Depth at 5-spot played key role in Kentucky's win over Duke

Kentucky does not win the game without a huge second half where the multi-possession underdog outscored Duke 40-26 after the halftime break. The Wildcats made some adjustments on defense and added nine points from the free throw line. The win was a team effort.

But Mark Pope‘s team needed a ton from the five spot due to how Duke decided to defend the Wildcats in the Champions Classic on Tuesday night in Atlanta.

“It’s a space we mess around with a lot. Credit to Duke, they chose to guard us in two different ways. One really pressure five and one really back off the five. Both were a little problematic for us with pressure on the court,” Pope explained. “It was a great game plan on their part, and they executed it really well with the length and talent they have.”

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In the first half, starting center Amari Williams owned an extremely high usage rate recording 25.8% of Kentucky’s field goal attempts. Duke took away the shooters and forced UK to play against their length inside the arc. Two-point shooting had been electric against inferior competition for the Wildcats until Tuesday night. In the first half, Kentucky made only 4-of-15 shots from two-point range.

That changed in the second half with 11-of-23 shooting from two-point range. The Wildcats got four of those buckets from reserve big Brandon Garrison.

The Oklahoma State transfer finished the game with eight points, four rebounds, two assists, and two blocks in 18 minutes. During a key stretch in the second half, Garrison scored six consecutive points for Kentucky turning a 61-55 deficit with nine minutes left into a 63-61 deficit with 6:49 left. From there, Kentucky outscored Duke 16-9 to close the game.

In the final segment, Pope shifted Andrew Carr into the five spot and that led to a big and-one. Amari Williams played a key role in keeping the Wildcats afloat in the first half as the UK ate a big punch from Duke. Garrison’s production in the second helped spark Kentucky’s winning push.

Despite a great game plan from Duke, Kentucky’s depth found a way. The team with better depth won at the Champions Classic.