Kentucky fans seem to universally want more minutes from senior guard Mychal Mulder. They aren’t alone. Isaiah Briscoe would also like to see Mulder on the court more often.
After last night’s win over Valparaiso, Mulder said Briscoe is his biggest supporter.
Check out his comments:
“If Isaiah’s on the bench and I’m in the game, if I do something that frustrates Cal, I see Isaiah go, ‘No, no, let him go. Let him make up for it,’ ” Mulder said. “He’s close enough with him that he can say, ‘Don’t worry, he’s good.’ ”
Briscoe’s lobbying paid off in Wednesday night’s 87-63 win over Valparaiso, when Mulder logged 16 minutes and produced 9 points, 7 rebounds (4 offensive), 2 assists, a block and no turnovers. He was just 1 for 5 from beyond the arc – where he’s usually most helpful to the sixth-ranked Wildcats – but did all of the other things Calipari has been asking to see from him.
Mulder didn’t get off the bench for even a second in Kentucky’s first loss of the season Saturday against UCLA. While the Wildcats (8-1) struggled to make shots without him, Calipari considered his defense a liability.
“So I was motivated in practice, kept working hard, didn’t really let it bother me,” Mulder said. “I don’t make those kind of decisions. If he thought the matchup just wasn’t good – or whatever his thought process was on that – that’s his choice to make, and I respect that. I was just ready for my opportunity, and when that came today, I just tried to make the most of it. Moving forward, it’s continuing to prove myself, prove why I should play.”
Mulder is scoring 26.7 points per 40 minutes of game time. He’s also shooting a team-high 43.2% (16-for-37) from the three-point line.
