushing victories over UK.

The presence of big-time players has often led to major struggles on defense for the Wildcats. All of the aforementioned players who've had their way on offense are forwards, many of whom present the large stature to go along with their large outings.

Self and the Jayhawks don't possess the usual capable center that roams the paint this season, so the advantage in the low block will likely fall in the hands of Oscar Tshiebwe. The challenge of guarding Wilson and Dick, however, will require help from all of UK's forwards.

Jacob Toppin will presumably have the assignment of Wilson, while the youngster Dick also stands at 6-foot-8, likely requiring some added help from freshman Chris Livingston (6-foot-6, 220 pounds), if Antonio Reeves (6-foot-5, 205 pounds) struggles with the matchup.

Stifling the stars doesn't always yield success, as South Carolina's Meechie Johnson has proven that anyone is capable of dropping bomb after bomb on any given night — especially in Rupp Arena. Halting Wilson and Dick will still be a huge focal point for Calipari, as he looks to hand his old buddy Self his first-ever four-game losing streak as the Jayhawks skipper.

Tipoff between Kentucky and Kansas this Saturday is set for 8 p.m. EST and will air on ESPN.

More on the win over Vanderbilt HERE.

Game notes from the victory can be found HERE.

More on Sahvir Wheeler's new role HERE.

Four of UK Basketball's 2023 signees are McDonald's All-Americans.

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