Wow.
While I was writing the Eagles-Cardinals preview that I posted last night, I briefly turned on the TV for a moment and saw that Kentucky was playing Tennessee on ESPN. The Wildcats (who, as a die-hard Hoosier, I personally hate) were leading by about 10 so I quickly flipped off.
Until I got into the car this morning and listened to the radio, I had no idea what I missed: Jodie Meeks scoring 54 points in Kentucky’s 90-72 victory, breaking the all-time single scoring record at Kentucky that had previously been held by Dan Issel (53 points).
Meeks went 10-15 from downtown en route to the single scoring record, as well as 14-14 from the free throw line. Sprinkle in five other field goals and you’ve got 54. And as Pat Forde of ESPN.com noted this morning, if you are looking at Meeks’ performance purely from the perspective of the proportion of his team’s points scored, then the performance of Meeks easily dwarfs that of Issel:
The 54 points broke the 39-year-old school record of Dan Issel, who scored 53 against Mississippi. It should be noted that Kentucky scored 120 points that day, which means Issel scored 44 percent of the Wildcats’ total. Meeks racked up a ridiculous 60 percent of Kentucky’s points here — an extraordinary display of shooting and stamina stretched over 39 jaw-dropping minutes.
If you have not seen the video or highlights yet, they are pretty amazing. Take a look:
As a former three-point gunner myself way back in glory days of high school, I can certainly appreciate a 10-15 performance from downtown. The most I ever made in a game was 7, and I don’t think too many people who have ever played the game of basketball can say that they scored 50 or more points in a regulation game.
It stinks that Kentucky won, as it always does when they are victorious…but congratulations to Jodie Meeks. From one shooter to another, that was an absolutely amazing performance.
(On a quick side note, I would like to take this opportunity to extend both of my middle fingers into the air in the general direction of wherever Kelvin Sampson is. Do you realize what has happened this morning? Indiana played Ohio State last and I did not even consider posting about it. The Buckeyes jumped out to a 33-10 lead and cruised from there. Yet, I am writing a story about a Kentucky player. Something is very wrong here, and it is all the fault of that snake Sampson. Thanks for letting me vent.)
About Jerod Morris
