Malachi Moreno answered the bell from the opening tip in Vandy rout

There comes a time every season when a player steps up and declares who they are and where they are going.

For Malachi Moreno and the Kentucky basketball team, that happened Saturday against Vanderbilt.

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Just a few weeks ago, Vanderbilt said they watched the film and knew they could physically beat Kentucky. In the first round of the game, Malachi Moreno missed a layup and was swallowed. Vanderbilt outrebounded Kentucky 43-37. Moreno ended up with 4 points and 8 rebounds, but his performance was not very convincing.

This time, the Cats opened things up with the big man down low and Moreno transformed into a defender claiming that today was going to be different. And he proved it throughout the game.

Mark Pope noticed physicality all week

Speaking to Tom Leach after the game, Pope was full of praise.

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“Listen, guys, Malachi Moreno is really special… All week long, he’s been really good in practice… and that’s how he reacts when things don’t go as well as they did in Nashville.”

Things are going really well. Malachi finished the day with 11 points, six rebounds and five assists. He was strong defensively and helped his team lead on the boards. Kentucky outrebounded Vanderbilt 29-22 and held Devin McGlockton scoreless; he’s averaging nearly 11 points per game this season.

Colin Chandler, Denzel Aberdeen and Ortega Owe may get all the headlines, but there’s no doubt that the freshman big man from Kentucky is a big reason why Kentucky is where it is today.

The Cats will travel to Texas to face the Aggies on Tuesday in a game that could help Kentucky move closer to a double bye in the SEC Tournament.