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Lexington, KY / 11-29-22
The No. 19 Wildcats returned to the hardwood Tuesday night as they took on the Bellarmine Knights at Rupp Arena. The Knights have faced stiff competition to begin their season, matching up against Louisville, Clemson, Duke, and UCLA on the road, gaining a 1-point win over Louisville to start the year 67-66. Due to the strong strength of schedule to start the year, the Knights entered the game with a 2-5 record. The ‘Cats entered with a 4-2 record with their last win coming over North Florida at home by a score of 96-56. As the ‘Cats continue to gel as a team, some keys to look for in the game continued to be team rebounding outside of Tshiebwe, point guard play in Wallace and Wheeler, consistent offensive rhythm and flow, team three-point shooting (primarily Reeves and Frederick), and the Freshman’s ability to impact the game and see continued game growth.
The starting lineup for the ‘Cats featured Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, and Tshiebwe, with Reeves getting his second consecutive start.
Game Recap:
The first score of the game came from a Bellarmine corner three from Hopf 2-minutes into the game. After another Hopf three-pointer for the Knights, the ‘Cats scored their first points of the game off a Reeves putback layup. The ‘Cats started sluggish and trailed 6-4 at the first media timeout, a sign of what was to come later in the first half. Coach Calipari was unhappy with the starters performance to begin the game and subbed in Collins, Frederick, Ware and Livingston after the timeout in an effort to jumpstart the ‘Cats. Those substitutions did not have the effect that Calipari and the ‘Cats were looking for, as they trailed 10-6 with 10:44 left in the half. Kentucky’s offense committed 7 turnovers in the first 9 minutes of action and shot just 30% to start the game. The ‘Cats tried to get some offensive momentum going with consecutive layups from Tshiebwe and Reeves to bring the score to 12-12 at the under 8-minute media timeout. A dreadful offensive run from both teams was broken by a Wallace free-throw that brought the score to 13-12 ‘Cats with a little over 5-minutes to play. After two Knights free-throws, the ‘Cats finally nailed their first three of the game off a Wheeler make at the top of the key. An 8-0 Kentucky run featuring a Tshiebwe layup and a Frederick three off a clean Wheeler pass extended the ‘Cats lead to 21-14 with 3:27 to play in the half. Bellarmine quickly responded with a 7-0 run of their own to even the score at 21 with 1:18 to play. Failed offensive possessions by both the ‘Cats and the Knights ended the half with the score of 21-21. The ‘Cats defense held Bellarmine to 29% shooting in the first half, but on the other end their offense shot just 30% from the field. Tshiebwe led the way for the ‘Cats in the half with 6 points and 6 rebounds, helping the ‘Cats garner a 25-13 lead in the rebounding department in the half. Bellarmine was deliberate on both the offensive end in their designed plays and on the defensive end, using quick hands and effort to disrupt Kentucky’s offense into 9 first half turnovers. The slow, half-court play style of the Knights led to limited offensive opportunities for both teams in the half.
As the ‘Cats looked to get the offense rolling early in the second half, Reeves cut to the basket to convert an and-one opportunity for the first score of the half, giving the ‘Cats a 24-21 lead. The Knights responded with a three-pointer on their next possession. After a couple of successful offensive possessions from both the ‘Cats and the Knights, another Bellarmine three-pointer gave the Knights a 29-28 lead with 16:33 to play in the half. Coach Davenport drew up a play for another Knights three-pointer out of a timeout to extend their lead to 32-28 at the first media timeout. A Reeves three off a Wheeler assist and a Wheeler free-throw brought the ‘Cats back into a 32-32 tie. With the Rupp Arena crowd getting restless in the low scoring affair, Kentucky’s defensive intensity increased with each possession. A 4-minute Knights scoring drought and a 6-0 Kentucky run led to a pair of Frederick free-throws that gave the ‘Cats a 34-32 lead at the under 12-minute timeout. That ‘Cats scoring run eventually grew into an 18-3 run that saw the Knights go through another 4-minute scoring drought and saw the ‘Cats take a 46-35 lead with 7-minutes remaining in the game. The ‘Cats continued their run with a Toppin slam and a transition Reeves three that pushed the lead to 16 by a score of 51-35. A Wheeler floater off a shifty move to get to the paint and another three from Reeves gave the ‘Cats a 56-37 lead with 2:29 to play. The ‘Cats finished the scoring for the game with two Toppin free-throws to give the ‘Cats a 60-41 win off a strong second half push.
The suffocating ‘Cats defense held the Knights to 30% shooting from the field and 29% from three-point range. The ‘Cats shot 42% from the court and 32% from three (7 made threes, 6 from Reeves/Frederick). The ‘Cats were strong on the boards against the Knights, outrebounding them 42-21 in the game. Reeves led the way in scoring for the ‘Cats with 18 points and was followed by Toppin with 12 points and Frederick with 11 points. Tshiebwe led the rebounding charge with 12 in the game. Oscar was also the plus/minus leader in the game for the ‘Cats with a +21 in 32 minutes. Wheeler distributed the ball well and collected 6 assists to lead the way for the ‘Cats. Livingston and Ware played sparingly but brought energy and defensive intensity when they saw the floor, with Livingston collecting 5 boards and a steal in 12 minutes.
The ‘Cats will catch a flight and head across the pond for their next matchup as they take on the Michigan Wolverines on Sunday, December 4 at 1:00 p.m. The game will be played in London, England at The O2 Arena and will be televised on ABC.
