Three takeaways from Kentucky basketball’s loss to Gonzaga at Rupp Arena
Three takeaways from Kentucky basketball’s 89-85 loss to the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Saturday at Rupp Arena.
1. Kentucky’s new layer of bad defense
John Calipari was right about one thing. That play call itself was curious in the first place. My words, not his. It was compounded by being poorly executed. But as Cal said, the Reed Sheppard lob pass to Adou Thiero that was picked off by Gonzaga’s Ben Gregg in the final seconds did not cause Kentucky’s third consecutive home loss for the first time in Rupp Arena.
What cost Kentucky the game was another layer of an already bad defense. Time and again, the visiting Bulldogs pounded the ball inside to their big men for basket after basket.
Graham Ike, the 6-foot-9 center who transferred to Spokane from Wyoming, came into the game averaging 15.3 points and 7.3 rebounds. He fouled out with 23 points after making 10 of 17 shots. Ben Gregg, a 6-10 junior, scored 17 points. Anton Watson, a 6-8 forward, scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
“Our guards got a lot of our bigs those shots,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said afterward.
Indeed, Ryan Nembhard finished with nine assists. Watson was credit with five assists. In total, the Zags had 15 assists on 32 made field goals.
But this stat sticks out: Fifty of Gonzaga’s 89 points came in the paint. And Kentucky had no answer for that. None.
2. Gonzaga outhustled Kentucky
Calipari was right about another thing in his postgame press conference: “Just disappointing we got beat to so many balls.”
Not just disappointing, it’s inexcusable. When the visitors weren’t pounding the ball into the painted area for baskets, the Zags were winning what seemed like every 50-50 ball. Strike that: They were outhustling the Cats to every 50-50 ball.
Gonzaga was clearly the more motivated team. Not included in the so-called bracketologists’ list of the 68 teams that will make the NCAA Tournament, Gonzaga brought an 0-5 record in Quad 1 games. And a streak of 24 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament that was clearly in danger.
This was Gonzaga’s chance to impress the decision-makers. Playing Kentucky. At Rupp Arena. In front of a national television audience on CBS. “We have been literally right there in every game, with the exception of the UConn game,” Few said afterward. “We just haven’t closed them out.”
True, Kentucky did hustle in the second half. Down 10 at the break, the Cats even led by as many as six points before Gonzaga fought its way back to take back control.
You wonder if Kentucky got a false sense of we’re-back-now after that 32-point win at Vanderbilt. Still, you would think after losing their last two games at Rupp, Calipari’s young club would have come out with more fire at the start of the game, and more aggressiveness in those first 20 minutes. It didn’t happen.
3. To be sure, Kentucky misses Tre Mitchell
Calipari has said for awhile that “we just need a full roster.” But is that ever going to happen? With just eight games left in the regular season, you have to wonder if Kentucky will have all of its players healthy at the same time.
After missing the last three games with an ankle injury, freshman guard D.J. Wagner returned. The New Jersey native did not start and was clearly not 100%, however. He played just 13 minutes. He finished with three points and one assist.
Meanwhile, graduate transfer Tre Mitchell missed his second game with a back injury. Thad didn’t matter Tuesday in Nashville. It did matter Saturday. The 6-9 forward has produced six games of double-digit rebounds this season, including a stretch of five straight games from Dec. 21 through Jan. 13.
And without Mitchell in this game, Kentucky was outrebounded 43-31. Worse, Gonzaga collected 18 offensive rebounds compared to UK’s 19 defensive rebounds.
“I think they need to get healthy,” Few said of his friend Calipari’s team. “They need to get Tre Mitchell back. He’s a skilled four that puts you in a lot of difficult situations.”
Now Kentucky is in a difficult situation. The Cats are now 2-5 in Quad 1 games. They have eight SEC games remaining, including road trips to Auburn and Tennessee, plus a home game against Alabama. Selection Sunday is five weeks away.
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Box score from No. 17 Kentucky basketball’s 89-85 loss to Gonzaga
Shot charts from No. 17 Kentucky basketball’s 89-85 loss to Gonzaga
