Storyline: Nobody is panicking … yet. But unless obvious improvements are made, it’s going to be a long off-season in The Bluegrass State.
John Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats are usually a good bet to dominate the SEC, punch a ticket to the NCAA tournament, and make a run in the Final Four. That was the storyline again when the ’16-17 college basketball season began. The nation waited to see a wave of new “Diaper Dandies” in Lexington.
But the ‘Cats have struggled. And it would not surprise me to see the Wildcats bounced in the Sweet 16, if not earlier.
Courtesy: lakerholicz.com
These past couple of weeks should have served as a wake-up call for Big Blue. Kentucky has dropped three out of its last five (losing at Tennessee, vs. Kansas, and at Florida). And UK would have lost to Georgia at Rupp if Malik Monk hadn’t saved the day with a jumper at the end of regulation to force overtime.
The loss to Florida was especially bad. The Gators manhandled the ‘Cats in Gainesville last Saturday night en route to a 88-66 win–the largest margin of victory over Kentucky in school history.
The Wildcats are not playing like a Final Four team AT ALL, especially if you take away the neutral court win over North Carolina. That means the Wildcats have plenty of work to do before Selection Sunday.
There is still time to right the ship. But in order for the ‘Cats to make it to Phoenix they’ll need to do three things.
- The home state seniors MUST get more playing time
Calipari has to rely more on his home state seniors, Derek Willis and Dominique Hawkins.
Willis, a product out of Mount Washington, has a shot that’s smooth as buttermilk and wet as a Seattle day. He has not received nearly enough playing time that he’s due. Just look at what he did in 25 minutes in the loss to Kansas. He was leading scorer (18 points on five-of-six shooting from long range) and leading rebounder (6) against the Jayhawks’ stellar interior. If not for Willis the Jayhawks would have turned that “Primetime” match-up into a snoozer.
Dominique Hawkins (photo, Lexington Herald-Leader)
Hawkins won a state championship at Madison Central High (Richmond) and was voted Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball. While he may not be the best shooter on the floor, he may very well be the best defender in the country under six feet. And Hawkins’ athleticism is off the charts. According to Mark Story of The Lexington Herald-Leader Hawkins has a 37″ no-step vertical leap, a 44.5″ best maximum vertical leap, and can bench press 185 pounds with 16 repetitions.
It is time for both these guys to see more floor time, especially at the same time. They compliment each other by negating the other’s weaknesses.
- The interior needs retooling
And the award for the best big man of the year goes to…Bam Adebayo of Kentucky! Yeah, right! That statement has more sarcasm oozing from it than a cheap burger has grease dripping off its bun.
The truth is that Adebayo has been a disappointment. Sure, he can throw down an occasional dunk that sends fear into the opposing team, but he’s not good for much more than that. He’s grabbing just 6.8 rebounds per game and blocking a meager 1.6 shots per game.
Adebayo isn’t a work horse, either: he’s a show horse, perhaps the most overrated player in college basketball right now. Poor interior defense, the Achilles’ heel for Kentucky this season, is largely due to Bam’s play.
What’s the answer? Play Isaac Humphries. While he’s grabbing just 3.6 rebounds a game, Humphries is only playing an average of 9.4 minutes per game. Hypothetically, if he got the same amount of playing time as Adebayo, he’d pull down 10.8 rebounds per outing. Humphires is a work horse who needs to be rewarded.
- LEARN HOW TO BEAT A ZONE!
If you look at the tape of the Kansas-Kentucky game you’ll notice that the Jayhawks started making a run when they went zone against Kentucky. That’s the way it has been all season. The Wildcats simply don’t play well against the zone. So expect to see teams play zone against UK the rest of the year.
Courtesy: USA Today
Kentucky scores a good share of its points in transition. Success in the half-court comes when the other team is in man-to-man. While the way to beat a zone is NOT by driving into it, Calipari still seems committed to his NBA-style “dribble drive” offense.
A team must PASS the ball to beat the zone. The high post and short corners are ALWAYS open. The best way to beat the zone is to go to the high post and then hit a guard diving in from the short corner. You’ll not only get the basket, but a lot of times you’ll get a chance to add one more from the charity stripe.
When Kentucky controls the tempo and gets out in transition, they look like a million bucks. But unless the Wildcats figure out the zone defense they’ll have an early exit from the NCAA tournament.
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Nobody is panicking … yet. But unless obvious improvements are made, it’s going to be a long off-season in The Bluegrass State.
