Kentucky's short-handed win vs. Alabama may be its most impressive yet

Kentucky has some big wins on its resume. The 107-79 beatdown of Tennessee in Rupp Arena on Jan. 15 signaled the Cats could be for real. Two weeks later, Kentucky went to Lawrence and pummeled then-No. 5 Kansas 80-62, which many called the most impressive performance in college basketball all season. After watching this short-handed group of Cats weather a red-hot start by No. 25 Alabama to win 90-81 today at Rupp, I’m moving this one to the top of the list. The fact that Kentucky was able to beat a team that couldn’t miss a shot to start the game without its starting backcourt isn’t just impressive, it bodes very, very well for March.

Before we get into all that, let’s rewind a little bit.

Calipari: “How the hell are we going to play?”

On Tuesday night, Kentucky’s six-game winning streak was snapped in a nightmare outing at Tennessee. TyTy Washington, who suffered a lower leg injury vs. Florida last Saturday, tried to give it a go vs. the Vols but limped to the bench less than a minute into the second half, clearly not 100% and full of frustration. Towards the end of the game, Sahvir Wheeler was seen grasping his wrist in pain. John Calipari dropped hints this week that he may sit a few guys to ensure his team was at full strength in March. Behind those hints, it was all-hands-on-deck at the Joe Craft Center as the staff scrambled to put together a game plan that didn’t include its two leading guards.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” Calipari said of his game prep. “We had two days, and I apologize to everybody out there that I shut down practice to scouts and everybody because we needed two days to get ready with – how the hell are we going to play? What do we do? Who are the subs? Do we sub? Do I use my timeouts, which I’ve done in the past, to give them rest. That’s what I did today and said, look, we’re riding this group.”

Calipari split point guard duties between Davion Mintz and Kellan Grady, who played point his senior season at Davidson. He inserted Jacob Toppin into the lineup alongside Keion Brooks and Oscar Tshiebwe. Those five players played 35+ minutes each, with no other Wildcat logging more than four minutes. At first, it looked like the Cats were headed toward disaster. Alabama couldn’t miss a shot, making nine threes to build a 13-point lead with 5:35 left in the first half. Then, Grady came alive, leading Kentucky’s 13-0 run to take the lead going into halftime. His three to put Kentucky up 47-46 with 42 seconds remaining brought the Rupp Arena crowd to its feet.

BIG SHOT @KellanGrady31!

Rupp is rocking 💥pic.twitter.com/48q1zf5o5d

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) February 19, 2022

Grady finished with a season-high 25 points, including seven threes. With TyTy and Sahvir both out, points had to come from somewhere, and he stepped up to provide them. If there’s been a knock on Grady’s game this season, it’s that he doesn’t create shots for himself. With the ball in his hands a good chunk of the game, he did just that vs. Alabama.

“Kellan played out of his mind, to be honest,” Jacob Toppin said. “He was hitting shots left and right. To be able to step into the point guard position — not a lot of people know that he played point guard his senior year at Davidson, so people try to play up on him. But he still got his shots off. He still ran the team. And I think he did an excellent job doing that.”

“I am so proud of our effort,” Grady said. “We had five guys play 36 or more minutes, and some guys didn’t start great, and showed a lot of resilience and finished strong. Being down two guards and having to adjust with like 36 hours of preparation and figuring out how we were going to play today, and you know we scored 90 points without our two primary lead guards, so just the resiliency that we show.”

Inspiration from Nick Saban

As part of their preparation, John Calipari showed his team a tape of Nick Saban talking to his players about being ready for their opportunity. Calipari always preaches “next man up,” but with Wheeler and Washington both out, it wasn’t just a mantra, it was a mission. Grady, coming off what he called an “awful” performance at Tennessee (2-9 FG, 6 points), accepted it.

“It was an incredible message, a very candid message,” Grady said of the video. “He essentially said, when guys go down, you’ve either put in the work as if you’re going to be playing a lot so that when the opportunity comes, you rise to the occasion or you revert to moping and doing the ‘woe is me’ approach and when your opportunity comes, you’re not ready. I think that was a good message for us when we were down two starters, for us to hear. It doesn’t just apply to the guys that don’t play a lot; it applies to the guys who are going to have a larger role in the game that do play a lot. I think it was a well-received message.”

Toppin also stepped up, starting the game and finishing with 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. He and Keion Brooks combined for 31 points and 14 rebounds alongside Oscar Tshiebwe, who turned in his ninth-straight double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Grady, Toppin, Brooks, and Tshiebwe all finished in double figures, and although Davion Mintz came up shy with 7 points, he helped keep the ship steady with three steals and two assists. Without Wheeler and Washington, Kentucky managed 13 assists to only 7 turnovers. If Washington and Wheeler miss more time, as Calipari suggested, that’s pretty comforting.

Grady: “One of the most rewarding wins I’ve ever been a part of”

Too many times this year, we’ve seen Kentucky lose games because players got hurt. Today, the Cats showed they’re capable of beating a Top 25 team without two starters, a testament to their growth and maturity.

“In past games, when players were injured, people were questioning the depth of this team, and it just shows how good of a team we are,” Toppin said. “It shows how well not just me, but my teammates are and how we could just step up in big moments and perform. And that’s what we did today with TyTy and Sahvir out. That was big for not just everyone to see that we are deep, but it’s big for us to know that we have the players to play when people are either injured or out.”

Grady, who played four seasons at Davidson before coming to Kentucky, agreed.

“In my experience in college, this was probably one of the most rewarding wins I’ve ever been a part of, just knowing what we were up against. Alabama just beat Arkansas, who just beat Auburn, so that was a huge win for them. We were down a couple of guys, pivotal guys on our team who really make things go for us and we responded. So, like I said, I’m really proud of our team.” 

When asked directly, Calipari wouldn’t say whether this win was more impressive than the one at Kansas. A former Jayhawk staff member, he knows how hard it is to win in Lawrence; however, there was no denying the pep in his step as he reflected on his team’s performance.

“I don’t know. I mean, doing what we did at Kansas, that was done before at Kansas, I think it was 1942. So, I would tell you what we did there was pretty big. What we did to Tennessee when you see how good they are, like they’re really, really good, and what we did here — but this game was doing a different thing. Now you’re shorthanded, and guys have to step up.”

“I keep saying, I like my team. There are good teams out there, but I’m taking this one.”