Connect with us

Men's Basketball

Kentucky vs. Missouri: Postgame Recap and Things to Know

Published

2 years ago

on

UK Athletics

After the Christmas break, the Kentucky Wildcats kicked off their SEC schedule on Wednesday, taking on the Missouri Tigers in Columbia. Coming in, Kentucky looked to have made some offensive changes for the better against Florida A&M, and Missouri beat a ranked Illinois team by 20+.

From the jump, Kentucky looked ill-prepared and dysfunctional. Just five minutes in, the Wildcats were already facing a double-digit deficit, 15-5. With little offensive production and poor defense, Kentucky continued to play one of their worst halves of the season as the Tigers entered the half up 42-30.

Coming out of the second half, Missouri threw the first punch and connected on an and-one to push the lead to 15. Yet, Kentucky stayed in it with an unusual lineup of Wheeler-Wallace-Thiero-Ware-Tshiebwe. That five was able to go on a 10-2 run to cut the lead to just 9 and put Kentucky within striking distance.

Advertisement

However, that was as close as the Wildcats got for the remainder of the game as Missouri quickly responded with back-to-back threes. In the end, the Wildcats performed embarrassingly bad in their SEC opener, losing by a final score of 89-75.

Let’s take a closer look at the loss.

Offensive Struggles Continue

In the first half, Kentucky could not buy a bucket, shooting 40 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from three. This was far from ideal given the looks that they had received on offense, but they couldn’t capitalize on their opportunities and made several key errors.

While improved in the second half, it was far too late for the Wildcat offense to force a comeback.

Advertisement

In the end, three players made a three, but none of them were named CJ Fredrick or Antonio Reeves. To be fair, Fredrick played just four minutes before suffering a dislocated finger. Combine this with the failure of getting Oscar Tshiebwe paint touches, and that is a recipe for the putrid offense that was seen for much of the game.

Twelve games into the season, practically a third, Kentucky has no offensive identity and has not figured out their rotations. This is concerning for any team, let alone a team with preseason top 5 talent.

Defensive Woes

Once a strength that this Kentucky team could rely on to keep them in games, their defense, has regressed as of late.

Against Florida A&M, one of the worst teams in the country, Kentucky allowed them to record a season-high in points (68) and a shooting percentage (52%). On Wednesday, the Wildcats’ performance wasn’t any better.

Advertisement

Coming in, the Missouri offense was ranked top two in the country in scoring and shooting percentage, but had played one of the country’s easiest schedules. Yet, Kentucky even looked subpar as they gave up 89 points and allowed the Tigers to score at will.

This team has the length and ability to be an elite defensive team. If they want to reach their potential, it has to start on the defensive end, which could also be another way to generate offense.

Morale

There’s no hiding from it, this is the most negative the Big Blue Nation has been during the John Calipari era. While it is a culmination of things, the biggest piece is the product that is on the court. To put it simply, it is not good nor fun to watch.

As others have thought, this team has plenty of talent, and it was assumed that they would play their way out of their struggles. Now through a third of the season, that has yet to happen and there is no clear answer.

Advertisement

Technically, the opportunity is still there for this team to turn this around, but there is not a lot of reason to believe that will happen. A convincing win over Louisville on Saturday is a must for the team and the fanbase.

Related Topics:
Advertisement

Men's Basketball

Kentucky Basketball Players Say They Think About Winning National Championship “Every Second”

Published

3 days ago

on

November 18, 2024

By

Kentucky basketball players celebrate after their big over Duke.
IMAGN

The expectations at Kentucky are the highest of any school in the country, and there is good reason why. The winningest college program ever. Eight national titles, under five different coaches. Seventeen Final Four appearances. You get it, a lot of success.

Fans want the players to have those same expectations. Despite not having the elite talent or preseason hype of great Kentucky teams past, this year’s team still has their eyes set on doing something “people will remember forever”, winning a national championship.

Asked on social media, if hanging banner #9 was all the players thought about “every second”, Ansley Almonor had a response.

Advertisement

“We do.”

It takes a lot to win a national championship, including some luck, but this team is certainly going to be loved for their desire to live out their dream of playing at Kentucky and their unselfishness. Those two things can take them a long way this season .

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Men's Basketball

Kentucky AD Mitch Barnhart Seemingly Takes Shot at John Calipari, “Anybody Can Recruit”

Published

5 days ago

on

November 16, 2024

By

Mitch Barnhart sitting next to basketball coach John Calipari.
IMAGN

John Calipari and Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart had their differences over fifteen years, but success can hide a lot of things. Not that they hated each other, but they each had vastly different personalities. As that success weaned towards the end of Calipari’s tenure, those issues started to be noticed publically.

If you need evidence of that, despite their efforts to dispute it, there is the infamous press conference where Barnhart talked about “entitled” coaches, shortly after Calipari publicly called for a new practice facility. Then, there were multiple times when Calipari expressed that the administration was not on the same page and that he was facing “headwinds”.

That said, Calipari is now at Arkansas, but those differences and some disdain remain. During an interview on the Kentucky Football pregame show, Barnhart seemingly took a shot at Calipari when asked about Mark Pope’s recruiting philosophy and prioritizing fit.

Advertisement

“I tell people all the time, ‘Anybody can recruit, not everybody can evaluate,’” Barnhart said. “You can recruit. You can be phenomenal at bringing people to your program. But if it does not fit you, it’s really not helpful.”

Of course, Calipari is one of the best, if not the best, recruiters in college basketball history. At times, he prioritized talent and athleticism over fit.

Quite the coincidence.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Men's Basketball

ESPN’s Jay Williams Gives Message to Kentucky Fans, “You’re Not Going to Like It…”

Published

6 days ago

on

November 15, 2024

By

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Williams gives a message to Kentucky fans after the Wildcats win over Duke. "You won't like it."
ESPN

Back in April, opposing fanbases like Duke, told Kentucky fans to “cope with Pope” following the hire of Mark Pope and the corresponding initial shock. On Tuesday, those same fanbases had to watch as Mark Pope outcoached Jon Scheyer and Duke in the final minutes of the Champion’s Classic to get his first marque win in just his third game at Kentucky.

Of course, shortly after the game, Duke fans began to rationalize the loss by highlighting their team’s youth. While true, it sounded like an echo chamber of what Kentucky fans said for years under John Calipari. One notable example was former Blue Devil Jay Williams.

At halftime, while Duke was leading 46-37, Williams called this year’s Duke team the most talented since the 2001 team that he was a part of at halftime. To his credit, he complimented Kentucky on the comeback victory, specifically on their offense and maturity, but then 36 hours later he posted a message to Kentucky fans on social media.

Advertisement

“Let me put you on to something,” Williams started. “Whether you like it or not, networks are going to sell Cooper Flagg. He’s going to be the number one pick in the draft. You’re going to talk about whether he won the or whether he lost the game, regardless of the outcome.”

“You’re not going to like it. There should be more kudos to Mark Pope and Kentucky,” Williams continued. “Regardless of whether you won the game or not, they’re still going to sell Cooper Flagg because he is selling the sport. Sorry.”

William’s statement is true. That said, it comes off as ‘sour grapes’ about losing. Cooper Flagg is a great talent and will likely be the first pick in the NBA Draft, but most Kentucky fans would say they would much rather have the win than the marketing.

Futhermore, Kentucky and its ‘brand’ has raised the level of multiple players and coaches, and will continue to do so. A deeper impact than Cooper Flagg will have on Duke in just one season.

Advertisement

Continue Reading

Trending