Kentucky's ball movement key to success vs. UNC, WKU

Kentucky looked like a totally different team in the last two games. Thirty-point wins can’t be attributed to just one thing, but when you look at the stats, there’s a noticeable difference between the Kentucky that lost at Notre Dame and the Kentucky that blew out North Carolina and Western Kentucky: ball movement.

Over the past two games, the Cats totaled 47 assists. Last night, Kentucky had 27, the fifth most in the John Calipari era, and the most since the 2016-2017 team had 33 vs. Arizona State. Contrast that with the Notre Dame game, in which the Cats had a season-low nine dimes. The 2-19 mark from the outside didn’t help with that, but John Calipari said he wants his team to aim for 18 assists or more. They’ve hit the 18-assist mark five times this season: the 40-point win over Robert Morris, the 34-point win over North Florida, the 12-point win over Southern, and the North Carolina and Western Kentucky wins.

“We’re trying to get 18 (assists) a game,” Calipari said last night. “20 would be better, but 18. And part of it is you got to make the baskets. So it’s hard to get assists when you go 2-for-19 or you can miss a jump shot or you miss and stick back easy baskets. It’s hard, so you got to make baskets. How about this? You got to make the pass, and the only way we’ll he’ll get open is if you’re not trying to make the play yourself. You’re just giving it up and moving it. We got ball movement. We then drive, and all of a sudden the guys that collapsed on the weak side, we get a good shot on a good pass.”

Kentucky’s 20 assists vs. North Carolina led to 54.2% shooting and a season-high 53.3% from three. The 27 dimes last night vs. Western resulted in 55.9% shooting from the floor, 45% from three. After the UNC game, Calipari told reporters he tweaked the offense in the days after the Notre Dame loss to open up the court.

“The focus on our offense was a little bit different, how we were going to play. We were going to go back to some of my old-school dribble-drive stuff…We worked on it for three days.”

The proof is in the pudding. After scoring a season-high 23 points on 7-10 shooting vs. Western Kentucky, Kellan Grady said the past two games are proof the Notre Dame game may have been a blessing in disguise.

“We did some things, and it exposed some things that we just need to work on, and some of our weaknesses,” Grady said of the loss in South Bend. “We have responded and it’s frankly been a maturation process for us. I’m really proud to be a part of this team and to see the way we’ve responded.

“The biggest thing is the ball is flying around the court and we’re playing really fast. I think we had 27 assists today. That’s just incredible. I’m not sure the exact number against Carolina, but the ball was moving. As evidenced by today and against Carolina, it just leads to great shots and a lot of fun. You can see the joy that we’re playing with.”

Another great thing: it’s not just the guards feeding their teammates. Yes, Sahvir Wheeler had eight assists and TyTy Washington had six last night; however, Jacob Toppin also had a career-high six dimes, four in the first half. Toppin had three, his previous career-high, vs. North Carolina. He was particularly good at feeding Oscar Tshiebwe in the post.

“We’re a good team,” Calipari said. “When we pass the ball and play this way, we’re a good team. And so like I said, it’s a great way to go to Christmas, you know, back-to-back two really good games and unbelievable energy.”