Lots to Love in Wildcats Win Over Bulldogs

UK Athletics Photo

It was just one week ago when Kentucky basketball appeared to be in free-fall. Fans were calling for head coach John Calipari’s job, reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe was calling out his teammates’ defense and the Wildcats just weren’t quite healthy.

But in the seven days since, Kentucky has put together two wins and may very well have their season back on track. As if Saturday’s upset road win over the No. 5 Tennessee Volunteers wasn’t enough, Kentucky returned home and pulled off a comeback win over a pesky Georgia Bulldog team, 85-71.

The Wildcats had their home crowd roaring “GO BIG BLUE” chants as the clock expired, receiving a standing ovation for such a marvelous effort on Tuesday night. With that effort came many positive takeaways, starting with reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe.

So far this year, Kentucky’s beloved big man had not put together the season many had anticipated. Even Calipari had publicly challenged Tshiebwe to be in the gym more and be committed to working harder than everyone – which is what led him to winning NPOY last season.

Those comments didn’t take long to sink in, as Tshiebwe single-handedly carried the Wildcats to their comeback win over Georgia. He scored a career-high 37 points and grabbed a season-high 24 rebounds. Tshiebwe also made 13-18 free throw attempts and was much improved on the defensive end.

A majority of the credit can be given to Calipari for challenging his best player and Tshiebwe for answering the call. But you have to also give additional credit to Calipari for putting his star in the best position to succeed.

Kentucky has stuck with a new lineup of Cason Wallace, CJ Fredrick/Antonio Reeves, Jacob Toppin/Chris Livingston and Tshiebwe over the last two games. This lineup presents the most shooting ability Kentucky has to offer, which has allowed Tshiebwe more space inside to operate. It’s also Kentucky’s most athletic lineup, which leads to stronger drives and presents more offensive rebounding opportunities for Tshiebwe.

You’ll notice veteran point guard Sahvir Wheeler’s name wasn’t mentioned above. You probably also noticed that he missed Kentucky’s game at Tennessee and played one minute in the second half of Tuesday night’s game vs. Georgia (11 overall minutes). It’s no secret that Wheeler’s defense and inability to consistently shoot from outside are a problem for Kentucky. And once again, fans have to give credit to Calipari for being willing to adjust.

Often veteran coaches appear too stubborn to change philosophies and suffer the consequences for it. But not Calipari – at least not over the last two games. Granted, Wheeler was injured and unable to play at Tennessee. However, Calipari saw Georgia guard Terry Roberts blow by Wheeler enough in the first half to swallow his pride and keep Wheeler on the bench for 95% of the second half.

Fans also have to love the quality minutes the team is getting from Fredrick. Early on this season it appeared Fredrick was scared to be on the floor. He wasn’t careful with the ball and looked defeated if he ever missed a shot. Now, the veteran shooting guard is letting the ball fly and Kentucky is looking for him as a key member of the offense. It’s obviously working and should continue to make life easier for other members of the team.

One other observation that fans have to love is Kentucky’s body language. You can see the support up and down the bench that this team has shown each other over the last two games. Something has changed (for the better) with this team and, again, it all starts at the top.

Calipari deservingly receives a heavy portion of the blame when Kentucky loses and/or doesn’t play well. That is part of being the head coach at the greatest tradition in college basketball. But he also deserves to receive a lot of the credit when he pulls his team together for big-time performances. After all, these are student athletes and they rely heavily on quality coaching. Regardless if you believe in Calipari’s ability to coach x’s & o’s, he is one of the best motivators in college basketball and has clearly figured out the group he needs to have on the court.

The Wildcats have put two quality wins together, but will once again be tested as they host the Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is set for 2 PM ET with coverage on ESPN.