Oh boy. Kentucky has another face plant on the Friday of the SEC Tournament and in one weekend all the good vibes have disappeared. Kentucky loses 97-87 to A&M and it’s unfortunate timing as the program heads into maybe the most important weekend since 2010. The Cats have now put their tournament fate in the hands of a bunch administrative nerds as they fill out the bracket.
The Defense Has Taken a Step Back
It’s important to remember that A&M is a nightmare matchup for Kentucky in general. All of their strengths are this team’s weaknesses and even if they played poorly they would give Kentucky fits. Last night, the Aggies didn’t play poorly and Kentucky failed to match the desperation they were playing with in just about every area but especially defensively.
The failure to finish out defensive stops with a rebound and uncharacteristically hot shooting allowed A&M to build a lead. In the 2nd half Kentucky had no answers for how to stop a straight-line drive from Taylor and Bradford and could not string enough stops to get back into the game. Credit to A&M for finishing several contested shots at the rim but the inability to close off the paint is a fatal flaw and will likely end the Cats season at some point.
The past few weeks have seen Kentucky struggle but tighten up for a 5-7 minute stretch each game that allowed them to get some space. That just never happened last night outside of a 3 or 4 possession run in the middle of the 2nd half.
Offense Panicked
Kentucky knew A&M was a bad matchup for them, they also knew that the Aggies were playing to keep their season going. The Cats faced the exact same scenario down in College Station and once again failed to be prepared for it. Sloppy passes, rushed shots, and cold shooting doomed Kentucky really from the start.
Kentucky has had stretches like this before but usually an individual is able to step up and carry the offense through. Rob, Reed, Tone, and DJ have all had those moments but last night none of them could get it going. It didn’t help that A&M clearly went foul-hunting against Reeves, including drawing two phantom fouls to take him out of the game. Even if they did it probably wouldn’t have mattered because Kentucky couldn’t get a stop.
Revolving Door at the 5
As has been the case all season Kentucky has struggled to find the right balance at the 5. Typically, it’s guesswork as to which of the three bigs will be able to play but all 3 have major flaws. Last night, none of them really stuck. Big Z and Bradshaw were overwhelmed by the physicality A&M was being allowed to play with and Ugo’s limitations on the offensive end really hurt.
It doesn’t help that Kentucky can’t even go small because Tre Mitchell is a shell of himself right now. Cats are basically spinning a wheel every pregame as to which big is going to show up and that is scary. At least there are three of them so hoepfully one of them has a good game.
What Does It Mean
Who knows? This team has been a roller coast all season and we’ll have to see how they respond. For the optimists, you could make the case that this team needed one last stinker before going into the NCAA Tournament. For those who are inclined to panic you could argue the blueprint for a season-ending loss was laid out for all to see.
I’ll say both are probably right. Kentucky probably needed one more loss to keep them grounded but they are matchup dependent. The timing itself is also unfortunate. Kentucky fans like to pretend they really care about the SEC Tournament (some do for sure, but winning the SEC wouldn’t matter one iota if they lose in the 2nd round) and it’s been awhile since Kentucky had a good showing. It was also important for seeding. Kentucky had a 2 seed in it’s sights if it made it to Sunday but losing has allowed some wonky administrative work to slot you back to a 4. Somehow Duke and Creighton have jumped Kentucky despite both losing to worse teams than A&M.
Last night was a missed opportunity and now we’re at the mercy of the Basketball Gods to decide our fate with the bracket. What I will say is if you thought this team could make a run last week after beating Tennessee, you should still believe that. BBN tends to swing wildly after each result and that probably isn’t healthy. We’ll have a preview out as soon as we know Kentucky’s opponent on Sunday.
Go Cats.
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