Blue-White Game fouls pile up as freshmen adjust to changes in officiating

You could say Kentucky’s freshmen were in a foul mood during their the first competition in a game-like setting.

Sacha Killeya-Jones (nine) and Wenyen Gabriel (six) both exceeded the typically allowed five fouls per player. Bam Adebayo picked up his fifth with 14:11 left in the second half. Wenyen Gabriel had four fouls in the first half.

Fellow freshman De’Aaron Fox attributed the fouls to a change in officiating.

“The game is called differently this year,” he said. “They put in a lot of new rules. Some things are automatic fouls. Something we have to get accustomed to. … Coach told us they were going to be calling fouls. Today, we really saw it.”

For instance, Fox said he got repeated warnings from the referees to keep his hands off the offensive player. And, he added, swiping down in an attempt to dislodge the ball from an offensive player is a no-no.

“Anytime you swipe down, it’s a foul,” he said. “Sometimes you don’t even touch the guy.”

Since mid-summer, UK Coach John Calipari has repeatedly advised the players about the do’s and don’ts, Fox said.

“A lot of it (was) your hands were down,” Calipari said. “You can’t play that way.”

Killeya-Jones and Gabriel were not available for interviews after the game. Another freshman, Malik Monk, said that the fouls showed how UK must improve its defense.

At this early stage, Calipari did not sound alarmed. He spoke of how Kentucky has rim protectors in Adebayo, Gabriel and others.

On-ball defense can help reduce the times the “bigs” might foul, the UK coach said.

“We really guarded on the ball really good,” Calipari said. “It all starts right there. You have De’Aaron Fox. You have Dom (Dominique Hawkins). You have Malik. You have Isaiah (Briscoe). They can all guard the ball, which means you’re not getting broken down, having to rotate.”

Given the nature of the Blue-White Game and the need to entertain, the fouls did not limit playing time. No one fouled out.

The referees called nine fouls on Killeya-Jones in the first half. He had three fouls in the game’s first 86 seconds.

When the fourth foul came at the 12:59 mark, public address announcer Patrick Whitmer spared Killeya-Jones some embarrassment. Whitmer bypassed the number of personal fouls on the freshman, and simply fast-forward to “That’s the team’s fifth foul.”

Whitmer continued this selective editing with the sixth foul (9:46 left in the first half), seventh (8.:33), eighth (6:33) and ninth (58.5 seconds).

Dunk you very much

Monk provided the play of the game. When a screen freed him of a defender (Mychal Mulder), Monk drove to a dunk. He reached back with the ball as he rose in the air and slammed it through the basket.

“I just went in and did what I do,” he said.

Monk acknowledged that the reach back prelude to the dunk is a thrill.

“Exciting,” he said. “Yeah. Something exciting about that.”

Fox said he had seen it before.

“I’ve known Malik since were 15 years old,” he said. “He’s been doing that since he was 15. It’s not surprising to me anymore, but I still get hyped.”

Hawkins feels no pressure

Hawkins, a career 32.1-percent shooter, made seven of nine shots and scored 22 points. Maybe more importantly, he moved about the court with poise and confidence.

“Being a senior and being healthy is a part of that,” he said. “I’ve got confidence in myself this year. I know what I can do. I can show everybody I can shoot the ball.

“I felt like I didn’t have any pressure on me. I feel like I can just go out and play.”

Monk vouched for Hawkins’ potential to contribute.

“Dom can do the same things we can do,” he said. “Nobody’s seen that yet, so they’re going to be surprised.”

Cousy Award

If Fox wins the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, Kentucky will join North Carolina and Connecticut as the only schools to have more than one winner.

Three UNC players have won the award: Raymond Felton (2004-05), Ty Lawson (2008-09) and Kendall Marshall (2011-12).

Two UConn players have won: Kemba Walker (2010-11) and Shabazz Napier (2013-14).

Of course, Tyler Ulis won last year. He is the only UK player to win one of the by-position awards, most of which were established only in the last few years.

Two other UK players are on the early watch lists for these by-position awards: Malik Monk for the Jerry West Award (shooting guard) and Bam Adebayo for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (center).

Delk likes UK

Ex-Cat Tony Delk worked the SEC Network telecast as an analyst. He said he expects Kentucky to be formidable by March.

The Cats have more length and depth on the front line, Delk said.

Sidelined

Isaac Humphries and Tai Wynyard did not play. Humphries has been experiencing soreness in a knee. Wynyard sustained a broken facial bone during UK’s televised practice/Combine show.

Calipari said he expects Wynyard to return to practice next week. Humphries could have played, but was held out of the Blue-White Game as a precaution.

Etc.

UK next plays a week from Sunday against Clarion, which is Calipari’s alma mater. The game is the first of two preseason exhibitions.

This story was originally published October 21, 2016 at 11:20 PM with the headline "Blue-White Game fouls pile up as freshmen adjust to changes in officiating."