UK women must ‘learn from this and grow’ following NCAA Tournament loss to Iowa
The University of Kentucky women’s basketball team’s season crashed to a disappointing end when the fourth-seeded Wildcats were pounded by No. 5 seed Iowa and star freshman Caitlin Clark in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in San Antonio on Tuesday.
Before you could blink, the Cats were in an 11-0 hole after missing their first eight shots. UK Coach Kyra Elzy said the slow start put the team in a terrible position.
“I thought early on we had some good looks at the rim (but) the ball didn’t go in,” Elzy said during a postgame video conference Tuesday. “I think we let our offense affect our defense. We let them go on a 7-0 run, dug ourselves in a hole and never really recovered from there.
“Today wasn’t our day. It was a disappointing finish. We have to learn from this and grow.”
Trailing by 27 at halftime, the Wildcats showed some fight in the second half. They outscored the Hawkeyes by 13 in the final two quarters and after allowing Clark to score 24 points in the first half held the Second Team All-American to 11 in the second.
“At halftime we kept saying ‘20 minutes is a long time.’ We were not going to lay down,” Elzy said. “One of the things we talked about was winning the first four minutes, making a run. Which we did.”
The damage was mostly done by the time the Wildcats found their footing. Clark hit all six of her three-pointers before halftime and carved up the Cats in the paint as well.
“We tried to rotate fresh bodies on her ... face-guard her when she gave it up,” Elzy said of UK’s plan to contain Clark. “I thought she did a great job of continuing to move. I thought we did a better job on her in the second half.
“I thought she hit some really tough shots. She’s a phenomenal scorer.”
UK star Rhyne Howard, who led the team with 28 points against the Hawkeyes, has several times been in a zone similar to the one Clark occupied Tuesday.
“She was making tough shots ... I’ve been in that position and teams have changed up their defense multiple times and it hasn’t worked,” Howard said. “We made her take tough shots, she was just hitting and she was hot. She was just making everything. So, not much we really could have done.
“She’s a great player. We know she can score and we just have to live with that and tip our hats to her.”
Massengill stepping up
Jazmine Massengill made major strides after being inserted in UK’s lineup as starting point guard late in the regular season. The Wildcats appear to be in good hands with the transfer from Tennessee seemingly set to run the point from day one next year.
Massengill finished her first campaign at UK with 62 assists and 27 turnovers and improved over time as a scorer. In Tuesday’s loss, she was one of just three Wildcats to score in double figures, chipping in 10 points and four rebounds. Elzy was impressed with Massengill’s effort after halftime.
“I thought Jazmine stepped up to the challenge,” Elzy said. “She pushed the ball in transition. She did a great job of pressuring the basketball. She became one of our star people (defending) Caitlin.”
Elzy was also impressed with Robyn Benton’s defense against Clark after halftime.
“Something that won’t show up on the stat sheet or might not even make headlines, I really thought we challenged (Benton) to make Caitlin Clark work in the second half, and she did that,” Elzy said.
Bubble life
With teams stationed inside a ‘bubble’ and dealing with activity restrictions in San Antonio because of coronavirus protocols, players don’t have the entertainment options normally available during the NCAA Tournament.
Elzy said the Wildcats nevertheless found ways to enjoy themselves during their brief tournament run.
“I think we prepared for the worst, so it’s actually been better than what we thought,” Elzy told the media Monday of the team’s expectations about the bubble. “Who knew a 30-minute team walk would be so refreshing?
“But the best thing that has happened is we have a balcony on our hotel room, so the ability just to sit outside in the sunshine has helped. And the players have games, so we’ve kept ourselves occupied. We’ve been to the team room and able to do activities, so I think everybody’s in a great head space.”
