Monday night’s game against Arizona State will have a weird feel to it.
Kentucky will be playing the Sun Devils in a hotel ballroom that was transformed into a basketball arena.
The venue will have a ceiling that is just 26-feet off the court.
Pictures of the transformation from Imperial Ballroom to Imperial Arena at Atlantis – where MSU's basketball game was played tonight. Crazy. pic.twitter.com/2WFMJhkJBp
— Dave H (@isportsDave) November 24, 2016
Here are some more details:
The Wildcats (6-0) and the Sun Devils (4-2) both practiced here Sunday to get accustomed to the arena setting. The Wildcats opened their workout to their fans who made the trip to the Bahamas. Afterward, coach John Calipari allowed them to line up and, row by row, come to midcourt to take pictures with his team.
“Anything we can do to make it special for the fans who made the trip,” Calipari said afterward.
Arizona State junior guard Shannon Evans II said the biggest adjustment was the 26-foot height of the ceiling because it “feels so close and compact.”
“This is a little bit different feel because it’s a ballroom,” Evans said. “The ceiling is kind of close down to the court. But I feel like after you get in here for a few and shoot a couple of shots, you feel fine and you kind of feel normal.”
