KSR's takeaways from Kentucky's statement win vs. Tennessee

UT-183869 — Photo by Dr. Michael Huang | Kentucky Sports Radio

“Here’s what’s great. We got the kind of schedule that — let’s go win games and we’ll be fine. Just gonna have to go win games … It’s not like we don’t have any other chances to go get this right.”

Those were John Calipari‘s words following Kentucky‘s frustrating loss at Georgia, one that put the Wildcats firmly outside the NCAA Tournament field. Nothing about the team’s effort or response to adversity in Athens indicated a turnaround was coming, especially with just six games to go in the regular season. But it was the mindset nonetheless.

First test? Check. Kentucky holds off Mississippi State in Starkville, a 71-68 win — a Quad 1. And then, a rematch vs. Tennessee in Lexington, a chance to sweep the Volunteers for the first time since the 2011-12 season. Check. The Wildcats jump out to a 20-point lead in the first half and hold off the comeback effort in the second, pulling off the 66-54 win — again, a Quad 1.

It was the third such win of the year out of ten tries. Three more to go out of four regular-season matchups remaining, with a few others teetering on the Quad 1 and Quad 2 line. A resume that was absolutely unworthy of NCAA Tournament status has very quickly and quietly jumped to not-so-bad territory. Certainly in the field — and off the bubble, at that — with a real chance to build it even further.

Calipari’s post-Georgia comments reeked of coachspeak, simply giving his players reason and confidence to not let go of the rope. Oscar Tshiebwe said a season turnaround hinged on the team showing “fight,” something they had struggled with all year long. It all felt like false hope, last-ditch efforts to salvage what had been an underwhelming season.

Turns out, they were both right.

“Talking us out of the NCAA Tournament does not work. You either play yourself in or you play yourself out,” Calipari said after the win vs. Tennessee. “So people talking, ‘You’re done,’ I just said, ‘Look, don’t listen to it. … Don’t listen to all the garbage.’ … I’ve said all along we were going to break through.”

How did the Wildcats put their money where their mouths were and shut down the garbage being spewed? KSR has the takeaways from Rupp Arena.

Hey look, Kentucky threw the first punch!

Slow starts have plagued this team all season, regularly finding itself down early to force necessary comeback efforts, oftentimes against lesser competition. It’s an issue that has gotten the Wildcats burned on a handful of occasions, resulting in the less-than-ideal resume coming down the home stretch of the regular season.

Backs against the wall in this one, Kentucky threw the first punch — well, landed the first punch after some early misses for both teams. Combining for just six total points five minutes in, the Wildcats would go on to extend the lead to eight with 12:19 to go in the first half, 15 with 4:44 remaining and 20 going into the break. It was the team’s best half of the season, scoring 39 points on 42.9% shooting overall, 42.9% from three and 92.3% at the line while holding Tennessee to just 19 points — a season-low for the Wildcats — on 25.9% shooting, 7.7% from three and 50% at the line.

It was a defensive clinic while scoring an efficient 1.219 points per possession, five different players earning buckets and three putting up at least nine points. And it came against the No. 1 defense in college basketball, a team known for its grit and physicality. The Volunteers may struggle offensively, but they’re tenacious on the other end of the floor. The Wildcats beat them in both categories in the opening half, setting the tone early in a season full of examples where the opponents did just that.

Refusing to lose in the second half

Calipari trademarked the phrase “refuse to lose” during his time at UMass, something he’s brought back for this team specifically over the last week or so. It’s the mindset he wants the Wildcats playing with during this crucial stretch of games, one that can, as he put it, play them in or out of postseason play. The runway is running out, either take off now to give the team a chance in March or let the plane crash.

“Who’s ready to play? Who’s ready to fight?” Calipari said after beating Mississippi State on Wednesday. “Refuse to lose. Do what you got to do for the team.”

That mindset was again put to the test in the second half, with the Volunteers opening on a quick 7-0 run to cut it to 13, then chipping the deficit down to single digits with 8:39 to go. It would get down to as few as eight with 7:25 remaining, Tennessee guard Santiago Vescovi single-handedly willing his team back with 17 second-half points on 7-10 shooting and 3-5 from three.

The response? Four points to push the lead back to 12 with 4:37 to go, then allowing just two buckets the rest of the way. It wasn’t a perfect finish — Kentucky missed 11 free throws in the second half (11-22) — but the Wildcats came up with the buckets and stops when it mattered most to pull off the win.

It doesn’t hurt that the Volunteers went 0-6 at the line in the final 20 minutes, but that’s part of it. When you set the tone early and force the opposition to play perfect basketball down the stretch, the pressure is inevitable. UK deserves credit for that.

Five-star freshmen win the game

Cason Wallace has been a star for the Wildcats from day one, thriving both on and off the ball offensively while being a terror on the defensive end of the floor. Though impressing as a playmaker since taking over as the lead guard, he’s gone cold as a scorer as of late, shooting just 3-21 from the field and 0-12 from three. Tonight, he got back on track in that area, going for a team-high 16 points on 6-14 shooting and 4-5 at the line to go with six assists, one steal and three turnovers in 39 minutes. Rather than relying on perimeter jumpers, Wallace put an emphasis on taking what the defenders gave him, attacking the basket for tough finishes and knocking down the occasional mid-range pull-up. He still went 0-3 from deep — now 0-15 since Feb. 7 — but the blue-chip freshman found ways to impact the game as a scorer elsewhere. That’s growth.

Wallace shining is no surprise. Five-star forward Chris Livingston, though, has needed time to find his footing. Role and playing time issues led to understandable discontent, his stock taking a nosedive midway through the season and well into conference play. Calipari stressed patience and emphasized a breakthrough was on the horizon. And then that breakthrough came, with Livingston continuing to stack strong performances on top of one another both as a scorer and rebounder.

13 points and five rebounds vs. Arkansas, nine points and three rebounds at Georgia, then 13 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block at Mississippi State — his strongest performance as a Wildcat. And then vs. Tennessee, yet another breakthrough, this time in the form of his first double-double at Kentucky.

Playing 36 minutes — second on the team behind Wallace (39) — Livingston finished with a smooth 12 points on 4-5 shooting and 1-1 from three to go with a career-high 10 rebounds, one assist, one block and zero turnovers. He missed four free throws in the second half (one of six players with misses after intermission), but that was really the only knock on his all-around performance. The 6-foot-7 forward was active and engaged, attacking the glass with purpose both offensively (three) and defensively (seven) while scoring on two putbacks, one jump-hook on a post-up and a catch-and-shoot 3-point jumper. He graded out as one of the best defenders in the game, as well, finishing with a defensive rating of 84.5 — second-best among starters — while coming out with a stop rate of 60.8%.

Top 10

View All

“There’s no one on this — he reminds me a little bit of Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander),” Calipari said of Livingston after the win. “Like, really smart. Cares, like, too much. Was listening to too many voices. And building your confidence, he was doing it in practice and then you got to have a demonstrated performance in the game. He’s now that guy.”

All of Calipari’s best teams have seen elite freshmen break through leading up to postseason play. Wallace has always been that guy, and now, Livingston is right there in the conversation. Those two were the best players on the floor for Kentucky against the top-ranked defense in college basketball.

Another scouting report win for the Wildcats

“If we can make them make tough threes and keep them off the backboard, that’d help,” associate to the head coach Bruiser Flint said leading up to Kentucky’s first head-to-head battle with Tennessee. With the Volunteers also known for their physicality, it was also a game the Wildcats needed to impose their will and bring the fight, especially on the road.

The result? UK held UT to just three makes on 21 attempts from three (14.3%) and nearly doubled up the home team on the glass, winning that battle 43-23. And then for good measure, the Wildcats went 22-25 at the line — drawing fouls and converting. It was a scouting report domination in round one, attacking the opposition in areas they previously struggled with, particularly in losses.

This time around, it was much of the same. Kentucky held Tennessee to just 22.2% shooting from deep (6-27) while winning the rebounding battle 40-32. And then at the line, the Wildcats converted on 23-35 attempts — both season-highs — while the Volunteers went just 4-14 (28.6%). UK was 4-0 on the year in games it went to the charity stripe for at least 25 attempts. Now? 5-0.

“Not everyone is just locked in the way we need to be,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said after the loss. “You can’t miss that many free throws like we did.”

Sure can’t.

Kentucky’s ’96, ’97 and ’98 teams honored at halftime

It was a reunion of Kentucky basketball royalty this weekend in Lexington, as the 1996, 1997 and 1998 teams — two title-winners and one runner-up — were honored at halftime of the win.

Fitting considering those three teams went 6-0 vs. Tennessee during that three-year stretch.

Justin Edwards makes his Rupp Arena debut

Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard got the blue-carpet treatment vs. Kansas. Then, DJ Wagner got his vs. Florida.

Now, it was Justin Edwards’ turn, introduced at midcourt of Rupp Arena — vs. the runner-up in his recruitment, at that.

As expected, a standing ovation from Big Blue Nation, embraced on the floor he’ll be playing on just nine months from now.

Welcome to the show, @Jedwards3_.

Five-star signee Justin Edwards makes his Rupp Arena debut pic.twitter.com/IKqhbql3Jp
— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) February 18, 2023

Welcome back, Immanuel Quickley!

The celebration of special guests continued with former SEC Player of the Year and current New York Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley, honored as the celebrity ’Y’ in the second half.

A combination of past, recent and future all in attendance to witness the season sweep of Kentucky’s biggest SEC rival.