Well, that was an extremely entertaining game of basketball; just on the wrong end of the stick at the end of it. Some thoughts:
CBD can flat out coach, and is being shown to be a great motivator as well. That 5 1/2 guys almost pulled off the upset is quite extraordinary. Simply put, the starters ran out of gas, and Kentucky is a team that has too many good athletes for 5 1/2 guys to beat. Whether one likes or dislikes the commentary team tonight, they were flat out gushing praise on CBD all night long. My belief that the program is in very good hands continues to grow and grow.
Hats off to all the starters tonight. They played their hearts out, every single one of them. Doesn't mean they didn't make mistakes, but, my goodness, they left it all on the floor out there. Each starter played 30 or more minutes, with Kornet and Roberson leading the way with 36, LaChance 32, and Cressler and Toye each with 30. Each player, at various times in the game, stepped up and made big shots, big plays defensively, etc.
The Bench. Sigh. That was a major disappointment tonight. Willis gave some good minutes and made some big shots in the first half, but the second half he was a disaster. That's still better than everyone else on the bench. Obviously, the biggest disappointment was MFD. Played 18 minutes and scored zero points. Not one of his shots ever looked like they were going in, and he had some good open looks. He did lead the team with 4 assists, but that was about the extent of his contributions tonight. Whether this team plays in the NCAA tournament or the NIT, for them to make any noise at all they have got to have much, much more from the bench than what they got tonight. I was hoping Brown's athleticism could have helped tonight, but it was nowhere to be found. Baptiste had happy feet, and then his inability to play defense, and twice committing "and one" fouls were just killers.
The game changed when Calipari finally decided that for Kentucky to get back into the game, they were going to have to press full court, something that he doesn't like to do, but they clearly lose this game if he doesn't. In the first half, VU had 8 turnovers, and UK had 9. In the second half, VU had 10 turnovers and UK had 2. When Willis was in the game in the second half and LaChance was on the bench, it was a disaster waiting to happen, and, more times than not, it did. Willis didn't commit every turnover, but because he couldn't be trusted to bring the ball up, other guys had to try who aren't cut out for that, and that lead to more turnovers. LaChance had to sit some just to catch his breath, but when he was out, things went south in a hurry. For those bemoaning how bad they see LaChance has a point guard, well, you can see where things go when he isn't out there running it against a team as talented and athletic as UK.
So, the poor bench production, coupled by the high turnover margin in the second half and UK's low turnover margin in the second half, are the two things that stand out for me as to why the team was unable to hang on for the win tonight.
This was not a game that anyone expected the team to win (at least I'm not aware of anyone who expected it), but, man, they put a scare into the 'cats. It's no moral victory, but it is showing the continued progress made by CBD and his staff. I hope he can rally the troops off the deck and pull out a win against the Gators on Saturday. Senior days were usually an abomination under KS; fingers crossed that CBD has better fortune, and leads the team to a big upset victory over the Gators.
CBD can flat out coach, and is being shown to be a great motivator as well. That 5 1/2 guys almost pulled off the upset is quite extraordinary. Simply put, the starters ran out of gas, and Kentucky is a team that has too many good athletes for 5 1/2 guys to beat. Whether one likes or dislikes the commentary team tonight, they were flat out gushing praise on CBD all night long. My belief that the program is in very good hands continues to grow and grow.
Hats off to all the starters tonight. They played their hearts out, every single one of them. Doesn't mean they didn't make mistakes, but, my goodness, they left it all on the floor out there. Each starter played 30 or more minutes, with Kornet and Roberson leading the way with 36, LaChance 32, and Cressler and Toye each with 30. Each player, at various times in the game, stepped up and made big shots, big plays defensively, etc.
The Bench. Sigh. That was a major disappointment tonight. Willis gave some good minutes and made some big shots in the first half, but the second half he was a disaster. That's still better than everyone else on the bench. Obviously, the biggest disappointment was MFD. Played 18 minutes and scored zero points. Not one of his shots ever looked like they were going in, and he had some good open looks. He did lead the team with 4 assists, but that was about the extent of his contributions tonight. Whether this team plays in the NCAA tournament or the NIT, for them to make any noise at all they have got to have much, much more from the bench than what they got tonight. I was hoping Brown's athleticism could have helped tonight, but it was nowhere to be found. Baptiste had happy feet, and then his inability to play defense, and twice committing "and one" fouls were just killers.
The game changed when Calipari finally decided that for Kentucky to get back into the game, they were going to have to press full court, something that he doesn't like to do, but they clearly lose this game if he doesn't. In the first half, VU had 8 turnovers, and UK had 9. In the second half, VU had 10 turnovers and UK had 2. When Willis was in the game in the second half and LaChance was on the bench, it was a disaster waiting to happen, and, more times than not, it did. Willis didn't commit every turnover, but because he couldn't be trusted to bring the ball up, other guys had to try who aren't cut out for that, and that lead to more turnovers. LaChance had to sit some just to catch his breath, but when he was out, things went south in a hurry. For those bemoaning how bad they see LaChance has a point guard, well, you can see where things go when he isn't out there running it against a team as talented and athletic as UK.
So, the poor bench production, coupled by the high turnover margin in the second half and UK's low turnover margin in the second half, are the two things that stand out for me as to why the team was unable to hang on for the win tonight.
This was not a game that anyone expected the team to win (at least I'm not aware of anyone who expected it), but, man, they put a scare into the 'cats. It's no moral victory, but it is showing the continued progress made by CBD and his staff. I hope he can rally the troops off the deck and pull out a win against the Gators on Saturday. Senior days were usually an abomination under KS; fingers crossed that CBD has better fortune, and leads the team to a big upset victory over the Gators.
