Kentucky was back in Rupp Arena on Tuesday night, this time searching for their first marquee nonconference win after dropping their first two badly. It was the Wildcats taking on #16 North Carolina, and this was one was really physical, and they handled things really well. It was a rock fight, and Kentucky held their own, which they’ve been known to struggle with. But, in the final stretch, Kentucky’s offense crumbled, giving North Carolina the close win.
Let’s take a look at a few takeaways from yet another marquee nonconference loss for Kentucky.
Kentucky’s offensive woes come back to haunt them
The Wildcats managed to go the entire first half without a made three, with Brandon Garrison being the one who made it. Kentucky shot just 1-13 from three-point range, and the reason they were able to put up a fight was their defense. It wasn’t just shooting though, it was the fact that Kentucky’s offense got very stagnant late in the second half, as they went on a 10-minute scoring drought, even finishing just 2-16. The Wildcats held the Tarheels to 37 percent from the floor in the first half, but the second half, UNC was able to score much easier, really taking advantage of Kentucky’s massive scoring drought down the stretch. A lot of the talk entering the game was Kentucky would need to shoot well to win, and that ultimately didn’t happen, and it bit them at the end.
Second-chance points were a killer for Kentucky all game
North Carolina came into Tuesday’s game struggling as of late boxing out, but man, they sure did do it well against the Wildcats. As mentioned above, Kentucky did leave a lot of points on the table, and second-chance points are a huge reason why. The Tarheels aren’t known as an elite offense, and Kentucky gave them plenty of extra chances. Just how much? Kentucky gave up a season-high 22 second chance points. Kentucky, on the other hand, had just 5 second-chance points. Kentucky, most notably, gave up three-straight offensive rebounds on the same possession late in the game, which ended in a score. That was a play that really told the story of an area Kentucky really failed at. The Wildcats gave up 20 offensive rebounds, which were also a season-high, but they also were unable get any extra offensive looks of their own, with just eight offensive rebounds.
It turned out to be a rough night for the Wildcats, as in the final minutes, they seemed an inch away from gaining momentum late, but that big scoring drought in the second half, as well as the very, very poor shooting turned out to loom large in the end. Now, the Wildcats go to 5-3 on the season, losing all of their power conference games so far…