Key to Kentucky's Game: Transition Defense

Tomorrow's game is only 27 hours away, but because this feels like the longest week ever, you're probably ready to devour any basketball related information you can find.  So, let's take a look at one of the biggest keys to Kentucky's game tomorrow: transition defense. Louisville's pressing style and quick guards want this game to be as fast and out of control as possible.  They thrive in the confusion, and make a living out of the slick muck their defense works up.  And when you're looking for points of turnovers like Louisville does, you look to see how you matchup with your opponent's transition defense. Unfortunately, Kentucky's isn't great.  As Sports Illustrated points out, UK allows its opponents to score .363 more points in transition, as opposed to their otherwise stalwart half-court defense.  That doesn't sound too bad, but it's actually 2nd worst in the country, behind Bethune-Cookman. [caption id="attachment_154985" align="alignnone" width="477"] Sports Illustrated[/caption]   While Russ Smith will lead the Cards to plenty of steals, how he handles the ball could lead to more turnovers than baskets: However, that was against St. Louis, in one of Louisville's sloppiest games of the year, and doesn't necessarily guarantee the same performance against us.  Let's take a look at when the Cats were most abused in transition, against the up-and-down (in more ways than one) Tar Heels: What happens here?  Kentucky makes a bad pass into the post that gets knocked away.  Willie falls down trying to regain possession, and the guards running back pay too much attention to the path of the ball, and not enough to stopping the trailer who gets a perfectly timed pass right at the top of the key and is able to drive all the way to the basket.  Turrible. And here? Another fumble in the paint.  Another tumbling Wildcat.  Another guard outnumbered and stuck between two fast-breaking Tar Heels.  This sort of possession is exactly what we don't want to see tomorrow.  Louisville wants to make their muck, and wallow in it.  Kentucky has to polish their transition defense in order to play a sharp, winnable game.