KSR's takeaways from Kentucky's disappointing loss vs. Kansas

KU-178575 — Photo by Dr. Michael Huang | Kentucky Sports Radio

The stage was set for a classic inside Rupp Arena. Students were lined up at the crack of dawn, fans wrapped around the building for hours upon hours leading up to the biggest home game of the season. It was a battle of the blue bloods, the first- and second-winningest programs in the history of college basketball. Kentucky was finally finding its footing after a slow start to the season while Kansas was desperate coming off a three-game losing streak. It was put up or shut up time for both teams, a chance to prove if either were legitimate contenders this season. A lot on the line, and the crowd knew it.

Every seat was filled inside the historic venue, energy growing with every minute inching closer to the opening tip. And when the game got rolling, the fans delivered, exploding on every make and defensive stop. You saw Big Blue Nation at its best on college basketball’s biggest stage — games like tonight are why home-and-homes are so damn awesome.

Kansas hits the big shots, Kentucky does not

But in a make-or-miss sport, Kansas had the makes and Kentucky had the misses. With the lights at their brightest, the Jayhawks hit every big shot necessary to earn the statement win while the Wildcats went ice cold, finishing an abysmal 2-13 from three. The chances were there, with the home team flirting with a lead for the majority of the second half — the deficit was cut to one with 11:55 to go, two with 5:15 remaining, three with 4:13, four with 3:37 and even five with 2:11 left in the game. With the game within one possession, though, UK shot just 1-7 to close things out while KU finished 3-5 — two being 3-pointers.

The first half was what it was — fine, we’ll call it a disaster. Kentucky got out to an 11-6 lead with 15:19 to go, then scored 20 by the 11:28 mark. The remainder of the half, though, the Wildcats would score just 14 more points while crumbling defensively, allowing 25 in that same stretch. They’d enter intermission shooting 55.6% from the field overall, but an abysmal 0-6 from three and 4-11 from the line (36.4%) to go down seven. Another disappointing first-half finish leading to a desperate comeback effort in the second. UK clawed back and put itself in position to pull off the high-profile win, but the shooting simply wasn’t there, among other concerns — rebounding and pick-and-roll defense being the biggest.

Individually, CJ Fredrick shot just 1-8 overall and 0-5 from three, while Antonio Reeves was 3-9 from the field and 0-3 from deep. The only two makes came from Cason Wallace (2-3).

That’s just not gonna cut it.

Jayhawks outrebound Wildcats 34-29

Let’s start with the first of those issues beyond shooting: What the hell happened on the glass? Kansas came in at a clear disadvantage inside, lacking physicality and depth in the post. The Jayhawks were athletic and versatile, but they simply didn’t have a one-on-one matchup for Oscar Tshiebwe. A video-game-number evening was the expectation for college basketball’s reigning national player of the year.

And he did have a solid night just looking at the box score — most players take an efficient 18-point, 9-rebound, 4-assist night and call it a season highlight. The issue? Kentucky’s inabiilty to make shots meant Tshiebwe needed a superstar outing, not just a solid game. And the biggest hit came on the glass, with the team losing the rebounding battle 34-29 against an opponent that entered the day ranked No. 90 overall in the nation in that area. You have the most physically dominant player in college basketball going against a team known for its lack of toughness inside, and they are the ones to bring the fight. That’s disheartening.

Specific struggles on the offensive glass, zero second-chance points

Kentucky had zero offensive rebounds in the first half and just four at the final buzzer. Zero second-chance points in 40 minutes of regulation basketball, 11 for the opposition. That just can’t happen.

“They are a top-10 team and we’re trying to re-establish who we are, and I was hoping we could get this,” John Calipari said after the loss. “But you know what? The kids fought and tried — no second points. No second-chance points. None. You’ve got to be kidding me. I’ve got to watch the tape and say, why did that happen?”

Bill Self will be the first to admit he was expecting to lose on the glass — that’s just not who this Kansas team is. The physically imposing centers we’re used to seeing anchor the middle for the Jayhawks aren’t on this roster. Instead, it’s a team that relies on its athleticism and quickness to find success, giving up some size to do so.

Exposing the Wildcats’ struggles in the pick-and-roll? Sure, that’s a point of emphasis, something Self wanted to attack. But win on the glass, with this team? Against Kentucky, who entered the day ranked first in offensive rebounding among Power Five schools, No. 21 overall? Best the Jayhawks could do was pray.

“We were just praying on their rebounding stuff, so we did a great job defensive rebounding,” Self said. “We haven’t rebounded the ball like that in a while, you know, he’s [Oscar] so good and big and active that if you double or if you force help it creates rotation rebounding. I think we were probably fortunate tonight – the ball bounced our way a little bit, but we did do a great job on the glass.”

Prayers answered.

A pick-and-roll nightmare

Back to the pick-and-roll issues, an area Kentucky has struggled in all season long, but specifically since the start of conference play. Individually, Tshiebwe has been a primary target for opposing teams, but he’s not the lone guilty party.

Like others have done and everyone else will continue to do, Kansas looked to take advantage of those miscues. Off the top of his head, Self figured his team scored upward of 20 points exclusively in the pick-and-roll.

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“I don’t know how many points we scored off ball screens – but it had to be close to 20 tonight,” he said. “So that was really good for us.”

And it was. If you’re looking for the three biggest keys to the loss, it’s hard to look any further than missed shots, rebounding woes — specifically on the offensive glass — and pick-and-roll defense.

“The pick-and-roll, most teams are doing it to us. They are coming at us,” Calipari said. “We’re making adjustments and doing stuff. We are not where we need to be, but we are not certainly where we were. They are good, they’re a good team. They are top-10 for a reason.”

Where did Chris Livingston go?

To open the first half, it appeared that a breakthrough performance was coming for Kentucky freshman Chris Livingston. He exploded for a quick eight points, scoring tough buckets around the basket and thriving in transition. Playing both the three and the four, it was exactly what we’ve been waiting to see out of the 6-foot-7 athlete out of Akron.

And then the second half came, one that saw Livingston play one single minute. He started on the floor to get things rolling, got subbed out after 62 seconds and did not return to the game.

Calipari’s explanation?

“Chris Livingston should have played more in the second half and the reason is, he could offensive rebound. He’d go get balls. The problem was they weren’t playing him, and it was crowding the court for Oscar. That’s why I told him when I took him out, ‘I’m only taking you out because they are not playing you and they are crowding the court and we need Oscar to get the ball.'”

Livingston finished the day with eight points on 4-5 shooting to go with two rebounds and a block in 17 minutes. We saw arguably his most brilliant stretch of play as a Wildcat — and maybe even the vision of what he could be splitting time at the three and four — but nothing beyond that. Because Tshiebwe was getting double-teamed down low.

Part of that answer is for the freshman forward to make shots — he’s shooting 37.9% from deep on the season, but it’s clear teams still don’t respect his jumper. But the other part is capitalizing on that open space with opportunities elsewhere. What happens if Livingston catches and attacks? He’s best finishing with a full head of steam, and at worst, he draws a foul and goes to the line where he’s shooting 87.5% on the year. Or they collapse and you find another open shooter on the outside. That’s something to take advantage of, not shy away from.

And it sounds like Calipari would do the same if he had a do-over.

Reed Sheppard, Rob Dillingham make their unofficial Rupp Arena debuts

It wasn’t only about current players soaking in the moment on the big stage on Saturday. A pair of two future Wildcats did, as well, with both Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham introduced to the crowd at midcourt during the first TV timeout.

As you’d expect, fans embraced them like they were on the roster now.

Welcome to the show, Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard. pic.twitter.com/gN9BeXvFn8
— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) January 29, 2023

Welcome back, Rajon Rondo

The celebrations weren’t limited to future Wildcats, either. Kentucky also brought out Rajon Rondo, a two-time NBA world champion and former UK star. He was the honorary ‘Y’ during the second half.