Columbia is beating Kentucky at halftime, sound the alarms

No. 1 Kentucky dominated Kansas. They beat Texas by double-digits. They have won all their other games by 19 or more points. They are the clear-cut best team in the nation. They trail Columbia, a team that has not beaten a ranked opponent since 1976, 25-23 at the half.

We are posting about it now rather than at the end of the game because we don’t consider it incredibly likely Columbia will win. After opening up the game with an 11-0 lead, the Lions apparently convinced the Wildcats that this game was worth playing, and Kentucky perked up. They began slamming dunks, swatting shots, plucking the ball over Columbia for offensive rebounds, and generally looking like a better team. But it wasn’t enough to erase the deficit.

Kentucky has only trailed once on the year, against Buffalo. They ended up winning that game 71-52

So while we still can, let us praise Columbia. The team looked like it would be dead to rights after leading scorer Alex Rosenberg suffered an injury in practice, but they’ve rebounded with a 5-2 start to the season. Maodo Lo, who had eight in the first half against Kentucky, has stepped up with 16.1 points per game. The Ivy is perhaps the best it’s ever been, with Harvard established as a top-notch mid-major and Yale knocking off UConn on the road, but the Lions can contend.

Perhaps the Lions should pack it in -- coach Kyle Smith joked he’d retire if the Lions beat the Wildcats, and considering what he’s done with the program, that isn’t in their best interest.