The bad news: Kentucky lost to Tennessee in the semifinals of the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament. The good news: The exit gave the Cats an extra day to fix things before the NCAA Tournament. And there are things to fix.
John Calipari and his players put a positive spin on Saturday’s 69-62 loss to the Volunteers. Junior forward Keion Brooks said the Cats were “still in great spirits.” Center Oscar Tshiebwe called it an “off day.” Calipari said he told the team, “We’re good. Let’s go home.”
Facts are facts, however. After steamrolling Tennessee 107-79 at Rupp Arena in January, Kentucky ended up losing two of three to its border rival. After shooting an other-worldly 67.9 percent against the Vols in Lexington, UK shot 34.3 percent in Knoxville and 34.4 percent in Tampa, Fla., against the Vols.
Saturday was no fluke. Yes, Kentucky went 2-for-20 from three-point range “and we still could have won the game,” Calipari argued. But Tennessee entered Saturday No. 3 in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to Ken Pomeroy. Rick Barnes’ club had held six of its previous seven opponents below 40 percent from the floor. Make that now seven of eight.
Toss that January rout, when Big Blue emotions were running high after the death of former coach Joe B. Hall that morning, and Tennessee is a bad matchup for Calipari’s club. The Vols boast multiple “bigs” to contend with Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe, who fouled out with 3:37 left Saturday. Plus, UT has three skilled ball handlers in Santiago Vescovi, Kennedy Chandler and Zakai Zeigler.
Two Saturday plays stand out. When Kentucky sliced Tennessee’s lead from 14 to eight (51-43) with 8:05 left, Barnes called time. Out of the break, he ran a play for the quick Chandler, who scored off the bounce. Eleven seconds later, Chandler scored again, this time on a layup off a Kentucky turnover. UT’s lead was back to 12.
A similar scenario played out three minutes later. Kentucky had crept to within 55-49. This time, Vescovi dribbled into the lane, then left the ball for Chandler off a back door cut. That bucket began a 6-0 mini-spurt that virtually clinched Tennessee’s title game ticket.
Confession: I believed all along Kentucky was the best team in the SEC this season. Various injuries kept the Cats from the regular-season title. No such excuses existed Saturday, however. Playing before a heavily pro-Kentucky crowd, Tennessee was simply better. The final score said so.
How can Kentucky get better, especially this late in the season? The key hasn’t changed. Its strength is its offense. As Calipari has said at various times, these Cats need to score 70 to 80 points to win. Saturday’s 62 just won’t do.
Neither will two points from Kellan Grady. The Davidson transfer is Kentucky’s best shooter. He was 1-for-8 from the floor on Saturday. He missed all five of his three-point attempts. Grady is a catch-and-shoot player who excels in an up-and-down game. Saturday’s grind-it-out pace — “Baskets were hard to come by,” Barnes said — was not his thing. In the second half, Grady took two shots. He missed both.
A significant slice of the Big Blue fan base wants UK to set more screens for its best shooter. That’s not really the Calipari way, and his way has led to the Hall of Fame. Those who claim Cal doesn’t value shooters forget Jamal Murray, Tyler Herro, Doron Lamb and others. What he doesn’t want is a team overly reliant on shooters.
NCAA Tournament time is scoring time, however. Defenses win games, offenses win championships. In a fast-paced affair, Kentucky is your team. When the tempo slows, as it did Saturday, the Cats can struggle. Force Kentucky to execute down the stretch, your chances improve.
Bottom line: Is this Kentucky team a Final Four team? I still believe so. It will need some breaks, however. The right draw. The right matchups. The right mindset. It also needs a realistic view of its strengths and weaknesses when it hits the Big Dance floor. That part never changes.
