Cats hit the skids again offensively in loss to Kansas

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Point guard Davion Mintz converted this steal into a layup against Kansas but coach John Calipari was not happy with his team's point guard play in the loss to Kansas. (ESPN Photo/Phil Ellsworth)

Kentucky had a 15-0 scoring blitz early in the game and Kansas missed 23 of 32 shots in the second half. Sounds like it had to be an easy Kentucky win in the Champions Classic, right.

Wrong.

Kentucky lost its second straight game as it fell 65-62 to Kansas Tuesday night in the Champions Classic for many of the same reasons it lost by 12 points to Richmond Sunday in Rupp Arena.

— Kentucky did make a 3-pointer but it also missed 18 of 21 treys. The Cats were 0-for-10 from 3 against Richmond.

— The Cats had only eight assists, including three in the second half. They have five assists against Richmond, none in the second half.

— Kentucky had 16 turnovers that led to 18 Kansas points. Kentucky had 21 turnovers against Richmond.

“We did some good stuff. We should have won the game. I will put it on me,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “We hit the skids offensively. I have not figured out yet. I will.”

He better because it is not just that UK has lost two of its first three games but it is how disjointed the offense has looked the last two games. Nothing seems smooth or organized.

“They slowed the ball down a lot and it really messed us up,” Kentucky freshman Isaiah Jackson said. “We couldn’t get in a flow offensively. We are young and have a lot to work on.”

Yes they do.

Kentucky led 26-13 with 6:12 left in the first half after a rare 3-pointer thanks to Dontaie Allen. By halftime the lead was down to 35-29 as the scoring droughts started as UK went almost four minutes without a field goal.

“It hurt us a lot,” Jackson, who had eight blocks and 12 rebounds, said about the late collapse. “We didn’t have any energy. We came out lackadaisical (in the second half) and had no energy the second half.”

The second half UK had an almost seven-minute drought while Kansas went on a 10-0 run.

“Reason they are struggling shooting is because they have not yet understood what a good shot is,” ESPN analyst Dick Vitale said.

He’s right. Calipari did not disagree as he pointed out that point guards Devin Askew and Davion Mintz combined for seven turnovers and just three assists.

“They were trying to make hard plays instead of the easiest play and getting away from the ball,” Calipari said. “Just get it (the offense) started and get away from the ball. They can shoot it, drive it. They are good free throw shooters.”

But Calipari says when all five defensive players are focused on Mintz or Askew, they are not as good. He wants them to get to the weak side where they can make an extra pass to get an assist or shoot the ball.

“Our point guards had three assists. Not enough. Got to be eight, nine, 10 between the two of them,” Calipari said.

Kentucky’s defense was more than solid. Kanas shot just 29 percent (20 of 67) from the field and 23.8 percent (5-for-21) from 3-point range. It was the first time in 73 games under Calipari that UK lost while holding a team to less than 33 percent shooting from the field. It was also the lowest field goal percentage a top 10 team had shot against UK since Louisville hit only 25.9 percent in 2014.

“We defended them. We guarded them. We just weren’t rough enough. That’s why I kept putting guys in,” Calipari said.

However, no matter who he put in Kentucky just could not find any consistent offense after its 15-0 surge in the first half. Credit Kansas for not folding and making UK work harder to score than the young Cats are ready to do.

“Some guys have got to grow up,” Calipari said. “This is a no excuse program. If you want to make excuses you should not be here.”

Truth is there are no excuses for losses to Richmond and Kansas. The team that played harder and more as a team won both games. Simple enough and when that will change remains to be seen.

“To be honest I feel like these losses helped us as a team,” Jackson said. “We have a lot to work on and grow. As the season goes on, we have a lot of things to work on. Yet again it’s only the third game. We have time. We are going to keep working.”

And every UK fan now knows there is a lot more work to do than anticipated just a few weeks ago.

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