If the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament is a barbecue pit, is Kentucky ready for the fire?
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Game day: No. 19 Kentucky 91, No. 15 Missouri 83
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Saturday’s men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Missouri in Columbia, Mo.
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It might be outlandish to say that this week’s SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament in Nashville will be tougher than the NCAA Tournament that begins the following week. But not by much.
Seven of the top 20 teams in Ken Pomeroy’s computer rankings are SEC members. Regular season champion Auburn is No. 2. Florida is No. 4. Tennessee is No. 5. Alabama is No. 6. Kentucky is No. 11. Texas A&M is No. 17. Missouri is No. 20.
That’s right, Mark Pope’s Wildcats have climbed to No. 11 in the adjusted overall efficiency rankings. The Cats have been in the top 10 of kenpom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings throughout the campaign. They currently rank sixth. Where they’ve made strides is on the defensive end. Mired in triple digits after that 98-84 loss at Ole Miss on Feb. 4, the Cats are now 55th in adjusted defensive efficiency.
Saturday’s 91-83 win at Missouri was another example of defensive improvement. Like Kentucky, Mizzou is an offensive juggernaut. The Tigers are No. 5 in kenpom’s offensive metrics. Yet over Saturday’s first 20 minutes, they made only 11 of 31 shots for 35.5 percent. They were 3-of-13 from 3-point range for 23.1 percent.
In a half where the Cats struggled to find their own offensive rhythm, UK’s defense kept it not only in the game, but ahead 38-29 at the break. “Incredibly encouraging,” Pope said afterward.
You can say the same about the way Kentucky finished the regular season. True, LSU is among the best league’s worst teams. The Tigers finished their conference schedule 3-15. That included a 95-64 thumping by Kentucky last Tuesday. Saturday was No. 15-ranked Missouri’s fourth loss in its last five games. Still, for No. 19 Kentucky, a road win is a road is a road win.
Most encouraging Saturday was Andrew Carr, the 6-foot-10 transfer from Wake Forest. The conversation concerning Carr has gone from concern over his mid-season back problems to the fact that now he is, well, back — back to the form he showed earlier in the season.
Carr scored 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. That’s his third double-double of the season, but first since Dec. 11. Given his size, experience and craftsmanship around the basket, Carr at his best means Kentucky is at its best. At least in its current configuration.
Music City will be a barbecue pit, of course. Big Blue Nation may need to be on a nap schedule. As the No. 6 seed, the Cats are on the late-game schedule, both for its Thursday night opening game, and Friday night if it survives on Thursday.
UK’s Thursday opponent will be the winner of Wednesday’s matchup between No. 11 seed Georgia and No. 14 seed Oklahoma. Georgia beat Kentucky 82-69 in Athens way back on Jan. 7. UK edged Oklahoma 83-82 just a week or so ago, Feb. 26 in Norman.
If Kentucky advances, the Cats would play No. 3 seed Alabama in Friday’s quarterfinals. The Crimson Tide swept the Cats in the regular season, winning 102-97 in Lexington on Jan. 18 and 96-83 in Tuscaloosa on Feb. 22. And Nate Oats’ club is coming off a 93-91 overtime win at Auburn on Saturday.
Still, this is a different Kentucky team than the one we saw even a couple of weeks ago.
It knows now it will not have starting guard Jaxson Robinson for the rest of the season. It knows that Koby Brea and Collin Chandler can step up as replacements. The pair combined for 25 points and five 3-pointers Saturday. Brea was 3-of-5 while scoring 17 points in 36 minutes. Chandler was 2-of-3 while scoring eight in 16.
And Kentucky knows it can get stops. Missouri ended up shooting 43.9 percent for the game. The Tigers were 11-of-28 from beyond the arc. That combined with the visitors’ offense made Mizzou’s postgame “Senior Day” ceremony a bittersweet affair.
Leading into the NCAA Tournament, the SEC hopes its tournament continues the case of iron sharpens iron. Who knows what will happen, but Kentucky heads to Music City looking sharp.
