Losing is ‘extremely tough,’ but Kentucky’s Mintz remains optimistic
Restart? Reboot?
Amid such talk, Kentucky looked the same for a half at Missouri on Wednesday night.
But a big second half set up a replay: Another test of UK’s ability to execute inside the final four minutes … or what John Calipari calls “winning time.”
Kentucky’s 75-70 loss was a painful replay. That was true in more ways than one. Only the second Missouri victory over Kentucky came on the same date as the first: Feb. 3. UK lost 69-60 in Columbia on that date in 2018.
This latest loss had an unmistakable same-old quality. Once more, the opponent outplayed Kentucky in the final four minutes.
“It’s extremely tough,” Davion Mintz said of what seems UK basketball’s version of the movie “Groundhog Day,” when the main character is doomed to relive the same day again and again.
“Like, there’s been a common denominator of every game. … I mean, it’s tough, but we have to figure it out.”
Mintz, who made four three-pointers en route to a team-high 18 points, said he remained optimistic about the season.
“Just seeing the guys’ faces in the locker room,” he said. “No one is happy after a loss. Like, everyone’s down.
“The reason I feel optimistic is no one at this point has accepted losing. As much as it’s happened already, people are still upset.”
This Kentucky loss wasn’t for lack of trying, experimenting, searching.
“I’m still learning what these guys are capable of,” Calipari said.
Calipari even put Cam’Ron Fletcher in a game for the first time since he played two minutes against North Carolina on Dec. 19.
But not enough changed to prevent Kentucky from falling to 5-11 overall and 4-5 in the Southeastern Conference. UK lost a fourth straight league road game for only the sixth time in program history.
Missouri improved to 12-3 overall and 5-3 in the SEC. Dru Smith led the Tigers with a game-high 26 points.
“I still think they want to win,” Calipari said before adding, “I still think they want to win on their terms.”
He questioned a late jump shot in a game in which Kentucky had success going to the basket, in part because of Missouri big man Jeremiah Tilmon’s foul trouble.
Calipari second-guessed some of his coaching decisions late in the game. But he stood by Keion Brooks taking a three-pointer with UK down 74-70. Brooks had made two of nine three-point shots coming into the game.
“It was the shot we wanted,” said Calipari, who added that Olivier Sarr made a three-pointer from about the same spot with 5:50 left.
Trailing 68-65 with barely four minutes left, Isaiah Jackson missed the front end of a one-and-one. UK committed three turnovers in the next two minutes.
Missouri got a pull-up jumper by Mark Smith, then Dru Smith made four of four free throws to take a 74-65 lead with 2:05 left.
With the deficit at 70-65, Mintz threw a lob for Jackson. But the pass was low enough for Missouri to bat it away.
“Where can you throw the ball for Isaiah?” Calipari said. “He’ll go get it over the shot clock. … You throw it low? That’s just, like, c’mon now.”
Mintz acknowledged the mistake.
Kentucky never led and trailed 40-27 at the break.
The surprise was Missouri making seven of 11 three-point shots in the first half. The Tigers came into the game ranked 297th in Division I in three-point accuracy (30.1 percent) and had averaged only 6.2 three-point baskets per game.
Kentucky fell behind for good with 16:54 left in the first half when Tilmon made a layup.
At that point, UK had more lane violations on Missouri free-throw attempts (two) than baskets (one).
Making only one of its first nine shots put Kentucky in comeback mode.
Fittingly, a tip-in with 7.2 seconds left set Missouri’s halftime lead. The Tigers outscored UK 11-0 in second-chance points.
UK had trailed at halftime by a larger margin only once this season: down 48-26 to Notre Dame. The Cats had a 2-6 record in games when they trailed at halftime.
“The way we played in the first half, I just said, look guys, you’re better than that,” Calipari said of his halftime advice. “Let’s go. Let’s step on the gas.”
Kentucky scored the first eight points of the second half. Plus, Tilmon picked up his second and third fouls inside the first 54 seconds.
With its lead trimmed to 40-35, Missouri called timeout with 17:58 left.
Kentucky got as close at 43-42 when Brandon Boston hit a three-pointer in transition with 14:39 left.
Missouri did not wilt. The Tigers opened up a 51-45 lead, UK could not wait for the under-12 television timeout and called a timeout with 11:37 left.
Sarr turned it over on the next possession. Worse, he picked up his fourth foul trying to retrieve the ball and went to the bench with 11:28 left.
Missouri widened its lead to 60-51.
Sarr’s third three-pointer of the season brought Kentucky within 67-63. Then 18 seconds later, Sarr fouled out.
Kentucky made 59.3 percent of its second-half shots. That included six of 10 from three-point range. But nine second-half turnovers made that not quite good enough to win.
With the NCAA Tournament bid seemingly remaining a long shot, Mintz refused to close the door on that possibility.
He advised using Kentucky’s remaining games “to see where it gets us.”
Next game
No. 11 Tennessee at Kentucky
When: 8 p.m. Saturday
TV: ESPN
Records: Tennessee 12-4 (5-4 SEC); UK 5-11 (4-5 SEC)
This story was originally published February 3, 2021 at 11:28 PM.
