1. Mikel Brown Jr.
The freshman phenom has two tune-up games under his belt and is now being asked to lead the Cardinals to a win in possibly the biggest game of the year, and he’s ready. Brown Jr. has been an effective distributor of the ball, leading the Cardinals with 7.5 assists per game. He’s good at passing, but the young guard can score as well, as he put up 18 points in the Cardinals' win over Jackson State.
Brown Jr.’s primary focus will have to be on taking care of the ball. In his previous game, he had six turnovers, which isn’t ideal but is expected out of a young guard’s second college game. Kentucky, however, will try to exploit this and cause Brown Jr. to get off his game early.
The freshman will have to take this head-on and play his own game by getting his teammates involved and creating his own shot when need be. If he can do this and take care of the ball, Kentucky is in for a long night.