Watch the Tape: Kentucky Dominates the South Carolina Gamecocks in "Get Right" Game

Saturday was “get right” day in Lexington. After losing four of their last five games, the Wildcats simply needed to get back in the win column. Having the last place, winless South Carolina Gamecocks come to Rupp Arena offered up a perfect opportunity for a much needed victory. Then, before the game, we were treated with some good news and bad news on the injury report. Kentucky’s point guard, Lamont Butler, was removed from the availability report and officially good to go. However, it came out that Jaxson Robinson suffered a right wrist injury in practice and would be a game-time decision. He was in the starting lineup, and played 20 minutes, but was clearly hampered by the injury. The win was important, but continuing to get healthy is also a priority for the ‘Cats going forward.

It was a slow start, but Kentucky used two separate 11-0 runs to eventually pull away and dominate the Gamecocks 80-57. The second of those two runs came midway through the second half as the Wildcats went from up 50-41 to 61-41 in the span of less than three minutes. A significant improvement on the defensive end allowed for the short offensive bursts to build separation on the scoreboard. It is fair to say that South Carolina isn’t very good. Their 0-10 Southeastern Conference record proves that. However, the Wildcats held the Gamecocks to their second lowest scoring output of the season. That is important context to highlight actual defensive improvement from the ‘Cats. Between Lamont Butler’s return, improved defensive intensity, and a stress-free 23-point victory it was a feel good game at Rupp Arena.

As always, we’ve been hard at work in the KSR Film Room breaking down Kentucky’s latest contest. We saw arguably the best defensive performance of the season from the Wildcats. South Carolina’s offensive ineptitude and Lamont Butler’s return played a role in that, but the overall aggressiveness and urgency was certainly improved. We will spend some time highlighting those defensive improvements in this breakdown. Additionally, as always, Kentucky’s offense flexed its muscles when needed in order to score 80 points and pull away from the Gamecocks. The “spurtability” of the offense was really highlighted by the defensive improvements. Let’s step inside the film room and take a closer look at Kentucky’s “get right” 80-57 victory over the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Kentucky’s Best Defensive Performance of the Season

The South Carolina Gamecocks are the worst offensive team in the Southeastern Conference. That is a fact. However, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that is the only reason Kentucky looked better defensively. Again, 57 points was the Gamecocks’ second lowest scoring output of the entire season. This is a team that lost by three point to Auburn, one point to Florida, and four points to Texas A&M. Nobody is hanging a banner following a Quad 3 home victory, but it was a dominant performance by the ‘Cats on Saturday. Never apologize for winning and don’t let anyone take away from the improvements we saw in this matchup. Let’s take a closer look at some of those improvements. Aggressiveness and urgency were two words that kept coming to mind while breaking this game down.

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Often wrong but never in doubt. That was the type of defense we asked for going into this contest. You can always go back in the film room and discuss decision-making. However, in the moment, you need to make aggressive decisions with urgency. That alone will cover up a lot of mistakes. Without Lamont Butler in the game this would have been two points for the South Carolina Gamecocks. They got the ‘Cats spread out at the point of the screen and dropped a perfect pocket pass to #30 Murray-Boyles on the roll. However, Butler made an aggressive play on the ball while completely leaving his man. After nearly getting the steal he got his hands up and forced an out-of-control miss. That is a great individual defensive play.

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Kentucky was able to turn defense into offense on Saturday night scoring 14 points on nine South Carolina turnovers. The ‘Cats “blitzed” significantly more ballscreens than normal on Saturday and it put the Gamecocks on their heels a bit. Here you see Amari Williams step out aggressively and make #23 Scott pick up his dribble. Jaxson Robinson ends up switching with Williams after the blitz which is perfectly fine. Then, Koby Brea is up pressuring #15 Ugusuk who only wants to shoot three-point shots. That is a guy who came in with more turnovers than assists. Great recognition by Brea to get up and pressure him. Brea’s defense was rewarded on the other end with a transition three. Beautiful basketball.

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#30 Murray-Boyles is one of the better players in the Southeastern Conference. His combination of size and skill makes him one of the most unique matchups as well. However, Kentucky was able to hold him to 14 points on 13 shots. It was a total team effort on Murray-Boyles in the post. The first aggressive dig by Koby Brea is textbook. It forced Murray-Boyles to pick up his dribble and Brea deflected the pass back out to the perimeter. The only thing to change here would be to make Brea be even MORE aggressive on the second dig. That’s too many dribbles to not just go essentially double him. The overall activity though made him more uncomfortable though and the ‘Cats got him to miss the shot and finished the possession with a defensive rebound.

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Here is another look at some aggressive defense from the ‘Cats. The South Carolina Gamecocks turn the ball over as much as any high-major team in college basketball. However, Kentucky typically doesn’t force many turnovers regardless of who the opponent is. Plays like this are what the Wildcats need more of from Otega Oweh. Whether or not he needed to help this aggressively in the gap is irrelevant. He went with aggression and urgency and was rewarded with a steal and runaway layup. Again, it is often wrong but never in doubt. Don’t be afraid to go make an aggressive play on the ball.

Elite Offensive Execution Allowed the ‘Cats to Pull Away

Improvements on the defensive end are great to see for a team that has struggled mightily on that end of the floor. Those defensive improvements on Saturday really allowed the offense to shine. So often we see the Wildcats simply trade baskets with the opponent. Then, if they can string to together a few stops in a row, they can build a little bit of cushion. Against the South Carolina Gamecocks we got to see the inverse of that. Kentucky was consistently getting stops throughout the game, but the offense took a while to get going. However, when the offense would go on some quick bursts, it would be immediately reflected on the scoreboard. Having an 11-0 run in both halves really drives that point home. It was fun to watch the offense still execute well enough to put up 80 points in the win.

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Kentucky gets to some really good offense when they can slip screens. The South Carolina Gamecocks were able to guard the first few actions that the ‘Cats threw at them. However, after a couple of ball reversals, Ansley Almonor slipped an empty side ballscreen and got a pass from Koby Brea. Jaxson Robinson displayed excellent awareness and IQ by filling the weak side corner to make himself available for the drift pass. Almonor delivered a strong left-handed pass while falling out of bounds. Great action, great pass, great shot.

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Brandon Garrison on the rim run is something we highlight quite a bit. He always runs so hard and is very effective due to his soft hands and advanced footwork. This is an excellent pass from Koby Brea to hit Garrison in stride. Garrison has really impressive touch and fluidity when running the floor. There simply aren’t that many college big men who can run this fast and then decelerate to finish at the rim.

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Game after game the Wildcats continue to execute Zoom Action at such a high level. There is nothing flashy about this clip, but it shows how effective Kentucky’s offense can be even when the defense knows what is coming. The South Carolina Gamecocks probably spent a ton of time, like all opponents, going over their plans for guarding Zoom Action. However, it simply doesn’t matter the ‘Cats will take whatever the defense gives them. Here you see Jaxson Robinson’s defender chasing him off of the downscreen and handoff. Robinson had separation, but used the shot fake and quick relocation dribble to get even more open. After a 2-5 performance on Saturday, Robinson is now shooting 61-160 (38.1%) from beyond the arc.

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Kentucky has had some issues with completing lobs this season. It seems to be a timing and confidence issue for Amari Williams. However, the big man was able to finish this lob from Koby Brea through contact for an And-1 one. It was great to see him go up strong enough to not only complete the dunk but do so through contact. The ‘Cats need more of that from Williams.

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Koby Brea creates so much offense for Kentucky even without touching the basketball. There truly is a gravity to him on the floor. As he comes off of the staggered downscreen two defenders go with him. That leaves Lamont Butler wide open on the slip. As always, Amari Williams does a great job of reading it all in real time. That And-1 capped off the Wildcats’ 11-0 run to go up 20 points. Kentucky truly runs some beautiful offense. The South Carolina Gamecocks had no answer for it on Saturday afternoon.