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After taking their second loss of the season to then No. 2 Gonzaga in Spokane last Sunday night, the No. 15 ranked ‘Cats returned to Rupp Arena on Thanksgiving Eve to take on the North Florida Ospreys. The Ospreys entered the game just 1-3 on the young season, also taking a loss to the Zags earlier this season. The Ospreys roster included a local Kentucky product in Senior Forward Carter Hendricksen. Hendricksen, like Brennan Canada for the ‘Cats, is from Mt. Sterling, KY. The two grew up playing basketball together on local little league teams. Behind Hicklen (15.3 PPG), Hendricksen is next in line for scoring for the Ospreys with 14.5 PPG this season. Hendricksen is in his fifth season with the Ospreys and has amassed and average of 11.1 PPG over 108 career games. For the ‘Cats, the team was looking to bounce back from a sluggish start to the season. Some keys to the game were the team’s ability to execute offensively through running successful plays, through the post and through getting shooter open shots. Other keys included three-point shooting, team rebounding, and guard play.
Calipari shook up the starting lineup for Wednesday’s game, starting Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, and Tshiebwe. This was Reeves first start in his Kentucky career.
Game Recap:
The scoring in the game started with a stop and pop floater from Toppin down the lane. The Ospreys responded quickly with an and-one opportunity that was not converted. Reeves nailed the fist Wildcats three-pointer of the game with a twitchy step back jumper from beyond the arc. After an Osprey three-point response, the ‘Cats nailed another three off the fingertips of Wallace to give the ‘Cats a 8-5 lead. A Toppin layup brought the lead to 10-5 at the first media timeout. After several successful offensive possessions by the ‘Cats, a Tshiebwe breakaway transition slam extended the lead to 10 with a score of 19-9. A 7-0 Kentucky run brought the score to 23-9 before Hendricksen scored his first points of the game at the free-throw line to end the Ospreys scoring drought. The ‘Cats took a 28-14 lead into the under 8-minute media timeout, with Calipari starting to pull players quickly for poor decision making and mistakes. A quick scoring spurt from Reeves and Tshiebwe brought the lead to 22 with the ‘Cats leading 38-16 with 3:55 to play in the half. A 12-2 Kentucky run over a 4-minute span helped the ‘Cats grow the lead further near the end of the first half. Reeves hit another step back three-pointer, something he is beginning to grow more comfortable doing as the games progress, then responded with another three-pointer the next trip down the court. Wheeler nailed another three-pointer and Reeves hit his fourth of the half at the buzzer that gave the ‘Cats a 54-23 lead at the half. Reeves led the way in scoring for the ‘Cats in the first half with 18 points. Tshiebwe and the ‘Cats dominated the boards 26-12, with Tshiebwe collecting 9 rebounds in addition to his 10 first half points. Selfless passing and smart in-game decision making led the ‘Cats to collect 15 first half team assists (North Florida with just 1 assist in the half). The Kentucky defense also held the Ospreys to just 34% FG shooting in the first half.
The second half scoring started with a Wallace layup off a nifty move to get to the paint. Toppin scored 7 points in the first 3-minutes of the half to give the ‘Cats a 69-31 lead at the first media timeout. The ‘Cats scored 15 points in the first 4-minutes of the second half. Toppin joined the Kentucky three-point shooting barrage with a deep three of his own to stretch the lead to 40 points by a score of 74-34. Calipari and the home fans were thrilled with the ‘Cats continued hustle by diving on the floor for loose balls up 40 midway through the second half. A Collins putback and a successful Onyenso post move brought the lead to 79-39 with 12:14 remaining. After a scoring drought for both teams, the score was 83-41 ‘Cats at the under 8-minute media timeout. The ‘Cats continued to struggle scoring the next 4-minute window as well, but still grew the lead to 90-46 with just over 4-minutes to play in the game. With the walk-ons entering the game with 2:20 left the ‘Cats went on to win the game 96-56.
The Kentucky defense held North Florida to 34% FG shooting in the game, and just 29% from three-point range. The Kentucky offense shot 48% from the field and 38% from three. The ‘Cats outrebounded the Opsreys 50-35. Hicklen led the Ospreys in scoring with 17 points, with Kentucky native Hendricksen finishing with 7 points. Toppin collected a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Reeves scored 20 points (18 in the first half) and Tshiebwe had 16 points as the only three ‘Cats in double figures. Tshiebwe added in 15 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals in a busy game. Onyenso added in 10 rebounds of his own in 18 minutes of action. Wallace led the ‘Cats with 6 assists. Tshiebwe also led the ‘Cats with a plus/minus of +40 in 22 minutes.
The next chance to catch the ‘Cats is Tuesday, November 29 at 7:00 p.m. against the Bellarmine Knights at Rupp Arena.
