Watch the Tape: Mississippi State Bulldogs

With their backs against the proverbial wall, the Kentucky Wildcats stepped up in a big way on Wednesday night. It took all 40 minutes to determine the outcome, but that is what you would expect against a Quadrant 1 opponent in a hostile road atmosphere. In the end, the ‘Cats defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 71-68 to move to 17-9 overall, 8-5 in the Southeastern Conference. The loss dropped Mississippi State to 17-9 overall and 5-8 in the league.

It was a balanced effort that earned Kentucky the road win in Starkville. Oscar Tshiebwe bounced back with a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jacob Toppin added 16 points on 7-9 shooting from the field. Antonio Reeves scored 14 points including 4-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Chris Livingston stepped up by scoring all 13 of his points in the second half including converting a perfect 6-6 at the free throw line. Finally, Cason Wallace shot just 1-13 from the field, and 0-8 from three, but dished out 11 assists against one turnover. Even Adou Thiero and Daimion Collins contributed off of the bench while Lance Ware played solid minutes as well. It was an excellent team victory in every sense of the term.

The Bulldogs hung around in the first half in large part due to shooting well above their average from three-point range. D.J. Jeffries, Cameron Matthews, Shakeel Moore, and Eric Reed Jr. each made a first-half three despite being a combined 25.8% from deep on the season. However, water found itself level in the second half as Mississippi State would connect on just one more triple to finish 6-20. Overall, it was a solid performance by the Wildcats’ defense. When you remove 19 fast break points from 12 turnovers and eight second-chance points on seven offensive rebounds you see how little success the Bulldogs had against Kentucky’s half-court defense. Wednesday was a really positive two-way performance by the ‘Cats.

As always, we’ve been in the KSR Film Room breaking down the win in Starkville. Kentucky executed at a very high level offensively again scoring 71 points in just 59 possessions against a top-five defense. Additionally, there were flashes of vastly improved defense and the Wildcats made winning basketball plays down the stretch. Let’s dive on into the tape and look at how the ‘Cats snapped the Mississippi State Bulldogs’ five-game winning streak.

Offensive Execution Defeated Top 5 Mississippi State Defense

Getting to 70 points against the Mississippi State Bulldogs is not an easy task. In fact, they had only allowed 70 or more points in regulation three other times this season. Alabama put up 78 points while Tennessee scored 87 and 70 in their two wins over Coach Chris Jans’ squad. This was a Bulldogs defense that came in ranked fourth in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency metric and fifth nationally in points per game allowed. Scoring 71 points in just 59 possessions means that Kentucky executed at a very high level. The film certainly backed up the box score on that point. Let’s take a look at how the Wildcats were able to have success against Mississippi State’s stingy defense.

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Coach Calipari dialed up this action some against Georgia and it worked once again against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. From a Horns alignment, the ‘Cats begin with a staggered double to Antonio Reeves out of the corner. Then, on the catch, Oscar Tshiebwe turns and rescreens for Reeves. Tshiebwe ends up popping into space with Reeves and Cason Wallace spaced on the strong side. Having two good shooters on the strong side gave Tshiebwe space to shot fake and finish a one-dribble drive to his right for a layup.

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Mississippi State started the second half strong to take an early lead. However, coming out of a timeout Coach Calipari dialed up a great set that led to a three-pointer by Antonio Reeves. Chris Livingston curled his Iverson cut down to the post where he got a catch. The Bulldogs brought some help to combat the mismatch Livingston had against a smaller defender and it led to Reeves being open on the opposite wing. Livingston delivered a perfect pass and Reeves knocked in the triple. Excellent job by the freshman to be under control and aware enough to look opposite as pressure came his way.

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The Wildcats were deliberate, aggressive, and crisp on the offensive end against Mississippi State. After building a 13-point lead, the Bulldogs fought back to cut it to four points with under five minutes remaining. However, when Kentucky needed a bucket to stop the bleeding they once again executed at a high level. Antonio Reeves relieved the ball pressure with a couple of hard dribbles to his left as Oscar Tshiebwe popped into space at the top of the key. Then, Tshiebwe dribbled into a handoff with Chris Livingston who knocked down the mid-range jumper. The real key here was how Tshiebwe dribbled right at Livingston’s defender for the handoff. That forced the defender to make a decision and hopping underneath proved to be the wrong one. Great execution.

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This play took some serious guts to call from Coach Calipari. It had been several games since we had seen this lob set for Jacob Toppin. After becoming a staple for a few games about a month ago it had been buried in the playbook as teams had a chance to scout it on film. However, apparently, enough time had passed for it to work to perfection against Mississippi State. Toppin’s man helps on the initial little ballscreen and Oscar Tshiebwe attracts help on the diagonal back screen as well. That left Toppin wide open as he circled around the back side to flush home a dunk that gave the ‘Cats a six-point lead with under two minutes to play. You have to execute in big moments to win close games on the road against good teams. Kentucky did that on Wednesday night.

Positive Steps Forward on the Defensive End

The Mississippi State Bulldogs can struggle to score and do not shoot the ball from the perimeter. However, they are excellent at forcing turnovers and creating second-chance points on the offensive glass. When they can excel in those two areas it helps them manufacture enough points to win some games. Kentucky played into that too much on Wednesday night gifting the ‘Dawgs 19 points on 12 turnovers and eight second-chance points on seven offensive rebounds. The half-court defense though was overall pretty sound. Packing it in, protecting the paint, and forcing perimeter jump shots eventually won out as the ‘Cats came away with the Quad 1 road victory.

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Kentucky came out of the gate with a different level of aggressiveness on the defensive end than we have seen lately. Before the first television timeout, they forced the Mississippi State Bulldogs into four turnovers by trapping the post and packing it in to protect the paint. Great job by Chris Livingston to aggressively double #1 Tolu Smith with his hands up to get him back on his heels.

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This is even a better double team than the previous example because Cason Wallace waits for #1 Tolu Smith to take his first dribble which makes it harder for him to kick the ball out. Wallace gets a piece of the ball, Antonio Reeves cracks down on the loose ball, and Wallace ends up securing the steal. Great all-around effort by the Wildcats on this possession. Love seeing so many feet in the paint when #1 Smith has the ball. That is good scouting and good execution.

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Kentucky started the second half with one of their best overall defensive possessions of the game. Antonio Reeves and Oscar Tshiebwe successfully “ice” the initial side ballscreen. Jacob Toppin and Reeves stunt at #1 Tolu Smith in the post to get him to retreat. Then, Cason Wallace closes out short to a poor three-point shooter late in the clock to get him to take a contested jumper. #0 D.J. Jeffries, a 27.4% three-point shooter, misses the shot, and the ‘Cats defensive rebound to end the possession. Really good possession all-around.

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The ‘Cats made much better personnel-specific decisions defensively against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the second half. #10 Dashawn Davis is a 40% three-point shooter but shoots a worse percentage from two-point range. Kentucky allowed him to knock a three in the first half, but then did a good job of making him drive it more in the second half. Jacob Toppin switched the ballscreen and stayed in front on the drive to force the missed shot. Making bad finishers shoot low-percentage shots works wonders.

Wildcats Made Winning Plays Down the Stretch

To beat good teams on the road you have to make some “winning plays.” Converting at the free throw line, getting big rebounds, or tracking down a loose ball can turn a loss into a win, or vice versa, down the stretch. That is exactly what Kentucky did when it mattered most down the stretch. Whether it was one of their 18 offensive rebounds or finishing 15-20 from the free throw line the ‘Cats did what they needed to do to get out of Starkville with a Quad 1 win. Here are some of the effort plays that stood out that helped contribute to the victory against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

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Unselfish basketball wins games. Cason Wallace had 11 assists on Wednesday, and just one turnover, but it was possessions like this that really stood out among all the great plays he made. While he doesn’t get credited an assist here, his dribble penetration is what led to the Antonio Reeves three-pointer. Also, credit to Jacob Toppin for the perfect “one-more” pass to Reeves. Another key here is how Wallace aggressively went to get the ball once the shot clock got below 10 seconds. At that point it is time to go make a play and the ball has to find the best playmaker’s hands.

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Kentucky played as hard as they have in a long time on Wednesday night. That is what it takes to win road games in February. That is also what it will take to win tournament games in March. The ‘Cats are starting to show that level of fight. A solid offensive possession here led to an open look from three for Chris Livingston. He missed it, but look at Cason Wallace go get the offensive rebound. Daimion Collins helps to keep it alive with a tip, but Wallace comes all the way across the lane line to retrieve the ball. Then, he finds Collins for the flush and the And-1.

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Oscar Tshiebwe struggled in back-to-back games against Florida and Arkansas. However, he bounced back statistically against Georgia despite the loss and then played well in the win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs. So much of what he gets done is simply through the effort he gives to collect literally every rebound. Here he comes all the way across the lane line to track down the rebound and lay it in for an easy two points. That is the effort level that it takes to win tough games.