The Kentucky Wildcats lost their first home game of the season and of the Mark Pope era when Alabama came to town on Saturday.

The Wildcats played a good game on the offensive end of the floor, but when it came to defense, they just couldn’t stop Grant Nelson and the Crimson Tide. The reality is in SEC play this season, every team is going to lose some games, so this won’t hurt Kentucky all that bad, but it is definitely a game they would have loved to win.

The Wildcats have a lot of players who are dealing with some nagging injuries, and the good news is Kentucky does not have a mid-week game this upcoming week. After the Alabama loss, Kentucky center Brandon Garrison discussed why the week off is coming at a great time.

Here is what Garrison had to say, “It’s going to help us a lot. We’ve got a couple guys down, Andrew and Lamont battling, just a couple guys. So, I feel like this week, get those guys back rising and go down there and get another road win.”

Both Butler and Carr are banged up, so hopefully, this week will help them get back near 100% as Kentucky nears the midway point of SEC play. The Wildcats don’t want their players not at 100% when the SEC and NCAA Tournaments roll around, so these players need to heal up and take care of their bodies.

There is a lot of basketball left to be played, and Kentucky needs every player on the floor, including point guard Kerr Kriisa.