Vicky Graff Photo
Kentucky and Alabama basketball gave listeners, viewers and those in attendance a preview of what could very well be one of the two Final Four games later this spring.
The No. 8 Wildcats and No. 4 Crimson Tide battled it out for 40 minutes of action in Rupp Arena with Alabama edging out Kentucky, 102-97.
It was one of Kentucky’s better outings of the season and at times they felt like the superior team in the building.
However, Alabama has several players who have continuity dating back to last season and that really showed at key points in the game.
The Crimson Tide were excellent to close the half and at the end of the ballgame in executing on offense while also forcing the Wildcats into a few mistakes.
Kentucky surprisingly matched up pretty well on the glass (Alabama slightly winning the rebounding battle, 42-38) with the one glaring issue being free throw attempts.
The Crimson Tide attempted 34 free throws (made 29) while the Wildcats attempted only 20 (made 16). It’s also worth pointing out Alabama attempted seven more three point attempts and two more turnovers than Kentucky.
While several calls on both sides of the ball were questionable, what was likely the main cause of the free throw disparity was Kentucky committed plenty of fouls that either weren’t necessary or were forced due to being out of position.
A very good team like Alabama (or several others in the Southeastern Conference) will capitalize on this as conference play unravels, so it’s significant that Kentucky makes necessary adjustments in practice.
The Wildcats fall to 14-4 with the loss and are now 3-2 in SEC play. They’ll head to Vanderbilt next Saturday for another mid-day game, with tip-off scheduled for 2:30 PM ET on ESPN.
Kentucky-Alabama Basketball
Photos by Vicky Graff
8 Responses
I in my opinion they didn’t play smart in the second half. Bama hit there shots when needed when we were hanging in there. Its all good the cats will be fine.
With you seemed like Bama hit every big shot
Bama may have had the better halftime speech as the Cats couldn’t get any continuity thru most of that half, but that has been the case for this season. It seems we take 2 steps forward and 1 back. Not sure I have ever seen more missed shots in close, but that has also happened in previous games. Jax and Carr cannot both have subpar performances if we expect to win, and Carr cannot have 3 fouls at halftime if he wants to be a leader. They both need to avg about 15 pts per game. We also have to stop fouling at the rim which has also happened frequently this season. Next 2 games will probably also be season defining as well.
I think Bama had a lot to do with how UK played
They certainly did and were the better team today. They showed better ball movement, quickness, and a resolve to get to the rim to take advantage of our weak interior defense.
This team still hasn’t embraced playing Pope ball. It is not easy to do because you are constantly moving. That tires you out and you have to come out and they don’t want to do that. Defense takes a lot of effort. You defend by moving your feet to stay in front of your man, but again, that tires you out and they don’t want to come out. Rebounding requires effort. You have to find your man and box him out, but that tires you out. Our guards would rather get the snowbirds than fight for a rebound. Also with our bigs playing outside to start the offense, they are out of position to rebound our misses. Why don’t we ever do any pick and rolls with lobs to the basket? We might do one a game, but we have the personnel to do it all game long. If Carr is hurt, he needs to sit out until he is healthy…he did nothing good today. Perry could not stop his man. Brea’s shots need to come from the second and third passes, he can’t get his own shot; but that comes from playing Pope ball and they don’t want to do that. Bama plays their own version of Pope ball, but they drive to the rim and kick out to the open man. We are what we are and I don’t see that changing much now. I see us ending up as a fourth or fifth place SEC team, but it could be worse…we could be Arkansas.
King CALcified is COOKED
I know we all see what is happening right now with ARK—but we also see what is happening with our own team–and im telling u right now: too many people are just taking that for granted and not realizing how much attention that game is going to get nationally. Its the SAT before Superbowl, which means it’s the weekend between NFL conf champ games, so college bball will be front and center that particular weekend, nationally, because that’s the only significant sporting event that will be on TV to watch. The eyes of the entire country are going to be on our guys, and we are going to have to respond and play really well that game, because I’m telling u: IDC if ARK has lost every other SEC game before and after our meeting with them, CAL won’t care either, he will be more fired up, more amped, and will have his guys more amped to play for that game than any other the entire year! We all know CAL’s ego–and that’s what that game is going to be about for them. He always preached about how UK was everybody else’s Superbowl—well, this game on FEB 1st is going to be ARK’s SB, and that’s one thing that CAL understands, and it almost gives him slightly more of a mental/intangible edge in the game against us than against any other SEC team. Don’t think that game will be a walk in the park for us, because it won’t–it will be an absolute war, and I expect ARK to come in there and play their game of the season against us–again, because of how CAL will have prepared them. Its going to be about his own ego for him. Hopefully im giving him too much credit in advance as a coach, and hopefully he will prove me wrong. But he takes this whole deal personally–i know how he is. And in a way, it’s almost like ARK’s 0-5 start to the SEC Is actually putting more pressure on us as that matchup gets closer rather than the pressure being on THEM. We and they only have two more games apiece before we face off, and to be honest with u, I hope ARK wins at least one, if not both of those games, just so that they get that losing streak off the talking table–i honestly DO NOT WANT ARK to come into Rupp with CAL still looking for his first SEC win in his first return back. I would rather them win one or both before that meeting. Because if they still havent won by the time of our meeting, ALL OF THE PRESSURE will b on us. And I like most of our guys, but I just don’t trust them fully. Not to the level that I would LIKE to trust them. But that’s going to be a tough game. And I don’t think ppl have taken the time to think about this: Mark Pope would never live it down losing to CAL in his very first return back to Rupp Arena coaching ARK—AND ESPECIALLY if they still hadn’t won a conf game yet!! And we, the fans, would never live that down either. We absolutely CANNOT ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN–IDC what we have to do–but WE ABSOLUTELY CANNOT LOSE THAT GAME!! I don’t mind saying, just for ME personally, that ARK game this year is like what the UofL game is for me any other year. This year I would have rather lost to LOU in Rupp than to CAL. probly not alot of other ppl may feel that way–im just speaking for myself. And there may not be a lot of other ppl who feel as deep-rooted abt CAL as I do–but that’s ok–everybody is different. I just resent the way he treated our fan base, and how he made a mockery of BBN and the bball program, and how instead of just being a bball coach and doing what he was hired to do, he had to make the job be about politics. And he had to throw that in everybody’s face. And I just don’t think our current players have any idea what kind of atmosphere they are in for when that game comes–the hype and the media attention that’s going to come with that is going to be enormous. College GameDay is going to be there, and it’s going to be a 9:00 game, so the primetime game, primetime SAT night audience–and all day long for the players waiting for it to begin. Again, I almost see that game as CAL and our ex-players like Thiero and Z having a bit of a psychological edge in that matchup over our current CATS even tho it is a home game for us. But for guys like Thiero and Wagner and Z, and for CAL, it’s almost a home game for them too. They have played and coached in Rupp more and longer than our current players and new coach have played and coached in Rupp. Its just psychologically the circumstances for this one game are just different than any other this season–for KY and ARK both!! I hope our guys will be ready, and I hope Pope will understand it as well. I think the world of Mark Pope, and he is truly solid gold—but this is one game where we could be in trouble with him almost being "too nice". We gotta make Rupp as hostile an environment that night as we possibly can. Maybe not everybody would feel that way, but I would love to see CAL get booed out of the arena. Remember, HE LEFT US!!!! And again, think about what it would feel like for our new team and for Pope in his first year to lose to CAL in his first trip back to LEX with some of our ex-players. None of us would ever live that down, and the reason we wouldnt is because the media and now even other coaches have spent this entire month writing and talking about what a joke CAL is. Uhhhh, well, maybe that’s true up to right now–but if CAL comes into Rupp and beats KY his first year gone with where his team is sitting at TODAY, the national joke will no longer be on CAL—it will be on Mark Pope and KY. Come on guys–wake up, and understand what is in front of you!!! Its less than two weeks away!! And we have to do a two-game road trip in the state of TN before that game too—this could be a very challenging and testing, but interesting, couple of weeks–for both teams. Because after an 0-5 start to conf play, this same stretch we’re talking about is going to end up determining where CAL and ARK finishes in the SEC. And it will affect the trajectory of where our season goes as well–that is not an easy path: at Vandy, at TN, then the CAL SUPERBOWL—all in the span of 8 days!!!! Get ready, guys, and Coach!!! Use this off-week to work, gel, and get better! GO CATS!!!