Kentucky leads the country in baseline out-of-bounds scoring efficiency

Kentucky is one of the most efficient scoring teams in the entire country — full stop. A handful of talented guards, shooting across the floor, and size down low have created a perfect mix for John Calipari. The Wildcats play incredibly fast and want to shoot as many three-pointers as possible. They can score with the best and do so in bunches.

But they’ve also been able to generate points in other ways, too.

For instance, did you know that Kentucky leads the entire country in scoring opportunities that come from baseline out-of-bounds plays? KSR’s Brandon Ramsey unearthed the stat, via Synergy, earlier this week. The Wildcats are scoring at 1.391 points per possession from out-of-bounds plays that begin underneath their own basket.

“That goes back to Coach Cal and the players. We spend time on it,” Kentucky assistant John Welch said on Monday. “Their ability to execute it and every day that’s how we end. Usually, good at what you do, good at what you emphasize. I think that’s been an emphasis from the beginning.”

Kentucky leads the country, by a relatively large margin, in scoring on Out-of-Bounds Under opportunities.

The 'Cats are scoring 1.391 points per possession from OB Under.

Coach Calipari & his staff have some GREAT actions in the playbook & the players execute at a high level.

— Brandon Ramsey (@BRamseyKSR) January 7, 2024

8.3 percent of Kentucky’s offensive possessions come from baseline out-of-bounds opportunities. The Wildcats are hitting over 64 percent on shots that start from underneath the basket. According to Synergy, that grades out as “excellent”. Additionally, while only 4.7 percent of UK’s offensive possessions come from sideline out-of-bounds plays, the Wildcats still generate 1.077 points per possession, which also grades out as “excellent”.

Compare that to the last two seasons and it’s a noticeable uptick. In 2022-23, Kentucky scored 0.994 points per possession from baseline out-of-bounds plays and 0.860 in 2023-24. While those numbers are still regarded as well above average, this season’s team is scoring out of those sets at a far better rate.

Keep in mind that these numbers aren’t limited by the length of a possession. For example, if Kentucky starts a play out-of-bounds from the baseline and the play continues for another 20 seconds, the end result still impacts the baseline out-of-bounds stat. Sometimes the Wildcats score immediately out of the set, other times they reset the offense up top and look for another opportunity to score.

Regardless, the end result is typically a positive one for the ‘Cats.

Against Florida over the weekend, particularly in the second half, Kentucky generated plenty of scoring opportunities from underneath the basket. One of the biggest plays of the entire game came from this situation. With Antonio Reeves serving as the inbounder, he hit Aaron Bradshaw for an open 18-footer near the baseline that put Kentucky down just one, 70-69, lead at the five-minute mark.

With Rob Dillingham and DJ Wagner masquerading as the bait in the initial action, Bradshaw is able to pop open (with the help of a well-timed screen from Dillingham) for a clean look that he drilled.

via GIPHY

It’s not always Reeves who throws the ball in either. Wagner and Reed Sheppard share time as the feeder, too. Kentucky has plenty of different ways to score from the baselines and uses that to its advantage.

If we go back to the start of the second half against Florida, we see Kentucky execute another flawless out-of-bounds play on the right side of the floor. With Wagner as the in-bounder, Bradshaw sets a hard screen that frees up Reeves after his curl for a knockdown 18-footer. But Justin Edwards darting to the left corner attracts the defense’s eyes, too. One of the big men is always hanging back as the fail-safe option, which can result in an open three-pointer if not defending properly.

It’s simple offense, but effective when run the right way (and with so many talented shooters spacing the floor, something Kentucky hasn’t had as many of the last couple of seasons).

via GIPHY

Sometimes, Calipari will call out set plays from baseline out-of-bounds situations that don’t happen directly from the initial pass. Also against Florida, we saw Sheppard lob an easy pass to Bradshaw near the top-left of the perimeter. The play actually starts there, with Reeves curling around Bradshaw for a hand-off and then immediately driving to the rim in a 2-on-1 situation. Reeves wound up getting fouled on the drive.

via GIPHY

So far this season, it doesn’t really matter where Kentucky finds points — they’re going to do so in every way imaginable. Being efficient at scoring out of dead-ball situations only makes the Wildcats that much more dangerous.