Another big game, another UK basketball loss. It all went wrong for the Wildcats
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kentucky lost 67-64 to North Carolina as UNC turned 20 offensive rebounds.
- Wildcats managed only eight assists and 1-for-13 3-point shooting overall.
- Injuries and poor decision-making expose depth issues ahead of a brutal December.
That’s three strikes for these Kentucky Wildcats.
And while Mark Pope’s UK basketball team shouldn’t be counted out just yet — it’s the first week of December, keep in mind — these Cats are certainly reeling at the moment.
The latest red mark on Kentucky’s record? A 67-64 loss to North Carolina on Tuesday night in Rupp Arena that was every bit as ugly as that final score would indicate.
The worst part of the Wildcats’ latest defeat at the hands of a ranked opponent?
Take your pick.
Perhaps it was the 20 offensive rebounds the Cats allowed to 16th-ranked Carolina. Those boards turned into 22 second-chance points. And the Heels beat Kentucky 22-5 in that stat.
“It’s a huge part of the game,” Pope said afterward.
No doubt about that. UNC’s final two offensive rebounds of the night led to its last three second-chance points and ultimately the biggest shot of the game.
With Kentucky clinging to a 62-61 lead — the Cats led all but 3:37 of the second half — and the clock approaching its final minute, UNC came up with two offensive rebounds, a possession that resulted in Derek Dixon’s 3-pointer to give the Tar Heels a 64-62 lead.
Collin Chandler answered with a strong drive to tie it at 64-all with 36 seconds left, but Dixon struck right back with a layup of his own, and UNC finished off the Wildcats from there.
Carolina head coach Hubert Davis kept a straight face for nearly all of the postgame press conference following his team’s biggest win of the season, but he couldn’t help but crack a smile when the subject of second-chance points came up.
“Huge factor for us,” he said.
Those 22 second-chance points were a season high for a North Carolina team that improved its record to 7-1. The 20 offensive rebounds were, too.
UNC’s boardwork indirectly led to another ugly number on Kentucky’s side of the box score.
The Cats shot just 1 for 13 from 3-point range. They were 0 for 8 from deep in the first half. Their only make of the game came courtesy of backup center Brandon Garrison, who was 0 for 3 on 3-pointers this season before rattling one home with 13:08 left to give UK a 48-44 lead.
“You know, it’s uncommon for us to be 1 for 13 from 3,” Pope said. “That’s not really who we are.”
Sure, the Cats’ haven’t been that bad from deep this season — no one has — but this was a team that Pope expected to flourish from beyond the arc, a group of players handpicked to thrive in his perimeter-oriented offensive system, even if past results indicated that might be a stretch.
Through eight games, these Cats are shooting a collective 33.6% from deep. Not great. Not terrible. But they’ve certainly shown they’re a team capable of running cold at times.
Coaches and players on all sides pointed out that UNC’s proficiency on the offensive boards led to few opportunities for Kentucky to get out in transition, a key part of its plan to get up lots of good looks from long range.
“But that comes with getting stops and then getting the boards,” said Otega Oweh, who led the Cats with 16 points. “So if we could have limited their offensive rebounds, we could have got out in transition and made the game a little more easier. But we didn’t.”
Where to look next? How about what happened after Garrison canned that 3-pointer?
Not much of anything. The Wildcats, incredibly, missed 13 consecutive shots from the field following their only perimeter make of the night. They went 10 minutes and 25 seconds without finding the bottom of the net.
Ten of those misses were registered in the official stats as 2-point jumpers or 3-point attempts. There were few looks at the rim in that stretch. Quality ball movement, in general, was a rarity when it was in the hands of the Wildcats.
“At the end, we played a lot of hero ball, which didn’t turn out really well,” said Andrija Jelavic, whose play — six points and four rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench — was referenced by Pope as one of the few bright spots of the night.
To Jelavic’s point, the Wildcats’ offense was stagnant for much of the night. They couldn’t get out in transition, and when the action slowed into a halfcourt game, the ball often went nowhere.
Pope lamented the rebounding disparity. He was taken aback by the 3-point numbers. But perhaps that wasn’t the worst of it.
“More disappointing is the eight assists,” he said. “That’s really frustrating. I thought in the second half, our decision-making was poor. … We’re still on a steep learning curve, trying to figure out how to make plays for our teammates. We shoot it well when we actually do that. And when we don’t, we don’t.”
On Tuesday night, they didn’t.
The eight assists — four in each half — tied the low for the Pope era, matching the total in Kentucky’s 82-69 loss at Georgia last season. It also follows a familiar theme.
In UK’s five wins this season — all against mid-major competition — the Cats have averaged 23.4 assists per game. They’ve won those five games by an average of 40.4 points.
But Kentucky basketball teams aren’t judged by what they do against lesser competition. What matters most is what the Wildcats do against formidable foes.
In their 96-88 loss at Louisville on Nov. 11, the Cats dished out 14 assists. In their 83-66 defeat at the hands of Michigan State on Nov. 18, they had just 13 assists. And then there was Tuesday night. Another loss to a ranked opponent. Another occasion in which the Wildcats couldn’t find each other on the court.
”A lot of it was we just weren’t making shots,” Oweh said, knowing full well there was a larger problem to point to. “And then, on top of that, I think we just didn’t do a good job of making plays for teammates. That’s what we always preach.”
He paused for a beat before finishing that point, still perplexed by the number.
“Eight assists,” Oweh repeated. “I mean, that’s a bad game. So it kind of speaks for itself.”
It speaks to this Kentucky basketball season so far.
These Wildcats started off at No. 9 in the preseason AP Top 25 rankings, and that was before they knocked off Purdue — the No. 1 team in the country, then and now — in their exhibition opener. UK was No. 1 nationally in the first batch of the KenPom ratings. Pope’s team was viewed as a legitimate Final Four threat, a possible national champion once it was all said and done.
It’s not done yet. There’s a lot of season left between now and March. A lot of time to figure things out. Then again, these Wildcats clearly have quite a bit to work on.
It’s worth noting that they played Tuesday night without Jaland Lowe, their expected starting point guard who has appeared in just two games so far due to a right shoulder injury. His playmaking would surely help, but there’s no telling when (or if) he’ll be back to full health.
Kentucky was also missing Mouhamed Dioubate, the starting power forward who Pope picked to be the Wildcats’ strongman in the paint. His presence would have helped UK on the boards, but Dioubate — out for a third consecutive game with a sprained ankle — is just one player, and this team’s problems run deeper than anything that could be fixed by his return.
Projected NBA lottery pick Jayden Quaintance — a 6-10 forward who could be one of the best defensive players in college basketball — is still working his way back from a torn ACL. He’s expected to play for the Wildcats at some point this season. When? No one can say.
In the meantime, this is the team that Pope will be working with. And the next three weekends will bring games against No. 11 Gonzaga (on Friday night), No. 22 Indiana (Dec. 13) and No. 23 St. John’s (Dec. 20). And then an SEC schedule that will feature nine games against teams currently in the Top 25, with several more foes fully capable of beating the Cats on any given night.
“There’s no safety net right now,” Pope said. “We just have to get better. So we’ll continue to focus on that. And we need guys to step up and give us great efforts. And I’m excited about the games we have ahead. I mean, why play if you’re not playing great teams? So I’m excited about it.”
At this point, what else is there to say?
