Nation's newest sensation? Jodie Meeks
Posted: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 9:50 AM
Filed Under:
SEC, Scoring outbursts
Scoring more than 40 points in a college basketball game is no small thing. A point a minute? That’s some work.
When someone hits 50, the accolades start pouring in.
And when someone scores 54 points on just 22 shots against the reigning SEC champs on national TV and breaks a 39-year-old scoring record at the NCAA’s premier basketball program, well, there’s just one word for it. Ridonkulous.
AP/Wade Payne |
Jodie Meeks
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Kentucky’s Jodie Meeks absolutely torched Tennessee on Tuesday night. He hit 3s, he hit jumpers, he hit free throws, he hit … everything. Guy missed just seven shots all night – and scored 60 percent of the Wildcats’ 90 points.
It was amazing to watch. (Go ahead, check out the highlights again.) But don’t just take my word for it. Like I said, accolades poured in.
Is it a coincidence Meeks wears No. 23? The Knoxville News’ Mike Strange says no way. The 6-4 junior was positively “Jordanesque.”
Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie told the Lexington Herald-Leader that it was a remarkable performance. "Till he gets 60, it'll probably be at the top of the list. One of the most unbelievable individual achievements I've ever seen."
Of course, Gillispie wants to try and keep Meeks grounded. Gillispie will tell Meeks he isn’t perfect yet. “But he had an almost perfect night.”
The thing that amazed people the most was how effortless Meeks made everything appear. His teammates would catch themselves watching Meeks drain another 3 or scoot past a Tennessee defender.
It seems the only people who weren’t impressed by Meeks were the Volunteer “defenders.” After all, he had 26 by halftime. You’d think someone would try to check him. Instead, they focused on trash talk.
Kentucky forward Patrick Patterson told ESPN’s Pat Forde that the Vols never shut up.
"I wouldn't be talking at all,” Patterson said. “My mouth would be shut. Especially when a guy's got 54 in your own gym. They can talk all they want. Jodie's shots speak for themselves."
Meeks isn’t an unknown talent, either. He entered the game as the nation’s fifth-leading scorer. He dropped 39 in Kentucky’s season opener to VMI and dumped 46 on Appalachian State last month.
Still, he’s not a household name like Stephen Curry or Tyler Hansbrough. Eric Crawford of the Louisville Courier-Journal says that should change ASAP. After all, if Meeks played in the ACC, “he’d have he’d have to have Dick Vitale surgically removed from him.”
The best indication of Meeks’ impact? He shot his way into the national player of the year discussion, an area previously reserved for guys like Tyler Hansbrough, Stephen Curry and Blake Griffin.
It’s a no-brainer, really. Kentucky’s 13-4, about to be ranked again and is now the SEC favorite. Why wouldn’t their star scorer be in the discussion?
I just can’t wait to see what Meeks does next. Kentucky plays Sunday at Georgia, which is the conference’s worst team. After that, it’s Auburn, Alabama and then Mississippi, which plays the worst defense in the SEC.
Is it wrong to root for a rout?
