It may be considered a neutral site matchup but the Climate Pledge Arena for the Battle in Seattle will be filled with Zags.
This is the 15th edition of the Battle in Seattle, just the second ever at the Climate Pledge Arena. The last time was back in 2021 when Gonzaga fell to Alabama, 91-82. Gonzaga guard Nolan Hickman (as well as forward Michael Ajayi) is looking to return back home to Seattle and come away with a monumental victory over Kentucky. Hickman would also love another victory over the program he was once committed to.
The Zags lead the all-time series over the Wildcats, 2-1. The upcoming matchup is part three of the six-year series that was signed between the two programs back in 2022. Gonzaga went into Lexington and stole a vital win for their March Madness resume from Kentucky last season, 89-85.
This is a far different roster for the Wildcats than last year’s with former BYU head coach Mark Pope now in charge. He had to completely revamp his roster as John Calipari took the key parts of it along with him to Arkansas (DJ Wagner Jr., Adou Thiero, Zvonimir Ivisic). Pope hit the gold mine in the transfer portal with BYU’s Jaxson Robinson, San Diego State’s Lamont Butler, Oklahoma’s Otega Oweh, West Virginia’s Kerr Kriisa, Davidson’s Koby Brea, Wake Forest’s Andrew Carr, Oklahoma State’s Brandon Garrison, Drexel’s Amari Williams.
Pope is very familiar with the Zags during his time spent in the West Coast Conference but never found much success against them (1-7 record spanning from 2019-24). He spoke on if his past matchups with Gonzaga coach Mark Few will impact his coaching strategy in the Battle in Seattle.
“Maybe, or maybe I’ve just got a lot of PTSD. We’ll see how that works. It’s probably both, right? I’m really familiar with them, coach Few is really familiar with me.” – Kentucky coach Mark Pope
Expect a lot of points to be put up on the board at the Climate Pledge Arena as Kentucky leads the nation with 92.9 PPG while Gonzaga is close behind them at 5th with 90.4 PPG. That goes without saying but physicality will be the name of the game between Gonzaga and Kentucky.
That will be true especially down low against Pope’s stacked frontcourt (center Amari Williams who leads the team with 10.1 RPG and and 1.9 BPG, forward Andrew Carr, forward Ansley Almonor, forward Brandon Garrison). This has to be biggest test for the likes of Gonzaga’s big man trio in Graham Ike, Ben Gregg, and Braden Huff that they’ve faced this season thus far.
The Wildcats currently rank 22nd in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency while the Zags are ahead at 16th. This matchup will really come down to who wins the battle on the glass. Kentucky is 3rd in the nation at 44.9 RPG while Gonzaga is 29th at 41.3 RPG.
Player to Watch For:
Koby Brea (senior, guard) – 12.8 PPG on 59.0 FG%/60.5 3PT%/80.0 FT%, 3.6 RPG, 1.5 APG
The Davidson transfer is a flamethrower from deep. He currently is 2nd in the country for three-point percentage at 60.5 3PT% and tied for 30th for three-pointers made per game at 3.25. Once he gets hot from beyond the arc, it’s hard to cool him down.
It has yet to be determined what version of guard Lamont Butler (12.9 PPG on 55.1 FG%, 3.9 APG, 3.1 RPG, 1.5 SPG) that Kentucky will get as he turned his ankle in the 79-66 loss at Clemson earlier this week. Pope said it’s “a little bit of an issue” for the Wildcats. Butler is known for his clutch shooting and incessant energy on defense.
“Kentucky is real handsy on defense. Especially Lamont Butler. He took that tenacity from San Diego State. I feel like he’s brought a different energy to the Kentucky guards, sitting down and taking pride in playing defense.” – Gonzaga guard Nolan Hickman
It would be a major loss for Kentucky if Butler wasn’t able to go as his main defensive assignment would be against Gonzaga guard Ryan Nembhard who currently leads the nation in assists at 10.8 APG.
If Butler were unavailable, it would also mean even more looks for guard Otega Oweh who already has the keys to the Kentucky offense. He is currently leading the Wildcats with 16.0 PPG on 54.2 FG%/37.5 3PT%/78.4 FT% to go along with 4.0 RPG and 1.5 SPG. Guard Kerr Kriisa (formerly was with the Arizona Wildcats from 2020-23) will also be relied upon more. He’s averaging a career-low 16.1 MPG but is still contributing 4.0 PPG, 3.8 APG, and 2.4 RPG off the bench for Kentucky.
Both teams have a heap of experience and this matchup between two of college basketball’s best should make for one of the most entertaining to watch all season long. #4 Kentucky (7-1) and #7 Gonzaga (7-1) will tip-off on Saturday, December 7th at 7 PM PT on ESPN2.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on Twitter @a_cravalho