Numbers Never Lie: Stops and rebounds standout as Kentucky pummels WKU

Offense is fun, but stops and rebounds win games in college basketball. Against rising WKU at Rupp Arena on Wednesday night, Kentucky smothered the Tops on the defensive end for 40 minutes.

In the 35-point blowout win, the offense will get a ton of attention as the Wildcats scored 95 points in 72 possessions, but the defense was the story of the game after Kentucky improved to 9-2.

Kentucky brought the clamps

Entering the game against WKU, the Wildcats ranked just No. 35 overall in adjusted defensive efficiency per KenPom. Kentucky plays solid field goal defense and clears the glass, but the team has had issues forcing turnovers.

However, the season is young, and the Wildcats have time to turn it around. The entire performance against WKU might have been Kentucky’s best outing of the season.

In 72 possessions, the Toppers scored 60 points and averaged just .833 points per possession. WKU was just 3 of 20 (15%) from three and 18 of 44 (40.91%) from two-point range. At the rim, Kentucky held WKU to just 15 of 24 shooting.

Rick Stansbury’s club had a hard time getting anything going for most of the night.

WKU’s starting backcourt was a combined 8 of 37 from the floor with a woeful 1 of 12 mark from three-point range. The Tops had major offensive issues against Kentucky.

If the Wildcats can get stops like that, John Calipari’s squad could become a major problem.

Oscar Tshiebwe, Glass Eater

The Big Blue Nation is having a lot of fun watching Oscar Tshiebwe play basketball. The 6-foot-9 big plays with a nonstop motor and is a legit national player of the year contender.

The performance against WKU in the 95-60 win might’ve been his most impressive yet.

Tshiebwe finished the night with an efficient 14 points on 12 shot attempts, but the work on the glass was the story. In 34 minutes, the big man gobbled up a Rupp Arena record 28 rebounds.

The West Virginia transfer has made a living on the offensive glass, but his work on the defensive end was the big story in the latest win as Tshiebwe grabbed 23 defensive rebounds. The rest of Kentucky’s team had just nine. WKU had just 17 defensive rebounds and 27 total rebounds.

Kentucky has been a dominant rebounding team early in the 2021-22 season, and Tshiebwe is a major reason why.

Time to start the player of the year campaign.

Stats that stood out

• Both Kellan Grady and TyTy Washington can fill it up. When both are going for 20-plus, Kentucky can be elite on offense. The starters produced 43 points on 23 field goal attempts and were key cogs in Kentucky’s big second half. The Wildcats will be tough to beat if this is the scoring pop that this duo is providing.
• WKU big Jamarion Sharp is an elite shot blocker. The 7-foot-5 junior leads college basketball in blocked shot percentage (20.2%) and had Kentucky in some trouble early with seven blocks in the first half. However, that did not keep Kentucky from attacking the rim. The Wildcats were 19 of 20 on shots at the rim and consistently got some easy looks against Stansbury’s zone defense.
• Speaking of zone defenses, offenses can get stagnant when facing them. It can be easy for the ball to stick and for tough isolation situations to occur. That did not happen to Kentucky as the Wildcats had 27 assists on 38 made field goals. Sahvir Wheeler led the way with eight dimes in 24 minutes. Teams that move the ball like Kentucky did on Wednesday can be hard to beat.
• After six treys against WKU, Grady is now shooting 47.5 percent from deep on 61 attempts this season. The Davidson transfer needs more shot attempts.