Kentucky is outside the top 100 in 3-point shooting, no longer first in scoring

Kentucky‘s 20-point loss to Ohio State in Madison Square Garden came with consequences. On Monday, the Associated Press dropped the Wildcats from fourth to tenth in its new poll. The USA Today Coaches Poll ranked UK tenth, too.

The Wildcats also slid across the NCAA’s stat book, most notably in two categories that Kentucky led before the CBS Sports Classic and another major disappointment.

Gonzaga now leads in scoring offense

The Wildcats entered the CBS Sports Classic ranked first in the country in scoring offense, averaging 91.3 points per game under Mark Pope. But after scoring only 65 points in the loss to the Buckeyes, Kentucky surrendered its place at No. 1 in college basketball with a fall from 91.3 ppg to 89.1, second to Gonzaga (89.2) by a tenth of a point.

1. Gonzaga, 89.1 ppg
2. Kentucky, 89.1
3. Samford, 89.0
4. Alabama, 88.7
5. Iowa State, 88.5
6. Auburn, 88.4
7. Penn State, 88.4
8. Iowa, 87.8
9. Maryland, 87.8
10. Missouri, 87.8

Outside the top 100 in 3-point shooting

What was all of that 3-point shooting talk? Kentucky had another poor shooting performance against the Buckeyes, making a season-low four 3-pointers with a season-low 18.2 shooting percentage from outside in the game. UK dropped from 79th (36.7%) to 112th (35.45%) in 3-point field goal percentage. Now, you have to go all the way to the third page on NCAA.com to find the Wildcats.

From first to second in defensive rebounding

Kentucky lost its claim as the nation’s best defensive rebounding team, too. Illinois took over that spot when Kentucky grabbed only 19 defensive rebounds in New York, well shy of its 32.73 per game average. Kentucky is now second at 31.58 defensive rebounds per game.

1. Illinois, 32.00 rpg
2. Kentucky, 31.58
3. Alabama, 31.00
4. Rhode Island, 31.00
5. Jacksonville State, 30.42

113th in free throw shooting

The one thing Kentucky did well against Ohio State was make free throws. By hitting 27 of 32 in the loss, Kentucky climbed from 155th (72.3%) to 113th (73.76%). The team has Otega Oweh to thank. He hit 13 of 13 against the Buckeyes.

Still, the free throw shooting needs to improve.

Brea sliding in his chase for the 3-point crown

Koby Brea’s climb back to his throne as our nation’s best 3-point shooter took a slight hit in New York. Brea made only two of his seven 3-point tries against the Buckeyes, which dropped him from fourth to sixth nationally at 50.7 percent for the season.

Ohio State’s John Mobley, who was ahead of Brea before the game, shot even worse in the CBS Sports Classic. Mobley’s 1-for-8 game dropped him from third nationally to outside the top 10.

1. Ahamad Bynum (UTEP), 63.83%
2. Chance McMilian (Texas Tech), 53.45%
3. Jayden Nunn (Baylor), 52.73%
4. Joson Sanon (Arizona State), 50.91%
5. Rafael Pinzon (Bryant), 50.82%
6. Koby Brea (Kentucky), 50.70%
7. Pjay Smith (Furman), 50.62%
8. Eric Dixson (Villanova), 50.00%
   Tyler Lundblade (Belmont), 50.00%
   Juanse Gorosito (Ball State), 50.00%

Kentucky’s combined statistics through 12 games