We are now 14 games into the season. A lot has been said about how UK this year performs in "bye games" as opposed to against legitimate competition. Out of the 14 games, I put 7 in each category. Exhibition games aren't included (although honestly the Providence game seemed like an omen of things to come in hindsight). I thought I would try to take a deeper look and see what the numbers tell us. This isn't very thorough but just to demonstrate the difference in how well we execute.
UK in their 7 "Bye Games" (opponents: Nicholls State, Valpo, East Illinois, Loyola, Tennessee Tech, NC Central, Bellarmine)
UK in their "Legit Games" (opponents: Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, Gonzaga, Indiana, St. John's, Alabama)
We have been unable to execute consistently against high-level opponents. I'd like to hear Pope asked about this. I know Pope is a stats guy, and the stats in this case are pretty clear.
UK in their 7 "Bye Games" (opponents: Nicholls State, Valpo, East Illinois, Loyola, Tennessee Tech, NC Central, Bellarmine)
- UK is shooting 80/196 from 3 (40.8%). Elite. Only 5 teams in the country shoot it better
- Opponents are shooting 44/175 (25.1%). Elite 3-point defense
- UK is averaging 42.2 rebounds/game. Elite
- UK is averaging an incredible 24 assists/game. A+++. (For reference, last year's team averaged 17 per game and they were one of the top passing teams in the country.)
UK in their "Legit Games" (opponents: Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, Gonzaga, Indiana, St. John's, Alabama)
- UK is shooting 38/161 from 3 (23.6%). Abysmal.
- Opponents are shooting 63/181 (34.8%). Which is pretty average. But this is greatly due to the Indiana game (they shot 4/24). Removing that outlier, and opponents are shooting 59/157 (37.5%). So below average to poor 3-point defense
- UK is averaging 31.5 rebounds/game. Not awful but not particularly good.
- UK is averaging 11.2 assists/game. Which would put us pretty darn close to the bottom of the barrel
We have been unable to execute consistently against high-level opponents. I'd like to hear Pope asked about this. I know Pope is a stats guy, and the stats in this case are pretty clear.
