Kentucky MBB embarrassed by No. 7 Alabama in 78-52 blowout loss

Something needs to change…

On Saturday afternoon, Kentucky men’s basketball fell flat on its face from the opening tip, embarrassing itself on the road against a Top 10-ranked Alabama squad. The Wildcats lost to the No. 7 Crimson Tide by a final score of 78-52 in Coleman Coliseum, the largest margin of defeat for UK in program history against Alabama on the road.

For the game, Kentucky shot just 28 percent overall from the field and 5-20 from long range. Meanwhile, Alabama connected on 48 percent of its looks and 8-22 from beyond the arc. UK registered just seven assists on the afternoon and was outscored in fastbreak points 21-4. Kentucky went 5-8 from the free throw line while Alabama finished 18-26.

From the jump, Kentucky came out lifeless, allowing Alabama to leap in front 8-0 before the ‘Cats finally found the bottom of the net. In extremely rare fashion, reigning national player of the Oscar Tshiebwe was played off the floor by Alabama’s fast-paced offense. The 6-foot-9 center was benched in the opening minutes for sophomore Daimion Collins, who injected some much-needed life into the UK offense.

Kentucky was actually able to hang around after the insertion of Collins, preventing Alabama from extending its lead to double-digits. At the 4:57 mark of the first half, UK trailed just 20-19, but it was all Crimson Tide from then on. Bama closed the half on a 15-4 run to take a 35-24 lead into the locker room.

It would only get worse from there.

Not even six minutes into the second half, Kentucky was down 20 points as Alabama continued to dominate the game and grow its lead. The Crimson Tide would go up by as many as 31 points after the intermission before settling on a 26-point victory.

Antonio Reeves was the lone source of offense for UK, totaling 20 points and four rebounds on 7-13 shooting while Sahvir Wheeler added 15 points and three assists. Tshiebwe posted just four points and six rebounds in 23 minutes of action. Freshman Cason Wallace contributed just two points on 1-13 shooting in 23 minutes.

When the opposing fans are chanting “NIT”, it might be time to find a different approach.