After the loss to UNC Wilmington at home, Kentucky desperately needed to get back in the win column today vs. Penn. It was not pretty, but the Cats beat the Quakers 81-66 in the Malone’s Classic sponsored by Campbell’s at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. With a trio of former Cats — Tyrese Maxey, Immanuel Quickley, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist — sitting courtside and plenty of Malone’s gift card advertisements on the floor, Kentucky ultimately took care of business to improve to 7-2 on the season.

This was a homecoming for several Kentucky Wildcats, but one outshined the rest. In just his second game back from injury, Aaron Bradshaw was spectacular. The 7-2 freshman notched his first career double-double with a team-high tying 17 points (7-12 FG, 1-2 3PT), 11 rebounds, 3 blocks, and a steal in 29 minutes. He was also tops in plus/minus efficiency at +17.