Watch the Tape: Clemson Tigers Take Down #4 Kentucky 70-66

There is finally some adversity for the ‘Cats. Rational fans won’t panic or get discouraged, but the extended honeymoon phase is officially over for Coach Mark Pope. The #4 Kentucky Wildcats went on the road and got knocked off, 70-66, by the Clemson Tigers. It was a hostile environment at Littlejohn Coliseum on Tuesday night and the home Tigers simply out-toughed the Wildcats in portions of the game. Espeically late in the first half, Clemson won the game by dominating the offensive glass. Kentucky’s three-point shooting woes continued, and some Lamont Butler foul trouble led to limited minutes, but that difference on the glass was the story of the game. The problem was fixed at halftime, but it was too little too late.

Kentucky’s 7-27 shooting from deep marked their third straight game making 10 or fewer three-point shots. It was also their third straight game under 30% shooting from beyond the arc. However, shooting is not something to worry about with this group long term. Rebounding and free throw shooting are areas of some concern though. The Wildcats entered Tuesday’s game ranked 15th nationally in defensive rebounding percentage and are still 26th despite Clemson getting nearly half of their own misses in the first half. To Kentucky’s credit, they dominated the second half defensive glass limiting the Tigers to just two second chances. At the line, the ‘Cats are 73.3% on the season after a rough 11-18 showing at Clemson.

All in all, there are still plenty of reasons for optimism. Kentucky is much better defensively than anyone would have thought. Lamont Butler and Otega Oweh are showcasing some game-to-game consistency of being better than expected. The Wildcats showed some real fight and resolve in the second half to give themselves a chance to win the game. Sometimes games really do come down to making or missing some shots. Luckily, or unluckily depending on your stance on Kentucky’s outlook, there is another big test right around the corner. The ‘Cats head out west to Seattle to take on the #7 Gonzaga Bulldogs on Saturday. We will quickly see how this group answers the bell after their first setback of the young season.

As always, we’ve been hard at work in the KSR Film Room breaking down the film from the Wildcats’ most recent contest. Kentucky was whipped on the offensive glass in the first half and had a really bad offensive stretch that led to a 10-0 run by Clemson. We will deep-dive into those problem areas and showcase how they can be fixed going into Saturday’s contest. Then, we will wrap up with some continued reasons for optimism. Let’s dive on in and take a closer look at Kentucky’s 70-66 loss to the Clemson Tigers.

Bad Offensive Stretch Coincided With Clemson’s 10-0 Run

Coincidence? I think not. Kentucky strung together four consecutive bad offensive possession which led to a quick 10-0 run by the Clemson Tigers. What made this stretch even more frustrating was that the Wildcats had just completed a 9-0 run of their own. Uncharacteristically selfish decisions offensively led to some poor shot selection during this stretch for Kentucky. When the ball moved with a purpose offense seemed to still come pretty easily. The ‘Cats had success, especially early on, turning the corner and playing downhill against Clemson’s soft drop coverage. However, when it come to one-on-one play, the Tigers swallowed up Kentucky’s ball handlers.

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Admittedly, this four possession stretch was tough to watch back on film. Right on the heels of an excellent 9-0 run Kentucky went away from what was working and it flipped the script in a hurry. We will break this down possession by possession.

Otega Oweh getting downhill to the rim is always a good option offensively. Through eight games there is no denying that he has been Kentucky’s best player. However, there was no need for him to a force this shot. There were no passes made, the ball never changed sides of the floor, and there were still more than 20 seconds on the shot clock. It is okay to probe and attack the paint, but once he didn’t get his shoulders beyond the defender he needed to retreat and live to fight another day. This is a forced, rushed shot coming off of a Clemson made three.

The second possession is something we are starting to see seemingly every game. Kerr Kriisa is certainly not afraid to let them fly off of the ballscreen. Part of that is what makes him good and effective, but time and score have to factor into the equation. The Clemson Tigers had quickly closed Kentucky’s 28-23 advantage and tied it at 28-28. This is a forced, rushed shot with 18 seconds on the shot clock off of one pass.

Jaxson Robinson had the floater working against Georgia State. However, he needs to be able to get all of the way to the rim against the better teams. There was an opportunity here for him to turn the corner, but he took the semi-contested floater instead. Again, the ‘Cats just seemed rushed during this stretch for no reason. Robinson made a great move at the point of the screen to create separation and get downhill. He just needed to keep going to the rim.

Finally, the fourth and final possession led to a Clemson transition three that triggered a timeout from Coach Pope. That culminated the Tigers’ 10-0 run. Look at where Kentucky is running their offense throughout that final possession of the clip. They are almost entirely outside of the scoring area. The play ends with another one-on-one situation as Koby Brea gets blocked at the rim. This team is not built for one-on-one basketball. Trusting the system, and one another, is what has made them so potent offensively.

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Kentucky had snapped the Clemson Tigers 10-0 run at this point, but you could easily lump this offensive possession in with the ones above. Amari Williams has been far too loose with the ball. When he drives it the success rate has been incredibly low. He has be stronger than this if he wants to try and make this play. Get in there, jump stop, and play off of two feet. Instead, he gets caught jumping to pass and turns the ball over. Williams had four turnovers on the night. He is going to have to be a better decision-maker going forward.

The Importance of Defensive Rebounding

It was a tale of two halves when it came to Kentucky’s defensive rebounding efforts. The Clemson Tigers rebounded nearly 50% of their misses, 48.1% to be exact, in the first half. That led to a 10-1 advantage in second chance points. However, in the second half, the Wildcats flipped those numbers completely around. They held Clemson to just two offensive rebounds collecting 86.7% of their misses in the second half. The ‘Cats had a 12-0 advantage in second chance points in the second half. You can’t get a much more stark contrast than that. These two clips showcase the importance of tracking down loose ball rebounds. If Kentucky could have come up with just a couple more in the first half they likely would have escaped with a win.

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Getting #0 Lakhin to take a three-point shot with 19 seconds on the shot clock should be a win for Kentucky. The Clemson Tigers’ 5-man came into the game 3-11 from three and is a career 26.2% shooter. As the long rebound came off the rim there were five blue jerseys closer to the ball than any white jersey. However, Clemson came up with the ball. This is the type of thing that gets you beat, especially on the road.

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Admittedly, Clemson was a bit “lucky” to get the previous offensive rebound. You could argue that Kentucky was equally “lucky” to get this defensive rebound. However, the results show how getting the right bounce here and there can impact winning. The Tigers ended up scoring after the offensive rebound in the previous clip. In this one Otega Oweh finishes with an And-1. It wasn’t pretty, but the Wildcats secured the ball and that allowed them to play in transition. A couple of fewer second chance points for Clemson and a couple more transition opportunities for Kentucky likely would have flipped the outcome of this game. That is the importance of defensive rebounding.

Silver Lining’s and Reasons for Optimism

Kentucky is not a place for moral victories. Nobody is trying to spin anything from Tuesday night. The Wildcats went on the road and lost to a good Clemson Tigers team. Did the ‘Cats play well? No. Could they have won the game? Absolutely. Are there lingering concerns that Coach Pope and company need to address? Yes. Is the sky falling? Not by any means. All of those answers can be true at the same time. Let’s end this film session with a few positive clips that showcase reasons for optimism moving forward.

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Early in the game the ball moved with a purpose and Kentucky got to several of their normal offensive looks. For whatever reason, as the game went along, it seemed like they got away from that. Here you see essentially a cousin of Zoom Action. Instead of setting the downscreen, Andrew Carr runs over the top of Amari Williams. Williams keeps it and tosses the ball to Lamont Butler while turning the handoff into a bit of a quick-hitting ballscreen. Carr’s cut does a good job of occupying the help and Butler essentially follows his path to the rim. Butler always does a great job of playing off of two feet inside. His patience and pace earned him an And-1 on this drive. Kentucky needed to keep getting to ballscreens and handoffs to turn the corner throughout the game.

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The Clemson Tigers ended up with three points on this possession. However, Kentucky executed everything perfectly on the defensive end. Per KenPom, the Wildcats are now 23rd in adjusted defensive efficiency. That end of the floor certainly was not the problem on Tuesday night. However, sometimes shots like this go in at home. When they do it is really hard to get over the hump against good teams.

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Coach Pope has been excellent out of timeouts this season. Kentucky seems to always have a good set play dialed up in those situations. With some of the offensive struggles that reared their ugly ahead against Clemson there is an argument to be made for more set plays. It is hard to have a million calls in your playbook and it certainly would take the Wildcats away from their free-flowing offense, but an extra half court set or two per half might help things from getting bogged down.