The wheels came off for Kentucky last night in Columbia as the Cats lose 79-62. It was an ugly night on both ends of the floor. Lets dive into it to see how bad it really was and maybe find something positive.
The Offense Got Caught in the Mud
Kentucky had its worst offensive performance of the season last night and it was a group effort. The only guy who seemed to have it was Rob but Dillingham really struggles to run a team and both Reed and DJ had their worst game of the season.
It really started early with South Carolina making a concerted effort to impose their will on Kentucky. They bumped, pushed, and pulled Kentucky for a full 40 minutes and Kentucky could not adjust. The young Cats played right into South Carolina’s hands by putting their heads down resorted to an iso offense. There were shots available had Kentucky stayed patient but they couldn’t do that.
The shots Kentucky did get, they largely missed. DJ, Reeves, and Reed were 9-32 from the floor with an alarming number of misses at the rim. Tre Mitchell probably had the best night offensively, but he was largely involved in a wrestling match most of the game and Kentucky failed to find him outside of a brief stretch to start the 2nd half.
Cal Has Some Rotation Issues
Fans won’t want to hear but Kentucky is dealing with issues most teams deal with in November. Having all three C’s miss the preseason and most of the non-conference means Kentucky is still trying to find the right combinations (as well as give each guy a chance to earn minutes). It is what it is and there isn’t much you can do about it. Cal has to try and find the right role for everyone and that means a lot of experimenting on the fly against solid SEC opponents (no one except maybe Vandy is truly awful). Some of the experimenting in the first half played into South Carolina’s hands I think. They closed the half on a 17-4 run and that basically decided the game.
Those growing pains are going to continue (especially if/when Adou returns) so fans might as well stop complaining about it. I know lots of fans and media personalities love to use blanket efficiency stats to justify their preferred lineup, but basketball is not played on a spreadsheet. These kids are real people who have to be managed fairly. Injuries and the NCAA stink but Kentucky will probably be fine once things get ironed out.
Immaturity on Defense
Kentucky’s biggest defensive issues are keeping opposing guards out of the paint and rebounding. Part of it is matchup issues that are always going to exist in terms of maximizing the offensive lineup but some of it is just pride. Many times a Kentucky player looks like a traffic cone as an opposing guard drives right by them. Last night those drives led to a South Carolina open 3 on just about every possession. Yes, they hit above their season average and had a 22% shooter hit 4/7 but a lot of it is our own doing.
Kentucky also struggles to finish off possessions when they do force a miss. 12 offensive rebounds again last night and that can’t keep happening. This team is young and last night their immaturity bit them. It won’t be the last time if they don’t learn from it. Rebounding is largely about effort and toughness and someone is going to have decide that is the role they are willing to fill.
What Does It Mean
In the grand scheme of things, the loss isn’t that big of a deal. South Carolina is a nightmare matchup for Kentucky, and they shot well at home. Losing ground in the SEC race stings but everyone is going to take road losses like this. In the long run it may even be a blessing as there seemed to be an attitude of “well we can always just outscore you” and last night killed that narrative. This team can win a national championship but it will need guys to embrace the collective good over what they think their preferred role should be. Offense is sexy but someone has to be embrace defense and rebounding to truly hit their ceiling.
Kentucky will lick its wounds and then head to Bud Walton for another tough road game this weekend.
