UK basketball, unable to slow Alabama, falls at Rupp Arena for first time under Mark Pope

Posted by author January 18, 2025 Basketball

LEXINGTON — Kentucky basketball had played with fire defensively on more than one occasion this season. Entering Saturday, UK already had been involved in four high-octane affairs in which both teams scored 80 or more. The Wildcats were 4-0 in those matchups.

Saturday, against equally potent Alabama, Kentucky finally got burned.

The Wildcats couldn’t slow down the Crimson Tide’s offensive attack, losing 102-97 at Rupp Arena.

“I felt like we were battling a lot of fatigue out there,” UK coach Mark Pope said. “I felt like we were battling some frustration. I felt like we were kind of patchworking lineups a little bit. We were really struggling to guard legal. It was just kind of all those things come together. … There were so many big runs, and I think our guys were trying to stick. We felt like we were really trying to hang in this game.”

It not only was Kentucky’s first home setback (11-1) of the season; it was the first time Pope left on the wrong side of the scoreboard at Rupp since taking over as the coach of his alma mater.

Blame UK’s defense.

Against Gonzaga (in overtime), Louisville, Florida and Mississippi State, Kentucky permitted 85-plus points. But in those four games, UK’s offense carried the day, papering over defensive flaws.

The bend-but-don’t-break approach to defense didn’t work out Saturday, though.

The Wildcats (14-4, 3-2 SEC) gave up 47 points in the first half, heading into intermission trailing by two. The Crimson Tide (15-3, 4-1) was even better in the second half, putting 55 more on the board in the final 20 minutes. Forward Grant Nelson provided the pop at the start, scoring 19 of his game-high 25 before halftime. His teammates came to his aid in the second.

All told, Alabama had five players finish with 10 (or more) points: Nelson, guards Mark Sears (24), Labaron Philon (15) and Chris Youngblood (10) along with center Clifford Omoruyi (12).

Yet UK was even better offensively in terms of scoring balance: A whopping seven players finished in double figures, led by Otega Oweh‘s 21.

“This is still a team (with) seven guys in double figures, so our defense certainly didn’t win the game for us, ” Alabama coach Nate Oats said, “but our offense showed up.”

The chief concern for Kentucky on this day wasn’t the result itself — if the NCAA Tournament started today, it likely would be a top-three seed — but the manner in which, (and the other shootouts it’s had this season) unfolded. And what it might portend for the future.

In March, it’s one and done. In the SEC Tournament. And the Big Dance. All it takes is one off night defensively in the NCAAs for the Wildcats’ season to end far earlier than they want, especially as they attempt to make deep runs in March the standard once more following three straight opening-weekend exits.

That UK lost despite scoring 97 points in regulation was difficult for players to wrap their minds around.

But it also reinforced another axiom.

“You’re as good as your defense takes you,” said forward Ansley Almonor, who had 10 points off the bench Saturday. “So that’s definitely something that we try to emphasize every day. They’re a tough offensive team, but we’ve got to figure out ways to slow them down. We’re gonna work on it. We’ll be better.”

How much better the Wildcats have to be to return to the Final Four for the first time since 2015 is up for debate. Even before Saturday, Kentucky was far from a stingy unit defensively; it ranked outside the top 250 nationally (of 355 Division I squads whose statistics are tracked) in scoring defense at 74.5 points per game, slotting 15th in the 16-team SEC. Advanced metrics also painted a dreary picture for UK: Per KenPom, the Wildcats began Saturday 87th in the country in adjusted defensive efficiency — a measure of points allowed per 100 possessions, adjusted for opponent — at 101.7.

The problem for Pope’s program is history hasn’t been kind to such lackluster defensive teams come tournament time. Dating back to 2002, only one national champion ended a season outside the top 20 in adjusted defensive efficiency. (The lone outlier: Baylor in 2021. The Bears finished 22nd in adjusted defensive efficiency that season, a campaign in which the NCAA Tournament was contested entirely within the borders of Indiana amid the coronavirus pandemic.)

For context, last season’s national champ, UConn, was No. 3 in adjusted defensive efficiency in 2023-24.

It’s not all bad news for UK, however.

First and foremost: March is almost a month and a half away. The Wildcats have time to iron out their defensive issues. Pope immediately highlighted three in Saturday’s postgame — offensive rebounds (Alabama had 15), 3-point defense (Alabama shot 38.2% beyond the arc, converting 13 of its 34 attempts) and free throws (Alabama went to the line 34 times, sinking 29).

“So those three things lead to you giving up 102 points at home, right?” Pope said. “And those are areas where, if we’re going to play well, and if we’re going to win in really, really high-level games, we have to be better in those areas. We can’t bail teams out with fouls. We’ve got to handle teams in transition. We’ve got to keep them off the glass. We clearly have to guard the 3-point line a little bit better.”

At times this season, Kentucky has excelled in all of those defensive departments.

“Today was a significant misstep for us,” Pope said, “for sure.”

This story will be updated.

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.