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By: Tyler Adkins
Today’s game ended up being as frustrating of a loss as I can remember. Not because I thought UK should have won, but because they would have won if they didn’t shoot the worst free throw percentage that I can remember a UK team shooting. They went 11-23 from the line, a number that simply can’t happen on the road against a very good team. With that, let’s take a look at the grades for the Cats from today’s game:
*Intensity
I have to break this up into two different halves. The first half the Cats came out strong, but looked completely lost for most of the half. They committed turnovers a high school team would be embarrassed about and simply looked like they were scared of Louisville. The second half was a completely different story. After going down by 17, the Cats picked it up and played as well, if not better, than they have played all year. They outscored Louisville by 14 over the last 12 minutes or so and really looked like the team we all expected coming into the year. In the end it wasn’t enough, but the intensity change was fun to watch in the second half.
1st half Grade: C-
2nd half Grade: A
*Rebounding
UK has struggled at times rebounding the basketball this year, but this wasn’t one of those games. Louisville is just as big and much more physical than UK, but UK managed to outrebound them 38-35. Offensive rebounds were a number that I was watching and UK had more offensive rebounds than Louisville by a tally of 12-10. I thought UK rebounded the ball very well today and Cauley-Stein showed the player he can be today on the glass.
Grade: A-
*Offense
The Cats ended up looking pretty impressive on offense based on the second half performance. The first half was a colossal struggle between the turnovers and the missed shots. But, the second half again was a different story. UK scored 49 points in the second half on the road against one of the best defensive teams in the country. The Cats ended up shooting 48% from the field and 47.6% from three. The free throw percentage is what led to the loss for the Cats today. But, other than free throw shooting I thought this team tried to attack and took good shots for most of the game.
Grade: B+
*Maturity
Three players showed maturity throughout the entire game in my opinion. Those three players were Harrow, Cauley-Stein and Wiltjer. Wiltjer started the rally in the second half by hitting back-to-back threes and set UK up to make the major run that ultimately fell short. Cauley-Stein had arguably his best game today by being aggressive and showing his athletic ability, if it wasn’t for his terrible night from the foul line, he could have been player of the game. Harrow showed the strides he has made in recent weeks, finishing with 17 points and 5 rebounds while not committing a turnover. Goodwin really struggled in the first half and any time the lane was clogged up finishing with 5 turnovers. This team seemed confused and tentative against the UL pressure during most of the game except for the final stretch. If I was grading based on the last 12 minutes the grade would be an A, but I’m not.
Grade: C+
Overall the game was lost in the first 28 minutes and from the foul line. There isn’t one player you can look to and say he cost UK the game today. The loss stings because it was to Louisville. But in reality, UK lost to one of the best teams in the country by 3 on the road. These things happen. If UK gets improvement on the free throw line and can show the same intensity they showed in the second half for the entire game, they are going to be a very, very good team come March.
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