Busting Brackets
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NCAA Tournament 2019: Top takeaways from 1st half of Round of 32 games

By Brian Rauf

JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 23: Tremont Waters #3 of the LSU Tigers goes up for a shot against Jalen Smith #25 of the Maryland Terrapins during the second half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 23: Tremont Waters #3 of the LSU Tigers goes up for a shot against Jalen Smith #25 of the Maryland Terrapins during the second half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /
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JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – MARCH 23: Nathan Hoover #10 of the Wofford Terriers drives against Keldon Johnson #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – MARCH 23: Nathan Hoover #10 of the Wofford Terriers drives against Keldon Johnson #3 of the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half of the game in the second round of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Vystar Memorial Arena on March 23, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /

2) Kentucky‘s perimeter defense is one of the best in the country

Though LSU-Maryland may have had the best finish of the day, Kentucky’s victory over Wofford may have been the game of the day. And, without PJ Washington’s offensive production, the Wildcats were able to win this game with their defense.

Defense has been Kentucky’s calling card since freshman point guard Ashton Hagans was inserted into the starting lineup in the middle of the season and they may have played their best game on that end of the court on Saturday.

The Wildcats limited Wofford – a top-10 offense nationally in terms of efficiency – to just 37.5 percent shooting and 29.6 percent from three-point range.

Tyler Herro did a particularly spectacular job on Wofford star Fletcher Magee, who only had eight points on 4/17 shooting, including 0/12 from three. It was the most three-point attempts by a single player in NCAA Tournament history without a make.

Kentucky expects to get Washington back next weekend yet, even if they do, it will take some time to work him back into the lineup and get him playing at 100 percent. That means the Wildcats won’t be at their full potential offensively, putting a continued emphasis on their defense. And, given what we saw against Wofford, this group is up for the challenge.

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