Jaxson Robinson eager to face Gonzaga after Clemson defeat: 'One loss doesn't define our season.'

Kentucky showed a handful of cracks in its first loss of the season last night against Clemson. For the third straight game, three-point shooting was not in the Wildcats’ favor. But Kentucky also struggled to stay out of foul trouble, was severely outworked in the first half, and failed to score down the stretch when points were becoming a necessity. UK displayed some fight in the second half that inspired head coach Mark Pope, but his players simply couldn’t hit enough shots.

Clemson’s packed home crowd created an atmosphere not yet experienced by this group (albeit, a veteran group) of Wildcats. They’ll see an even more intense and larger fanbase this Saturday in Seattle against No. 7 Gonzaga. In the days between, Kentucky will dive into the film to see what went wrong against Clemson and how it can be fixed against the Bulldogs.

For fifth-year guard Jaxson Robinson, it wasn’t even an hour after the final buzzer sounded and Clemson fans rushed the court that he decided to push the loss aside and mentally shift his attention to Gonzaga. There are bigger goals at stake to let this loss linger for too long. It’s time to get back in the gym.

“Honestly I’m excited (to play Gonzaga),” Robinson said postgame. “I feel like our guys handled it really well even though we didn’t win the game. I feel like this is a good testimony to the team and the people we are. We’re all itching and excited to get back to work. The work starts tomorrow, it doesn’t start on Saturday. Just getting back to the drawing board.”

“Everyone is still confident,” Robinson continued. “One loss doesn’t define our season. The ultimate goal is to win a national championship and this is just one step in it. Just making sure that we go back home and get better.”

That’s the nice thing about it being early December — there is a lot of basketball left to be played. You’d much rather absorb some blows and learn from them now as opposed to during tournament time. Kentucky just can’t let one loss turn into two or three or four.

“I feel like our guys are mature enough, even the younger guys, knowing that it’s just another game,” Fifth-year center Amari Williams said.

Looking at the big picture, a loss to Clemson likely won’t significantly impact the Wildcats’ resume. But how well or poorly Kentucky responds against Gonzaga a few days later could be telling.

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