Imperial Arena at Atlantis Resort – Nassau, Bahamas
Tip-off: Monday, 7:00 p.m. ET
Line: Kentucky -16.5

#1 Kentucky will be looking to stay perfect with a win over Arizona State in the Bahamas on Monday.

Kentucky has already found a way to stand out this season, as the Wildcats are 6-0 SU and 4-1 ATS. This team is just as talented as in years past, and it is once again led by a group of stellar freshmen. Arizona State, meanwhile, is off to a solid start, but this group is led by mostly upperclassmen. The Sun Devils will be hoping that their experience will help guide them to a win in the Bahamas, but it’s not going to be easy against this Kentucky group. The Sun Devils are 19-34 ATS in road games versus teams that make 48% of their field goals or better since 1997. They also happen to be facing a Kentucky team that is 18-7 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record over the past two seasons. The Wildcats are also 9-2 ATS after playing a game where both teams combined to score 155 points or more over the past two seasons. It’s also worth noting that Kentucky is the only team on the court on Monday that has proven itself early in the year. The Wildcats already have a win over Michigan State, and Arizona State’s most impressive victory came against a mediocre Tulane team.

Kentucky is one of the most explosive teams in the nation, as the Wildcats are averaging 92.3 PPG (7th in NCAAB). The most dangerous scorer on this team is G Malik Monk (18.7 PPG). Monk knows how to put the ball in the basket, as he is shooting 49.4% from the field and 40% from three. He is a streaky shooter, but is truly fun to watch when he gets it going. G Isaiah Briscoe (18.0 PPG, 1.5 SPG) is also performing well, as he is difficult to stop when he gets to the hoop. He is, however, shooting just 14.3% from the outside. That was supposed to be an issue that he cleaned up over the summer, and it’ll be tougher for him and his teammates to score when opponents cut off lanes to the rim. G De’Aaron Fox (15.5 PPG, 7.2 APG, 4.8 RPG, 2.0 SPG) is the guy that runs this offense, and he does it well. Fox has gotten some John Wall comparisons, as he is an uber athlete with blazing speed. He’ll look to push the tempo on Monday, and it’s hard to imagine the Sun Devils finding an answer for him. His 41.7% FG is something that could use some improvement, though. On the inside, F Edrice Adebayo (11.0 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG) will look to dominate this game for Kentucky. Adebayo is going to be one of the more physically imposing players on the floor on Monday, so he’ll need to use his strength to control the paint area. If he can pull down 10 rebounds then the Wildcats should win the battle on the glass.

While the Wildcats have one of the better offenses in the nation, Arizona State knows how to score, as well. The Sun Devils are averaging 85.7 PPG (t-32nd in NCAA) this season, and they’ll look to keep up with Kentucky in this one. G Tra Holder (18.0 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 3.2 APG) is this team’s leading scorer. He will try to match the production of Monk on Monday, and he should find some success doing that. He’s shooting 48.6% from the field this season, but only 27.3% from three. Holder should find his stroke soon, though. He shot 36.6% from the outside last year and should start climbing back to that number. F Obinna Oleka (12.2 PPG, 10.3 RPG) will be the guy matched up with Adebayo. Oleka was a monster in a 127-110 victory over The Citadel last game, finishing with 20 points and 15 boards in 32 minutes. If he can flirt with a double-double then the Sun Devils just might stick around in this one. G Torian Graham (17.3 PPG, 4.2 RPG) and G Shannon Evans II (16.2 PPG, 4.5 APG, 3.8 RPG, 1.2 SPG) will look to help Holder in the scoring department. Graham is an efficient scorer for this Sun Devils team, and it’s important he finds a way to put up 15 or so in this game. Evans II, meanwhile, is a transfer from Buffalo and he has made an immediate impact for Arizona State. He is a do-it-all guy in this backcourt, and he’ll find ways to change this game in a number of ways. Evans II will score when the Sun Devils offense gets stagnant, but he can also find his teammates when the team needs a distributor. It doesn’t hurt that he is hitting 38.2% of his threes on the year.