When newly hired Kentucky coach Mark Pope signed Amari Williams out of the transfer portal last spring, he didn’t envision that the 6-foot-10 senior forward from Drexel would be his point guard. But that’s essentially what Williams was Tuesday night at Tennessee, an assignment that was made more difficult by the fact that the Vols rank No. 2 nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency, per KenPom.

It was hardly an ideal scenario, especially given that the Wildcats had lost their previous two games, including by five points at then-unranked Vanderbilt on Saturday. But it was made necessary because the Wildcats’ starting point guard, 6-foot-2 senior Lamont Butler, was sidelined by a shoulder injury. His backup, 6-foot-3 senior Kerr Kriisa, has not played since early December because of a broken foot. 

Williams did not look like a traditional playmaking point guard against the Vols, but he was highly functional as he brought the ball upcourt time and time again while helping the Wildcats initiate their halfcourt offense. Williams finished with 10 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and three turnovers in the 78-73 road upset. The Wildcats’ 13 turnovers were an improvement on the 17 they committed against Vandy. Ball security is especially important for a team that ranks No. 75 on KenPom in adjusted defensive efficiency and No. 214 in steals percentage.

When I spoke with Kentucky coach Mark Pope by phone after the game, he was effusive in his praise of his plug-and-play point guard. “Amari was brilliant tonight,” Pope said. “We essentially gave the ball to him for 94 feet and made him navigate the whole game as our point guard. There’s no one his size that could do what he did tonight.”

When I asked Pope if using his 6-foot-10 power forward in that role was sustainable in the long term, he laughed and said, “We don’t have a lot of other options. I thought I was not going to have enough minutes at the point. Now I don’t have a point.”

Pope told me that Kriisa is only just putting weight on his foot and “could be a couple of weeks” from returning. Meanwhile, 6-foot-11 senior forward Andrew Carr played just two minutes on Tuesday due to a lingering back issue that kept him out of the Vandy loss altogether. Pope told me that Carr was able to practice on Monday for the first time in three weeks. “He has been on a steady decline with his back,” Pope said. “I’m very optimistic about him. If he plays Saturday, awesome, but if he can’t then hopefully (he’ll come back) in the next week or so.”

University of Kentucky coach Mark Pope applauds his team on the sidelines, January 17, 2025.
Kentucky coach Mark Pope can only applaud his team’s versatility and next-man-up attitude.
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The larger concern is Butler. He originally injured his shoulder during a hard fall in the Wildcats’ Jan. 14 home win over Texas A&M. Butler played hurt the last three games — he had just six points, two assists and six turnovers at Vanderbilt — and Pope decided it was better not to play him on Tuesday. Moving forward, Pope could only say that Butler was “day to day,” but it’s never a great sign when a coach is unable to give a more specific timetable than that. The specter that the Wildcats could be point guard-less for an extended period of time is unsettling, to say the least, but they may have no other choice. 

Then again, given how well Kentucky dealt with being short-handed in Knoxville on Tuesday, there’s no reason to think this team can’t keep rolling — and winning. The Wildcats have three days to get ready for Saturday’s home game against Arkansas, which has been struggling and is led by a certain recent Kentucky coach. That’s going to be quite an environment and it would be nice if the Wildcats were at full strength. This is their reality, however, and given the resilience the Wildcats showed on Tuesday night, there’s every reason to believe the team will keep winning even as the hits keep coming. 

OTHER HOOP THOUGHTS

  • I’m not going to pretend to know everything that’s going on inside Alabama’s locker room, but I will say I can’t recall the last time a coach of a top-five team benched his All-American player in such a firm and public fashion. That’s what happened on Saturday when Nate Oats left Mark Sears on the Bama bench for the entire second half of the Crimson Tide’s 80-73 win over LSU. When asked what happened after the game, Oats told reporters, “We just played the guys we thought gave us the best chance in the second half.”

    Sears did play a miserable first half (he went scoreless in 17 minutes and looked lost defensively at times), but to leave a player of his caliber — and importance — on the bench for an entire half could indicate that something more troubling is percolating. Or it could be one of those points of tension that galvanizes a team in the future. We’ll start to find out Wednesday night when the Tide plays at No. 14 Mississippi State.
Here’s a Scary Thought: Alabama Has Lots of Room to Get Better
The Tide are 13-2 and have won seven games in a row, but their ceiling is much higher
  • Kansas got all-important 6-foot-7 senior forward K.J. Adams, who missed the previous three games due to a shoulder injury, back for its home game against UCF Tuesday night. Alas, the Jayhwaks had to take the court without senior point guard Dajuan Harris, who tweaked his ankle in practice and missed his first game in five years. Harris had been taking some heat from the Jayhawks faithful for missing two late free throws in overtime of Saturday’s loss to Houston. But it was apparent just how much this team needs him as the Jayhawks struggled to put UCF away before prevailing, 91-87.

    Adams came off the bench to contribute 12 points, five rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes. But it was odd that during a game when they were without their ball-dominant point guard, the Jayhawks attempted a season high 29 free throws (making 25). That is no small matter because Kansas came into the night ranked 357th in the country in offensive free throw rate. It is nearly impossible for a team to advance deep into March if it gets to the foul line that infrequently. The trick now for KU will be to keep getting to the line after Harris comes back, which hopefully will be soon.
K.J. Adams dribbling the ball
K.J. Adams returned after an injury for a home game against UCF Tuesday night
Getty Images
  • So Duke looks like it’s running in quicksand of late. The Blue Devils won consecutive games over Wake Forest Saturday and N.C. State Monday by closer margins than usual. That plummeted Duke from No. 2 to No. 3 in KenPom heading into Saturday’s showdown against North Carolina in Cameron. Part of the relative sluggishness is the time of year — we’re about to head into the Dog Days of February, so be prepared for some wacky results. But it also underscores that this team really needs 6-foot-9 junior forward Maliq Brown back in the lineup.

    Brown is Duke’s best, most physical defender and overall Glue Guy. He hasn’t played since injuring his right knee in the opening minutes of the Blue Devils’ win over Notre Dame on Jan. 11. The good news for Duke is that by the time the Carolina game starts the team will have had five more days to recover and prepare. I’m told Brown has maybe a 50/50 chance of playing in that game. Usually when I hear that – especially for a game of that magnitude – I’m inclined to believe the player will play, but it all depends on how that ankle responds to his workouts this week. Either way, Brown’s return doesn’t seem to be far off, which is really good news for the Blue Devils and really bad news for the rest of the ACC.
  • Caleb Love said his 60-foot heave to send Arizona’s home game Monday night against Iowa State into overtime, where it won, 86-75, was the biggest shot of his life. I’ll leave it to him to determine that, although when he cools off I think he’ll agree that the three-pointer to beat Duke in the Final Four was bigger. If nothing else, that bucket let Arizona fans forget that to that point Love was 1 for 10 from three in the game.

    To me, though, the more significant aspect of the win was the fact that 6-foot-8 freshman forward Carter Bryant had his best game in an Arizona uniform, finishing with 14 points on 4 of 5 three-point shooting in 27 minutes off the bench. Bryant was a McDonald’s All-American from southern California, but like a lot of freshmen it has taken him time to get acclimated. He did have 14 points and 14 rebounds in a Jan. 4 win at Cincinnati, but given the caliber of the opponent this was his best game yet. If Bryant can give Arizona quality frontcourt minutes, it will help negate the absence of 7-foot-2 sophomore center Montiejus Krivas, who had season-ending foot surgery earlier this month. 
  • UCLA is suddenly playing better basketball. The Bruins have won four straight after losing five of their previous six to put themselves back over .500 in Big Ten play. There are a few reasons for the improvement, but none is bigger — literally — than the sudden impact of 7-foot-3 sophomore forward Aday Mara. The native of Zaragoza, Spain, was considered to be a one-and-done lottery pick when he signed with the Bruins in August 2023. But the speed and physicality of the American college game proved to be too much. He averaged just 3.5 points in 9.6 minutes as a freshman.

    Coming into UCLA’s home game against Wisconsin on Jan. 21, Mara had averaged 4.3 points and 3.2 rebounds in 9.0 minutes. That night he exploded for 22 points on 7 for 7 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two blocks in an 85-83 win. That newfound confidence became especially important when the team’s leading scorer, 6-foot-9 junior forward Tyler Bilodeau, rolled his ankle in the opening minutes of last Friday’s win at Washington. Bilodeau only played three minutes in that game and did not play in the win over USC. That allowed Mara to get his first start of the season, and he responded with 12 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks in the 82-76 win.

    It’s always gratifying to see a player emerge from protracted adversity and see his work pay off. People vastly underestimate the mental health challenge that these international players take on, coming to a new country with a different language when they are just 18 years old. I’m told that Bilodeau shouldn’t be out for too long, which raises the specter that the Bruins could have a formidable one-two punch in the paint. Bilodeau can play away from the basket, so it’s likely those two can play extended minutes together. If Mara continues on this path, UCLA could go from a dysfunctional borderline bubble team to a squad that is very, very difficult to beat near the rim.
USC Trojans forward Saint Thomas (0) shoot over the outstretched arm of UCLA Bruins center Aday Mara
7-foot-3 sophomore forward Aday Mara 22 points on 7 for 7 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two blocks
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  • As I reported for Hoops HQ a few weeks ago, Providence forward Bryce Hopkins, who suffered a torn ACL a little over a year ago, has decided to take a redshirt this season after sustaining a lower leg injury just three games after returning to the lineup in early December. The team has said that Hopkins’ current injury is different from his previous one, but at any rate, it was serious enough that Hopkins has decided to shut it down. When I last dug into this situation, Hopkins was looking into the possibility that he could appeal to the NCAA to get his eligibility back for last season. That would have made him more inclined to try to come back this season, which would have meant using up his eligibility. Because we are so late into the season, the next time Hopkins stepped on a court would have burned the year.

    It’s a disheartening turn of events both for Hopkins and the Friars, who so badly depend on the All-Big East forward to score and rebound down low. Providence has won its last two games – including the emotional win over its former coach Ed Cooley and his Georgetown Hoyas on Jan. 25 — but at 5-5 in the Big East and No. 89 in the NET, Providence is going to have to start stringing together quality wins if it’s going to have any hope of gaining an at-large bid.
  • I try to stay away from criticizing my fellow AP voters, but it really is stunning to me that UConn is still ranked. The Huskies have lost three of their last five games, needed overtime to beat a bad Butler team by two at home, and are ranked No. 35 on KenPom, No. 36 in the NET, No. 51 in KPI and No. 45 in BartTorvik’s Wins Above Bubble. Yes, I know they’re without their best offensive player, freshman Liam McNeeley, but it’s still unclear when he’s going to be back. There is nothing about this team that indicates it should be ranked. 
Men’s College Basketball Top 25 Rankings
Seth Davis’ rankings for Week 14. Alabama, Florida and St. John’s move up.