Game Thread UK vs Davidson

[Joneslab]

Well good for Pomeroy, how many of those teams had a 3 point streak like Kentucky? None

I thought Vanderbilt and Princeton had hit a three in every game since the invention of the line, but I might be wrong. Also thought UNLV at one point had a streak that was as long or longer than ours.

I just fail to see why it matters if you win. If you lose and don't hit a three, then sure. But if you take 6 attempts then there's a decent chance you aren't hitting more than 1 or 2 at most. That's playing the game in such a way where you're just not letting the three factor into the game.

With the way we could just score anytime we wanted to on them then there really was no other way to play it that made sense.

[Dwight Schrute]

Reality is this, if we had a team to win it all and the streak was broken, i could live with, sacrifice the streak for a Championship 7 days a week and twice on Sunday. The fact its going to take a miracle to win it all knowing we will lose and the streak will be broken ticks me off, hope this team proves me wrong..

This is a weird thing to go to the mat for and dwell on. I hope you find peace.

[J.Jennings]

So let me ask this, the fact we didn't hit a three does it concern anyone at all moving foward?

[Dwight Schrute]

So let me ask this, the fact we didn't hit a three does it concern anyone at all moving foward?

Not anymore than using Wenyen Gabriel's 7-7 performance against Alabama last weekend concerned me that we were relying on the 3 pointer too much. You take what you get. If we had barely cracked 60 last night or shot like 30% it would be something worth worrying about. Worrying about a dumb streak at the expense of taking high percentage shots is absurd. It would've been basketball malpractice for Cal to worry about that.

If a single data point causes you to flip out, you're not gonna enjoy games very much at all.

[Joneslab]

It is true that shooting the ball is one of the things that has kept this team from being a top 15/top 10 team. And there's a really good chance that if/when we lose in this tournament, we're probably going to point to shooting as the cuase.

There are other things that plague us, notably our lack of a true game-changing big man.

But the three-point shooting has been a problem all year. We've had flashes--particularly late in the season and in the SEC Tournament--where we were okay. But this team badly needs another shot-maker. That's obvious.

But it's possible that if we would've had that shot-maker last night then we still would have seen the streak snapped, because that guy should have driven it against that team. Davidson is a straight garbage defensive team in all facets. Like, they guard nobody. Anybody at the D1 level who plays at Kentucky would've been told to drive the basketball against that bunch.

[J.Jennings]

This is a weird thing to go to the mat for and dwell on. I hope you find peace.

Im at peace i just think its odd a powerhouse like Kentucky doesnt hit a 3 in year 2018, have you watched basketball the past 32 years and how its evolved? Not to hit a 3 against slower Wisconsin like players from Davidson is mind boggling. .

[Joneslab]

So let me ask this, the fact we didn't hit a three does it concern anyone at all moving foward?

History has proven that teams play completely different round to round in the NCAA Tournament. We've looked like trash before in first-round games and then played great in the second. Especially for young teams, it's mostly about getting comfortable.

But the main reason it isn't that concerning is because of the very low number of attempts. If we were 0-15 then absolutely, we'd all be worried. Six attempts is nothing.

[Dwight Schrute]

Im at peace i just think its odd a powerhouse like Kentucky doesnt hit a 3 in year 2018, have you watched basketball the past 32 years and how its evolved? Not to hit a 3 against slower Wisconsin like players from Davidson is mind boggling. .

Why? We were getting whatever we wanted inside. We shot 51%. We only attempted 6 3 pointers the whole game - that tells you it ain't no thing.

[J.Jennings]

As Will pointed out, we had a few good looks from Gabriel and Knox, they just didn't go down. I agree a 3 point contest wit Davidson we lose. The game plan to punish them inside and get to the rim was correct. My biggest problem and i hope he learns moving foward is SGA went one on one and had open looks in the corner but refused to give it up, thats a problem moving foward if he doesn't correct that. .

[Joneslab]

The "they're slow like Wisconsin" argument is baffling.

That's the very reason we didn't hit a three. When you can torch someone off the dribble and power through them in the paint, to take a 21-foot jumper is a strange move.

[Joneslab]

As Will pointed out, we had a few good looks from Gabriel and Knox, they just didn't go down. I agree a 3 point contest wit Davidson we lose. The game plan to punish them inside and get to the rim was correct. My biggest problem and i hope he learns moving foward is SGA went one on one and had open looks in the corner but refused to give it up, thats a problem moving foward if he doesn't correct that. .

Couple of times he gave it up when he should've shot it.

Shai is almost always in control. He's to the point right now that nearly every decision he makes is the right one.

Last night I thought he made 10 to 12 mistakes, and was probably the only player we had who looked unsure about what he could get. I even thought Hami had a pretty solid game, which is obvious seeing as how Davidson had no one who could match his speed.

[Joneslab]

Also think the Buffalo game is going to fit Shai's game much better.

That game is going to be fast. Like super fast. We will likely have to score 80 to win. Jarred Vanderbilt would be a great asset in a game like that because he could rip and run all night.

[Blue Heaven]

Me too..that was a nail biter and I don't like those

Yep. I have no nails right now. Literally.

[Blue Heaven]

It's like worrying about the home attendance title every year. It's meaningless.

That's a good comparison right there.

[40bill]

So let me ask this, the fact we didn't hit a three does it concern anyone at all moving foward?

Not really, JJ...to be dead honest, I was sure about six weeks ago this team was going to be in the NIT. Going forward is an unexpected perk to me.
I wouldn't care if the Cats win the next game by hitting only free throws as long as at the end they get to play next game in Atlanta.

I tend to agree with the CBS studio guys.....this UK team is awfully streaky at best at shooting, but that size differential they had wasn't going away.
​​​​​​UK only took six threes, and I think three or four of them were bad shots. A couple more of them and we could very well be crying that there was gonna be a second round of Davidson vs Buffalo.