Kentucky Wildcats Must Survive Brutal December Schedule

There has been speculation as to whether or not the 2014-15 Kentucky Wildcats can go undefeated. It’s too early to say yes or no at this point, but if the Big Blue are to finish with an unblemished record, the month of December will likely be their biggest challenge.

Big names and ranked teams litter the Wildcats’ December slate. It all starts on Friday night when John Calipari and his troops host the sixth-ranked Texas Longhorns at Rupp Arena. Rick Barnes and his team have already won in a hostile environment this season, beating the UConn Huskies in Storrs. The Longhorns have the talent and size to compete with Kentucky, the only question is their depth.

After games against Eastern Kentucky and Columbia, the ‘Cats host the North Carolina Tar Heels on Dec. 13. This battle of two of college basketball’s elite programs is generally competitive, although Roy Williams and his team appear to be still finding their way this season. Have no doubts, though, that the Heels will be ready for this game.

On Dec. 20 in Chicago, the two teams with the most NCAA Tournament titles will meet when Kentucky faces the UCLA Bruins. The two programs have combined for 20 NCAA championships overall, so this is a classic blue blood matchup, even though Kentucky will be heavily favored.

And if the Wildcats make it through that stretch, they face what may be their toughest challenge all year — a road game against their arch rivals, the Louisville Cardinals. Rick Pitino, the former Kentucky coach who is now at Louisville, will have his athletic team ready for the Wildcats’ depth and size. The Cardinal faithful would like nothing more than to knock the Wildcats from their Big Blue perch at the top of college basketball.

The December slate will be a big challenge for Kentucky, but this team has shown already that it can rise to a big occasion (ask the Kansas Jayhawks, who lost to Kentucky 72-40). If the Wildcats are unbeaten at the end of the calendar year, the talk of going undefeated will gain significant momentum, as it should.

Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com and a member of the Football Writers Association of America and the United States Basketball Writers Association. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.