Kentucky is preparing for a physical, aggressive South Carolina team

In the SEC, you can't take any team lightly, and while Kentucky is facing a South Carolina team on Saturday that is 0-9 in conference play so far, Mark Pope knows what they're bring, and wants his team to be ready for it. Kentucky has lost four of their last five games, including two-straight, and are really looking to get back on track in Rupp Arena on Saturday.

As far as what South Carolina brings, Pope says the Gamecocks are a really physical and aggressive team. Despite them being winless in SEC play, Pope knows they have had some close contests recently, right on the verge of pulling them off.

"They're big, they have great size. They're really disciplined in what they do. They have some really aggressive guard play, guys that go make plays. They're a good team. It's interesting, you see in this league there are some teams that really struggle and then all of a sudden they are winning, and some teams that are winning, all of a sudden they struggle. It's because it's close. It's because there are a lot of good teams in this league, and they're certainly one of them. They have superstar talent. They're really well-coached. They've got toughness and discipline, and they've had every good team in this league on the ropes. They had Auburn on the ropes, they had Florida on the ropes, they had everybody on the ropes."
Pope on South Carolina.

It's worth noting that the games Pope mentioned that South Carolina came close to winning were home games, but at the same time, Gamecock head coach Lamont Paris is 2-0 against Kentucky, including an upset win in Rupp Arena. Pope was asked about South Carolina forward Collin Murray-Boyles, their leading scorer and rebounder, who will be a huge challenge for them to contain. He talked about it in-depth on Thursday.

"He's awesome. He's really, really skilled. He's got unbelievable hands, he uses his body really well, he's got great touch around the rim, but I think his hands and his feet are really special. You see him play with the ball, and it's pretty fun. Him passing out of the post is actually really fun, whether you send a double, or play him one-on-one, or play a dig. ...He's more interested to see how much he can suck you in. ...He's playing the game. He's actually teasing the game, like, he's trying to move all of the pieces. He's a terrific player."
Pope on Murray-Boyles.

Stopping Murray-Boyle will be a huge key, but also pace will be massive for Kentucky to contain. South Carolina wants to play really slow and break things down, but the Wildcats need to play fast, which they know is a key in their success offensively.