Tennessee 61 Kentucky 59

[letabrotherspeak]

UK is a pretty good team playing in a really good league this year. For years people lamented how down the SEC was, but that is changing. The league has some really good coaches and some solid young and up and comer coaches. The league top to bottom has become very good and very competitive.

Tennessee is a good club. Not great but play well together and have just enough shooting and a player that they can throw the ball to when they need a bucket.

UK just really struggles on the offensive end to string anything together and part of the problem is that they don't have a guy on the block they can throw it to and get a key bucket or get to the line.

When it gets crunch time they depend on a guard to create and for the most part SGA has done well. Tonight he and Green carried them and UT guarded him really well on the screen and ripped him on the crossover.

The other glaring issue is that they don't shoot the ball with any consistency from the perimeter, but part of that goes back to sharing the basketball and simply passing it. They don't move it and it leads to lack of assists.

They got their issues and have been in a bunch of close games. They have played a solid non-conference schedule and are making improvement in areas but the lack of efficiencies on offense leads to droughts and it just kills them from stretching leads and creates tight games.

Decision making isn't the best but there is not much of a calming influence on the court.

To me Diallo has been the biggest disappointment thus far.

They will make the tourney and will absorb a few more losses, but they will be in the 7-9 seed range.

There is still a ways to go.

[Jumper_Dad]

I just think some people look at a player like Miles Bridges and wonder why Cal can’t get a player like that to stay for more than a year.

 

How does he do that...Recruit worse players and hope they develop slowly. Maybe lie to them each year about what scouts are saying about them. Maybe he could just guilt them into staying an extra year for the good of the program and forget about thier family.

 

Some people are up in arms because UK is suddenly getting out recruited by Duke, yet they don't want players good enough to leave after one year...it's a no win situation for Cal with many fans.

[GrantNKY]

How does he do that...Recruit worse players and hope they develop slowly. Maybe lie to them each year about what scouts are saying about them. Maybe he could just guilt them into staying an extra year for the good of the program and forget about thier family.

 

Some people are up in arms because UK is suddenly getting out recruited by Duke, yet they don't want players good enough to leave after one year...it's a no win situation for Cal with many fans.

Don’t shoot the messenger I agree with you. Just reiterating what I’ve heard other fans say. What a lot of fans IMO are failing to grasp is that the Duke staff is now going into living rooms and giving the same pitch that Cal and UK have given since he’s been here. We are about your son and he can come to Duke, help us win a national championship and after 1 year can go to the league. We have a track record of doing this successfully. What Duke can say that UK can’t is on top of basketball, you have a lifetime scholarship to a top 20 university in the country. I think it’s foolish to underestimate the impact that has when sitting down in the living room with parents, but yet I hear from other UK fans that refuse to believe it.

[GrantNKY]

@Jumper_Dad fans want to have their cake and eat it too.

[futurecoach]

Is this team better than the other team that went to the NIT?

 

Yes and it's not even close.

[futurecoach]

I really wish Cal would start keeping players for more than just a year. I mean if your so worried about getting players to the NBA, then by all means go be an NBA coach...

 

Um that is exactly what this team is. Full of guys who won't be one or done except maybe 2 of them.

[UK#1fanisback]

Embarasing out coached again.

[futurecoach]

Remaining UK schedule with opponent RPI:

 

at #25 Texas A&M

at #5 Auburn

#36 Alabama

at #34 Arkansas

#31 Missouri

#76 Ole Miss

at #46 Florida

 

Every remaining game except one against a top 50 RPI opponent. Win 3 of the games versus RPI top 50 teams and they likely will be in the top 20 in RPI wins and be in the top 10 in strength of schedule.

 

I actually like what I'm seeing out of maybe 6 players.

 

Remember weeks ago when I said that this team is just as likely to miss the tourney as they are to survive the first weekend? Right now they are going to have to pull some upsets just to make it. There are likely 4 more losses in regular season play plus one in the SEC tourney. That WVU win is only worth so much.

 

I think they lose at Texas am. I think they best Auburn at Auburn. I think they beat Bama. Then lose at Arkansas. Beat Missouri, beat ole Miss. Lose to Florida. So I think 3 more regular season losses. They end up between a 7 and 10 seed. Possibly higher if they get hot and win the sec tournament.

[Hatz]

How exactly should he go about "Keeping Players"...lie to them, guilt them into staying...how does he get them to stay?

 

It works for Roy Williams. :thumb:

[Just Hangin Around]

As for the bolded, I agree and would add that on the last possession this team was obviously confused on what they wanted to do. I am not sure but I think that Cal had a time out left and imo he should've taken one to set up a last shot. That ...no t/o's is Cal's thinking in that situation, I have heard him say that before. One particular time was when at Memphis ...he lost a national title to Kansas with a scenario almost like that.

 

He absolutely had 2 tos left and should have used 1 to set up a play. Total lapse by the bench imo.

[Hatz]

I have no expectations any longer for this team. Knox has not improved. Diallo, well we are seeing why he didn’t play last year. Vanderbilt is lost too many times. Without contributions from those three this team is what you saw. I like Green and SGA together.

 

I thought Cal made a mistake not calling a timeout. This team needs guidance, particularly in their current funk.

[Just Hangin Around]

Embarasing out coached again.

 

Your same old tired response!

[Jumper_Dad]

Don’t shoot the messenger I agree with you. Just reiterating what I’ve heard other fans say. What a lot of fans IMO are failing to grasp is that the Duke staff is now going into living rooms and giving the same pitch that Cal and UK have given since he’s been here. We are about your son and he can come to Duke, help us win a national championship and after 1 year can go to the league. We have a track record of doing this successfully. What Duke can say that UK can’t is on top of basketball, you have a lifetime scholarship to a top 20 university in the country. I think it’s foolish to underestimate the impact that has when sitting down in the living room with parents, but yet I hear from other UK fans that refuse to believe it.

 

UK is a lifelong scholarship also. A few kids may pick Duke for academic reasons, but 95% of those kids aren't one and done either.

I'm not complaining about recruiting. I'm just pointing out that many of the same people I see here and on social media complaining about recruiting, are the same people complaing about recruiting one and done players.

[MJAlltheWay24]

I really wish Cal would start keeping players for more than just a year. I mean if your so worried about getting players to the NBA, then by all means go be an NBA coach...

 

"I want Calipari to recruit less talented kids and have multiple years where we arent championship contenders."

[MJAlltheWay24]

Embarasing out coached again.

 

Its been a long time coming but this will be the last post I see from ya. All the best.