Watch the Tape: Missouri Western State Griffons

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The most valuable part of exhibition games is the film you can watch afterward. On Sunday night, the Kentucky Wildcats got their unofficial start to the season with a matchup against the Missouri Western State Griffons. Former UK manager Will Martin is in his third season as the Griffons’ head coach while former ‘Cats Jon Hood and Perry Stevenson serve as his assistants. The homecoming for the former Wildcats was an emotional experience for all. However, there was a game to be played and Kentucky left fans wanting more.

In an unexpected turn, Kentucky managed to score just 56 points against their Division II opponent. Luckily, the defense was elite holding the Griffons to 38 on the evening. We will dive more into both sides of the ball here shortly. However, one of the most important notes from Sunday’s exhibition will be the status of point guard Sahvir Wheeler. The Wildcats’ Bob Cousy Award finalist suffered a knee injury and missed the final several minutes of Sunday’s matchup. It goes without saying that Kentucky will need Wheeler to be healthy this season.

Now, let’s step into the film room. The Kentucky Wildcats showed some flashes of their high ceiling, but also have plenty to learn from their matchup against the Missouri Western State Griffons. The offense was far too stagnant, too many layups were missed, and the ‘Cats were a little sloppy with the ball at times. However, the defense was elite for the vast majority of the game on Sunday night. Let’s go ahead and break down the tape from Kentucky versus Missouri Western State.

Room for Improvement/Areas to Clean Up

Again, the most valuable part of exhibition games is the film you can watch afterward. There is no sense in getting too worked up about the results from Sunday night. This was the first time the Kentucky Wildcats went against an opponent’s scouting report. The Missouri Western State Griffons were the first team the ‘Cats have played that wasn’t wearing blue or white since the Bahamas. Things don’t need to be pretty on October 30th and they rarely will be. However, that doesn’t mean that the takeaways aren’t important. Here is a look at some of the areas that Coach Calipari and his staff will likely be harping on in the coming days.

This is an example of very poor defensive recognition. #23 Will Eames was the Missouri Western State Griffons’ best player. On the perimeter, #13 Taye Fields is a complete non-shooter. However, both Jacob Toppin and Daimion Collins leave Eames to aggressively closeout on Fields at the 3-point arc. This poor decision led to an easy layup. Defensive breakdowns were few and far between on Sunday, but the vast majority of the issues involved Toppin. That will need to get cleaned up for the senior to have the type of season he is expected to have.

Part of being a point guard is understanding when and where your teammates want the ball. Lance Ware doesn’t, or at least shouldn’t, want the ball out on the perimeter. As Cason Wallace brings it up the floor he should be thinking about getting the drag ballscreen. He needs to take the ball lower down the left wing, wait for Ware to come set the ballscreen, and then play from there. With the spacing of three Kentucky players on the far side, Wallace really should be thinking about rejecting the ballscreen. Go be 6’4″ and finish at the rim along the baseline.

Instead, Wallace picks up his dribble in order to toss it to Ware. After getting it back, Wallace then quickly throws it to Ware at 18 feet on the short roll. This mid-range jumper might as well be a turnover. Wallace needs to be the man and go score this along the baseline instead of throwing it to a guy who brings a lot to the table, but isn’t really an offensive threat.

In fairness to Jacob Toppin, this turnover isn’t completely his fault. Now, it would be nice if he would stay on balance, come to a strong two-footed jump stop, and then be ready to pivot, but the spacing is very poor here. Ugonna Onyenso needs to slam into his man and seal him at the rim so that Toppin can drive it right all the way to the rim. This is something that Lance Ware does well. If he isn’t going to do that, then he needs to be on the opposite block when Kentucky goes to this ghost screen action.

CJ Fredrick – Transition Weapon

Anyone who follows college basketball knows how good of a 3-point shooter CJ Fredrick is. In 52 games at Iowa, Fredrick made 83 of 178 attempts from deep good for a 46.6% clip. That is obviously elite. On Sunday evening against the Missouri Western State Griffons, the 3-point specialist had his skill on full display. Fredrick finished with a team-high 15 points including 4-6 shooting from beyond the arc. He was especially dangerous in transition. Just take a look at these shots.

The best part about all three of these clips is that CJ Fredrick knows exactly what he is doing. He is running to the wing and looking for the ball because he knows his teammates will find him. His hands and feet are always ready to shoot. Kentucky must make it a major emphasis to find their sharp-shooting teammate in transition throughout the season. These shots can be such a back-breaker to the opponent.

Execution in the Halfcourt

It doesn’t take a basketball coach to tell you that when your team scores just 56 points against a Division II opponent that half-court execution wasn’t exactly a strength. The Wildcats were careless with the ball at times, failed to finish at the rim too often, and reverted to some of their old stagnant ways. However, there were a couple of flashes of what a successful Kentucky offense could look like. Let’s take a look at the film.

What CJ Fredrick does better than any other Wildcat at this point is read screens. He is patient at the point of the screen, accelerates out of it, and reads his defender at a very high level. In this clip, you can see Fredrick get a peek back at his defender who is chasing him. This triggers Fredrick’s brain to curl the little pindown screen. A lot of players would end up finishing a straight cut to the wing and therefore would allow the defender to close the gap. However, Fredrick curls into space to maximize the descent from his defender and knocks in a pretty jump shot while being fouled on the closeout.

Kentucky is going to get into a lot of these two-man actions this season. Against the Missouri Western State Griffons, head coach John Calipari turned to Fredrick and Jacob Toppin to make something happen when they needed a bucket. As Seth Greenberg discussed on the broadcast, Fredrick is an excellent post feeder. Toppin does a good job of reposting after the initial kick-out and then knocking down what is becoming a patented turnaround jumper. Plenty of space to play with over on this side of the court.

This is a really good offensive action that Kentucky should probably run more of as the season gets started. More ballscreens and handoffs will create additional playmaking opportunities for the ball handlers. Here, Cason Wallace comes off of a staggered ballscreen with Jacob Toppin popping and Lance Ware rolling to the rim. Eventually, Toppin dives as well and Ware pops back up for a quick “get” action. Wallace’s defender goes underneath the handoff and he knocks it in from beyond the arc.