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Men's Basketball

Breaking Down Kentucky’s Scoring Droughts

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Kentucky has lost six straight games, and the one thing that has decimated Kentucky, especially in the past two games, is scoring droughts.

In both of those games, Kentucky played decent in the first half. They were up by four points at halftime against North Carolina and were down one point at halftime against Louisville. But, you play two halves in college basketball, and the second half didn’t treat Kentucky well.

In the past two second halves of basketball, Kentucky has played 40 minutes and has gone 27 minutes without a shot falling in that time. That’s horrible.

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Let’s look at the second half against North Carolina.

North Carolina

In the second half against North Carolina, Kentucky had three scoring droughts. They played the first three minutes of the second half without a basket, where they were 0/2 from the field. However, this small drought didn’t really hurt Kentucky, as UNC only hit one shot during this stretch.

In the second scoring drought, the Cats went almost three minutes without a bucket, going only 0/1 from the field. Once again though, this small drought didn’t really hurt Kentucky, as UNC only hit two shots during this stretch.

Let’s be negative though for a second. If Kentucky had a functioning offense that produced made shots, the Cats could’ve easily extended their four point halftime lead to double-digits.

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The third drought really hurt Kentucky and made me turn off the TV. The Cats went almost ten minutes without a made basket. The Tar Heels went on a 20-6 run during this stretch and turned a six-point deficit into a six-point lead. The Cats were outscored 41-25 in the half.

Going even further, Kentucky went 0/6 from the field with five turnovers. The Cats also committed nine fouls during this stretch. The fact Kentucky got only six shots up in a ten minute stretch, with so many talented scorers, is mind-boggling.

In other words, Kentucky’s offense in the second half of the UNC game was almost non-existent.

Louisville

First, if we’re being positive, Kentucky actually went on a small 7-2 run at the start of the second half against Louisville to take a four-point lead. But then things went south.

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Kentucky went just over eight minutes without a basket and Louisville turned a four-point deficit into a four-point lead, going on a 15-7 run.

During this stretch, Kentucky was 0/6 from the field with five turnovers. Once again, in eight minutes, Kentucky only attempting six shots with so many talented scorers, is mind-boggling.

Summary

So, in 40 minutes of basketball, the Cats went 27 minutes without scoring, including missing 12 shots, and turned the ball over 11 times. YIKES!!

Kentucky’s offense is bad, but this really shows how bad it is. A talented team like this cannot go 27 out of 40 minutes without a basket and only attempt 12 shots during that time.

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I hate to pull the Dontaie Allen card here, but I have to. Allen averaged over 40 points a game in his senior year of high school and can clearly shoot the ball, but Cal refuses to play him. In a failing offense, the one thing Cal hasn’t tried, he won’t try. I’m not saying Dontaie Allen is going to fix UK’s problems, because he won’t, but Kentucky has nothing except Davion Mintz and Jacob Toppin, two bench-players from non power-five schools, as reliable options on offense right now.

Yet, he’ll sit there and rely on B.J. Boston, Terrence Clarke, and Olivier Sarr to run the offense. Two guys who brick shots the entire game and the other guy hasn’t scored a point in two games.

It’s absolutely ridiculous. Until Cal decides to try something else, this team isn’t going anywhere.

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Men's Basketball

John Calipari Highlights Changes for Next Season

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John Calipari draws up a play at Kentucky's season opener. Said he made a "tweak".
UK Athletics

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” – Albert Einstein.

Many Kentucky fans have referred to this quote over the last few days, expressing a desire for a change from John Calipari. However, Calipari will be back on the sidelines for the Kentucky Wildcats next season for his 16th season, confirmed by Mitch Barnhart on Tuesday.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be any changes.

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On Monday, John Calipari went on his season-ending radio show, giving his first comments to fans since Kentucky’s upset loss to Oakland last Thursday. It was easy to see why is a good recruiter, as he said all the right things.

For the better part of an hour, Calipari spoke with humility, answered some direction questions from Tom Leach, and accepted criticism. The main takeaway was that he understands that he has not met the Kentucky standard or his own standard, and changes need to take place.

“We’ve got to evaluate everything,” Calipari said. Here are some changes that have been outlined.

Getting Back to “Grinding”

Kentucky basketball offseason has often consisted of international trips to the Bahamas, or Canada last season, but not this year. Calipari emphasized a desire to get back to what his early Kentucky teams were characterized by, defense and physicality.

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“What about in the summers, instead of the Bahmas or Toronto, we’re grinding,” Calipari proposed. “We’ve got to get back to where we’ve been defensively and with physicality. Your defense steadies you.”

Those trips are good for team bonding and chemistry, but it’s clear that time can be used better for getting into the weight room and instilling defensive principles. Calipari did note that he does not want to take a step back on offense.

Getting Older

Calipari is the coach who made the “one-and-done” approach popular, relying heavily on elite freshmen. However, with college basketball getting older, he has expressed a willingness to get older.

“We’re relying on freshmen too much. In those kinds of games, you better have some vets,” Calipari said of his takeaway from Oakland. “For us, we need to get older.”

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It should be noted that Calipari relied on transfers in 2022 and 2023, albeit most not being the elite transfers, but more supporting pieces (i.e. CJ Fredrick) and developmental players (i.e. Jacob Toppin). That said, two transfers have been the leading scorer for Kentucky in three straight seasons, Oscar Tshiebwe and Antonio Reeves.

Calipari is looking more for a middle ground between young talent and transfers. “I like the combination of both. We just got to get the right transfers.”

Program Changes

When you are winning, you have more freedom, but when you have just one NCAA Tournament win in the last four seasons, you’re not going to have that luxury. This was not publicly said by Calipari, but more oversight will come as a result of his meeting with Barnhart on Tuesday afternoon.

Expect 1-2 staff changes and likely a support staff change. One of the staff changes should be filled with a defensive mind, and the support staff should be (suggestion) filled with someone in a general manager-type role. There will also be some operation changes such as having a more definitive practice schedule, rather than getting a text the day before/of, and some changes with the NIL model.

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Men's Basketball

Mitch Barnhart Speaks On John Calipari Coming Back As Kentucky Basketball Coach, “He Will Return”

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Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart confirms that John Calipari will return as Kentucky Wildcats basketball coach.
Mike Weaver/Special to the Courier Journal

After days of speculation, Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart confirms that John Calipari will be back, coaching his 16th season for the Kentucky Wildcats. The two had a conversation at Barnhart’s farm on Tuesday afternoon.

“As we normally do at the end of every season, Coach Calipari and I have had conversations about the direction of our men’s basketball program and I can confirm that he will return for his 16th season as our head coach,” Barnhart said in a statement.

While there was some fan outcry for a head coaching change, there was no real indication that a change would be made.

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Barnhart was put in a difficult situation. Calipari has not led the Wildcats to the second round of the NCAA Tournament since 2019, but he is one of just a few active Hall of Fame coaches. With no clear option as a replacement, Barnhart decided to retain Calipari for another season.

Kentucky Insider has been told that Tuesday’s meeting between the two was “good”, despite some disagreement. As a result of the meeting, there will be some expected changes in the program, specifically some staff changes, and changes in day-to-day operations.

On Monday, Calipari recognized his shortcomings and closed out his show with a commitment to the Kentucky fans:

“That standard of national titles has been here from coach Rupp on. The only thing I am saying to all our fans. I’m going to work… That is a commitment that I give to the fans. I love it. This is what I want. This is it. Let’s come together and let’s do something.”

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Calipari is set to meet with players individually on Wednesday to discuss their stay/go decisions. The process of rebuilding next year’s roster (and staff) begins now.

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Men's Basketball

John Calipari Makes A Commitment to Kentucky Fans, “I’m Going to Work”

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John Calipari at Kentucky men’s basketball practice.
Photo by Chet White | UK Athletics

Since Kentucky’s upset loss to Oakland last week, there has been speculation on whether the program would move on from head coach John Calipari, who has failed to reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament since 2019.

Now four days later, there has still been no official statement from either Calipari or the Athletic Department. That said, Calipari spoke on his season-ending radio show on Monday and it certainly sounded like a man who expects and wants to be coaching at Kentucky next season.

For the better part of an hour, Calipari spoke with humility, answered some direction questions from Tom Leach, and accepted criticism. The main takeaway was that he understands that he has not met the Kentucky standard or his own standard, and changes need to take place. Of course, to many, those are empty words when the results have not been there.

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Calipari closed his show by making a commitment to the fanbase. “That standard of national titles has been here from coach Rupp on,” Calipari said. “The only thing I am saying to all our fans. I’m going to work. That is a commitment that I give to the fans. I love it. This is what I want. This is it. Let’s come together and let’s do something.”

Calipari is expected to meet with Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart on Tuesday afternoon, as he does annually after the season. A lot still weighs on the meeting, but it is expected that Calipari will return. It seems to be heading for a be-all-end-all season for Calipari.

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