Balanced, efficient offense earns Kentucky another double-digit road win

Winning on the road in college basketball is not easy. More times than not, things will get wonky, and road teams have to gut out wins when stuff is not going well.

Despite facing one of the worst offensive teams in power conference basketball, it was the Kentucky defense that had a hard time against South Carolina at Colonial Life Arena.

However, the offense delivered against a top-35 defense, and the Wildcats return to campus with a 20-4 record following the 86-76 victory.

Before we move ahead to the home matchup with Florida, KSR is going to dive into the box score and provide numbers that made the difference in Kentucky’s 54th all-time win against the Gamecocks.

Scoring from all areas

For the game, Kentucky scored 86 points against a solid defense. The Wildcats put up 1.13 points per possession and nearly recorded a fiftyburger after halftime.

The offense was 18 of 20 on shots at the rim with 12 dunks. The Wildcats collected 48 paint points but also made attempts from deep. Kentucky was 6 of 15 (40%) from three-point range and ended the night shooting 56.7 percent from the floor.

Meanwhile, a turnover rate of 21.1 percent combined with 12 of 19 shooting from the charity stripe prevented Kentucky from having an even bigger offensive night on the road.

Oscar Tshiebwe led all scorers with 18 points, but the Wildcats had six total players in double-figures as Kentucky hit South Carolina from all areas. UK recorded an assist rate of 73.5 percent as the Wildcats put together one of their better offensive performances of the season.

Kentucky loses the rebounding battle again

Kentucky is still one of the best rebounding teams in college basketball, but the for the third game in a row, the Wildcats lost the battle on the boards.

South Carolina was plus-one on the glass (41-40) and had an offensive rebound rate of 40.7 percent as 20 offensive boards led to 17 second-chance points for the Gamecocks.

Carolina ranks No. 26 nationally in offensive rebound rate, but the Wildcats gave up way too many second chances to an offense that is challenged in the half-court.

Keion Brooks Jr. and Oscar Tshiebwe stepped up in the second half to reel in 13 defensive rebounds together, but too often the West Virginia transfer is left to himself to fight on the glass.

On the rare occasion that Tshiebwe does not win, Kentucky can be at a disadvantage. That was certainly true when the Player of the Year candidate had to sit out extended minutes in the first half with foul trouble.

Tempo creates transition opportunities

Throughout the year, we’ve seen John Calipari lean into this team’s strengths. That means playing with pace and letting junior point guard Sahvir Wheeler push the tempo.

Doing that can be a roller coaster because there will be some turnovers and occasional bad decisions, but it’s an overall winning strategy when a game can include 75-plus possessions.

Those possessions can sometimes turn into transition opportunities. Against South Carolina, the Wildcats recorded 26 fast break points to give the road team some momentum.

Wheeler finished the game with 11 assists and five turnovers, but overall the good outshined the bad.

Stats that stood out

• Sahvir Wheeler scored five points but didn’t make a field goal for the third game in a row. The Georgia transfer is 0 of 17 from the floor in the last three games.
• TyTy Washington is officially out of his mini-slump following a return from injury. The freshman guard scored 14 points on 10 field goal attempts and is just another weapon for Kentucky to use.
• Just a ho-hum 18 and 14 for Oscar Tshiebwe with three blocks, two assists, and two steals. He’s the Player of the Year.
• The good play continues from Keion Brooks. The junior poured in 15 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. Kentucky’s offense is nearly impossible to guard when Brooks is efficient on the offensive end.