Kentucky Wildcats: 3 Thoughts on Win against LSU
In yet another hotly contested conference match-up, the Kentucky Wildcats needed a late run to escape Baton Rouge with a win over the LSU Tigers.
Late shooting woes didn’t help the Tigers’ cause
LSU was up 66-60 following Keith Hornsby’s made basket with 7:42 left in the game, but the Tigers apparently got too happy at home in front of the 13,997 in attendance inside the Pete Mavarich Assembly Center. The fans were excited and they had a reason to be, with their home team up on No. 1 Kentucky (24-0, 11-0 Southeastern Conference) with the clocking ticking away. The fans were in reach of a potential rush-the-floor type of moment that would have went into the history books, but it didn’t happen.
LSU (17-7, 6-5 SEC) ended the game going 1-for-6 from the field and its defense collapsed as well, allowing the Wildcats to go on an 11-3 run to end the game. To make matters worse, coach Johnny Jones didn’t have the ball in Jarell Martin’s hands on the game’s last possession. Martin scored 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds and was part of the Tigers’ 19-2 run to grab the lead earlier in the half.
Why not give your most proficient player on the team the ball at such a pivotal moment? Some of the fans on Twitter and at the game were not happy with Jones’ decision to give the basketball to Hornsby for the potential game winner. Now, Hornsby played well, scoring 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting, but Martin would have been my choice in the end, since he was un-guardable by the big men of Kentucky.
Devin Booker sparked the Cats’ offense
Devin Booker made shot after shot in the first half when Kentucky was down 14-6. First, he knocked down a mid-range jumper then followed with a 3-pointer to cut the Wildcats’ deficit to 14-11. Booker added 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting, but his single most important point came with 15 seconds left in the game. He went 1-for-2 from the line that ultimately sealed the win for Kentucky. Booker was the right man for the Wildcats at the free throw line, since he’s shooting 82.5 percent for the season.
When coach John Calipari needs a free throw in a crucial moment, he just needs to look for Booker to save the day.
Karl Anthony-Towns is still hot
Karl Anthony-Towns added another solid floor performance Tuesday night against LSU. He finished the game with 12 points and 13 rebounds. When Kentucky needed a rebound, he was there to snatch one away from the Tigers. His most important one came late in the game off of Andrew Harrison’s missed floater. After Towns grabbed the rebound, he was able to find Booker open and LSU had no other choice but to foul since the 30-second shot clock was dead.
Towns could have been on the negative side of things after Calipari gave him some words following his pursuit to hang onto the rim while Willie Cauley-Stein was going back up for the tip-in, which was called for offensive goaltending. But, he didn’t allow that one mistake to ruin his team chances of staying undefeated. There were times Jordan Mickey and Martin were in position to grab the rebound, but out of nowhere, Towns was there.
The Wildcats are one win shy of tying the 1953-54 team for their best start to a season. With Towns playing at a high level, Cauley-Stein catching uncontested alley-oops, Booker’s smooth shooting, and one of the Harrison twins knocking down big shots, the goal is not farfetched.