Second half defense allows Kentucky to grind out win over Texas A&M

On3 imageby:Adam Luckett01/19/22

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Sometimes college basketball is ugly, but all wins count the same. At Reed Arena, Kentucky gutted out a 64-58 win over a Texas A&M by just finding a way.

Despite a sluggish start and an inability to get over the hump in the second half, the Wildcats refused to lose, and this time it was the defense giving John Calipari’s team a chance to end the night victorious.

The game was a grinder where Buzz Williams got his team to dictate the terms of the action, but that was still not enough to knock off No. 12 Kentucky.

After diving into the box score, KSR has the numbers that stood out in the latest SEC road win for the Wildcats.

Unexpected defensive rebounding

Oscar Tshiebwe has been a monster all season. The West Virginia transfer is the best rebounder in the country and a legit player of the year candidate. However, the junior cannot do it all by himself.

Against Texas A&M, Tshiebwe gobbled up 14 rebounds, but the Aggies did a solid job keeping the big man off the glass. On both offense and defense, the Aggies made sure at least one and sometimes two bodies were attached to Tshiebwe to give the home underdogs a shot at the rebound. Therefore, someone else had to step up and help clean the glass for the Wildcats.

For the game, Texas A&M did collect 14 offensive rebounds that led to 11 second chance points. However, with the game on the line, Kentucky got some help from an unexpected source.

Davion Mintz finished the game with a career-high seven defensive rebounds. That’s significant considering the super senior has played in 134 career games. Down the stretch, the veteran dug out some tough rebounds and allowed Kentucky to end stops with possession of the ball.

In a grind-it-out game, Kentucky had a key plus-five advantage on the boards. Mintz’s ability to collect some huge rebounds had a direct impact on the final result.

Kentucky finds the clamps after halftime

Texas A&M is not a good offensive basketball team. The Aggies are No. 103 overall in offensive efficiency ranking sub-80 in both two-point and three-point percentage. Meanwhile, this is a woefully bad team at the free throw line.

However, Kentucky hadn’t been great on defense to this point in the season.

As the game played out, the Aggies were able to hold a lead for most of the night due to their ability to dictate the game on defense and make enough shots early. Mainly, Texas A&M got to the rim at will and produced 38 of their 58 points on dunks or layups.

Most of that went away after the break.

The Aggies were just 10 of 34 (29.4%) from the field in the second half with a woeful 0 of 10 mark from three-point range. Meanwhile, the team was just 5 of 13 (38.5%) from the charity stripe.

Kentucky was able to lock in defensively, guard without fouling, and consistently gets stops while not forcing a bunch of turnovers. That performance gave the Wildcats a chance at victory as the game entered crunch time, and the Big Blue delivered.

Calipari’s squad has now entered the top-20 in defensive efficiency as the Wildcats are beginning to round into shape. Contenders get things done on both ends of the floor.

Stats that stood out

  • Kentucky got a win with Kellan Grady going ice cold. The Davidson transfer and super senior was just 1 of 9 from three and could never find the stroke in 35 minutes. For the season, Grady is still shooting 43 percent from deep on 114 attempts but is now at just 30.2 percent in SEC games. Hopefully, this will just be a blip on the radar.
  • Despite being held without a field goal for the final 3:38, Kentucky held hold on for a win. However, this is a trend that is developing. Kentucky couldn’t buy a bucket to close the Vanderbilt game and struggled to score late against Notre Dame. The Wildcats must find something that will work late in these close games.
  • Lance Ware only played five minutes off the bench, but it was a big spot for the team. With the sophomore on the floor, Kentucky was plus-five on the scoreboard as Calipari bought a much-needed breather for Oscar Tshiebwe in the second half. Ware becoming the third option off of the pine would be a positive development moving forward.
  • In a tough game, Kentucky can usually depend on production from Jacob Toppin. With Keion Brooks struggling, Toppin came in for 23 minutes to produce nine points, six rebounds, and two assists. Similar to the LSU game, the junior provided the Wildcats with some needed toughness and athleticism on the road.
  • For the eighth nine in nine attempts, Kentucky played in a game that featured over 70 possessions. The Wildcats are making a concerted effort to play with more tempo and that is resulting in a lot of wins and leaning into an offense that is No. 4 overall in offensive efficiency. The Wildcats posted just 0.91 points per possession, but it was enough. Talent usually wins out in the end if other teams are not allowed to shrink the game. Texas A&M tried to do that, but the new concerted effort to play with more pace gave Kentucky just enough possessions to outlast the pluck home underdog.
  • Kentucky was just 12 of 24 on shots at the rim and 4 of 18 from three-point land. Yet, the Wildcats found a way to win on the road. Defense was the story of the game.

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2024-03-28