When UK ran short on point guards, Calipari tinkered. Here’s how his experiment went.
John Calipari has said that less is more with Devin Askew, meaning the freshman plays better when he plays fewer minutes. But Askew is averaging the third-most minutes on the team at 30 per game.
Huh?
After the loss at Missouri, Calipari said there weren’t enough point guard options to lighten Askew’s load.
Assistant coach Jai Lucas followed up Friday.
“With Terrence (Clarke) being out, we don’t have another per se point guard that you can throw out there and play,” Lucas said.
Then Askew got hurt in a practice earlier this week, which cast doubt on his availability for the Missouri game. Who did UK coaches consider to fill the point guard role?
“We had BJ out there trying to play point guard for a little bit,” Lucas said of Brandon Boston.
Boston is Kentucky’s leading scorer (12.0 ppg), has more turnovers (26) than assists (12) and has drawn Calipari’s ire by taking what the UK coach derisively calls flip shots.
When asked how Boston did as a point guard in practice, Lucas smiled before saying, “It was a spur of the moment type thing. So it wasn’t something he was expecting. Nobody was expecting it. It just kind of happened.”
Lucas said he believed Boston initially warmed up to the idea of having the ball in his hands.
“Then some of the pressure would come and having to make the right plays . . . ,” Lucas added. “Then he was, like, OK, I understand. I’ll go back over there to the wing.”
Tennessee defense
Ken Pomeroy rates Tennessee No. 1 in Division I in defensive efficiency. The Vols rank No. 6 nationally in average points surrendered (58.9 per game) and No. 21 in field-goal defense (39.3 percent).
With Kentucky’s well-documented problems on offense, Keion Brooks, was asked how a matchup with such a defense played on his mind.
“It doesn’t really play on my mind at all,” he said. “It’s a basketball game. They’re trying to stop us. We’re trying to score on them. . . .
“It’s going to be a battle. It’s going to be won down there in the trenches. Whatever team is tougher should come out with the win.”
Lucas and Barnes
When Tennessee’s Rick Barnes was head coach at Texas, he hired Lucas on his staff. This started a coaching career that has taken Lucas to Kentucky this season.
The two remain close. Lucas said he gave Barnes a call when the Tennessee coach was diagnosed with COVID-19. He also sought feedback from Barnes on possibly leaving Texas for a job with UK.
“He just kind of told me it’s a once-in-a-life opportunity,” Lucas said. “And I already knew that. And he talked really high about Coach Cal and the city of Lexington.
“He’s someone whose opinion I hold very, very close to my heart. So I know he wouldn’t lead me in the wrong direction.”
Sarr off bench?
On his radio show, Calipari suggested it might be wise to bring Olivier Sarr off the bench. What prompted this thought was Sarr fouling out in less than 12 full minutes of play at Missouri.
“I said, ‘You’re better than that. And we need you in the game,’” Calipari said before adding, “Do we bring him off the bench so he doesn’t foul? He doesn’t start the game with two fouls or a quick foul.”
Sarr is averaging a foul every 7.1 minutes. He has the most fouls (53) and most times fouling out (three) on the team.
Tennessee wary
The metaphorical Coaching 101 Textbook says to speak highly of all opponents. So, no surprise that Tennessee assistant coach Desmond Oliver spoke of 5-11 Kentucky as a challenging opponent.
“Well, Kentucky is Kentucky, he said Thursday. “Despite their record, they still probably have the most talented roster in the SEC.”
Olivier suggested Florida was the only other SEC team to challenge that contention.
“No one is going in there thinking that because of their record or whatever, that they’re not a team that can go out there and blow you out,” Oliver said.
Vols hungry?
Tennessee finished first place in a preseason vote by the media on the SEC race.
Said Oliver: “We’re trying to get these guys to be hungry like our team was in 2017-18. We were picked 13th in the conference, and they had a chip on their shoulder. We’re trying to build that chip despite being nationally ranked. I think we will.”
