Flashback Friday: Re-visiting the Post-Game Headlines

Kentucky is 20 games into the 2013-2014 season, sporting a 15-5 record that still has people wondering exactly what this team will look like come March. As I was reflecting back upon some of Kentucky’s wins and losses from the season, some trends seem to take place over the course of the season that often lead to one result or the other. I took a look back at the post-game recaps from 3 of Kentucky’s bad losses at 3 different point in the season, as well as 3 post game recaps from 3 of Kentucky’s good wins at various points during the season. Below in italics are the headlines from the game. Listed below the headlines are some of the details from the game.

 

What we said after 3 bad losses:

Baylor (12/6/13)

“Free throws, free throws, free throws, free throws”

– The Cats shot a disgusting 12-of-23 from the stripe for a 52.2 percentage overall. The misses came at crucial times, too.

– This team is going to go to the line a lot this season, as we’ve already seen thus far, and more losses like this one can be expected if they can’t find a way to make the freebies.

 

“Outworked on the glass”

– “They out-hustled us,” he said in the postgame press conference. “They out-worked us.”

– Baylor out-rebounded Kentucky 41-25, including 18 on the offensive end, more than UK’s 15 defensive rebounds.

 

“Andrew Harrison has a long way to go”

 

Arkansas (1/14/14)

“Coach Cal blamed the loss on one bad box out and missed free throws”

– Cal blamed the loss entirely on two simple, avoidable things: missed free throws – UK was 26-for-40 from the stripe in the game – and one bad box out on the game’s final possession.

 

“Foul trouble took Willie Cauley-Stein out of the game, which hurt UK defensively”

– The absence of Willie Cauley-Stein was clear on the defensive end and it had a major impact on the game. Foul trouble limited the Kentucky big man to 18 minutes, 10 below his season average, and he was never really a factor.

 

LSU (1/28/14)

“Did Julius Randle make the trip?”

– Randle was 3-of-11 from the field for six points and five rebounds with three turnovers. He got abused by the LSU bigs in this one, much like he did in Chapel Hill against North Carolina in early December.

 

“Harrisons will want to forget about this one”

– . They reverted back to sulking instead of fighting through adversity and Andrew showed that he still isn’t ready to step up to the level of point guard play that John Calipari demands.

– Before Aaron’s three-point barrage at the end, the twins were 0-for-12 from the field.

 

“Willie Cauley-Stein: Nothing”

– That’s four out of five games now. He hasn’t proven he can compete against the big boys down low.

 

“LSU shot 50% from the field”

 

 

What we said after 3 good wins:

Providence (12/1/13)

“Willie Cauley-Stein is more than just potential”

– Willie flirted with the elusive triple-double tonight, putting up 15 points, 8 rebounds and a ridiculous 9 blocks.

– Willie’s offense is catching up to his defense

– From Cal: “Willie is just getting so much better. What is Willie doing different? He’s playing harder, longer. He’s pushing himself, pushing through.”

 

“This team can survive an off night from Julius Randle”

– Julius helped his team in other ways, dishing the ball out 4 times for his teammates for easy baskets.

– At times this year, it’s looked like Kentucky lived and died by Julius Randle, but tonight proved that even if he’s triple-teamed or just having an off-night, others are ready to step up in his place.

 

“Aaron Harrison can be a lockdown defender”

– While Kentucky lapsed into some poor perimeter defense in the first half, they locked things down in the second, with some of their best defense of the year. Cal singled out Aaron Harrison for his strong performance, calling him “unbelievable defensively.”

–  After Bryce Cotton torched the Cats in the first half, Cal shifted Aaron over to guard him instead of Andrew, and the result may have been the difference in the game: “I don’t know if you understand, Aaron Harrison is the one that changed the game.” Dominique Hawkins was excellent as well, and also got some major kudos from Cal.

 

“When the shots are falling, the Cats can crack the zone”

– The Cats shot a season-high 64% (27-of-42) from the field. That’s the third best shooting percentage in the Calipari era, and includes a smoking 75% (6-8) from behind the arc

– Calipari said that his guards are finally listening to him and not taking as many threes, which is the secret to their success tonight.

 

Louisville (12/28/13)

“Rupp Arena heard Alex roar”

– Alex Poythress turned in another impressive performance, putting up seven points and pulling down five rebounds. Even more, Alex played with aggression, throwing down a particularly nasty dunk with a roar through Rupp Arena.

– “Playing without Julius, I thought Alex was unbelievable,” Cal raved. “But he’s been doing it in practice. He’s never been like this.”

 

“The guards were brilliant”

– James Young, Aaron Harrison, and Andrew Harrison played beyond their years, especially in the second half. After Russ Smith and Chris Jones lit it up in the first half, Andrew Harrison buckled down and took control in the second, looking as poised as he ever has as a Cat.

 

“Look like a team. Play like a team. Fight like a team.”

 

Georgia (1/25/14)

“Andrew Harrison is becoming the Andrew Harrison we thought he’d be”

-On paper, Andrew’s stat’s weren’t stunning—7 points, 5 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 block and 1 steal—but anyone watching the game could see how much he’s progressed, and how well the team runs with him at the point.

 

“It’s all in the headband”

-Willie put his headband back on and snapped out of his funk, finishing with 8 points, 3 rebounds, 6 steals, and 6 blocks.

 

“The defense is back”

-The Cats held Georgia to 32.7% shooting and forced a season-high 20 turnovers. They also blocked 11 shots, tying a season high.

– James Young attributed that strong defensive performance to communication

 

4 Quick (yet not earth-shattering) Judgements from Re-Visiting the Headlines:

1. As Willie goes, this team goes. Willie Cauley-Stein might not be this team’s most talented player, but he might be the most important. When Kentucky has played well, Willie has played well. When Kentucky has been miserable, Willie has played miserably.

2. This team is at its best when Andrew Harrison is playing well. In Kentucky’s biggest wins, Harrison has played well. In Kentucky’s worst losses, Harrison has been shaky.

3. Kentucky’s wins and losses tend NOT to hinge on Julius Randle playing well for 40 minutes. Surprisingly, as arguably Kentucky’s most talented player, Kentucky has both won and lost games and the result hasn’t necessarily been dependent on Randle’s play. He has played well in losses and he has played poorly in wins.

4. Positive things have been said about either individual or team defense in each win. It really comes as no surprise, but Kentucky’s defense has been noteworthy in each of the wins.