Ohio State vs. Kentucky: 2019-20 key storylines for non-conference matchup

2) Kentucky’s lack of perimeter shooting

Perhaps the biggest reason for concern with this Kentucky team is their lack of perimeter shooting. It’s not new for a Wildcats team to struggle from deep – it has been a common problem for Calipari teams over the past few years – but this group doesn’t have any one player who can threaten opponents from long-range.

Kentucky is shooting just 27.5 percent from three-point range as a team, a mark that puts them among the nation’s worst (326th). Because they struggle so much in that category, they don’t shoot a lot of them – UK’s average of 4.2 made threes per game is the eighth-lowest mark in the country.

Individually, they don’t have anyone shooting over 33.3 percent from distance and that guy, Kahlil Whitney, has only made four three-pointers all season.

Utah tweaked their defensive strategy to play to this weakness. In order to eliminate Kentucky’s athleticism advantage and to make things tougher on their slashers, they mostly used a sagging man-to-man that packed the paint and left UK players wide open on the perimeter. Even the on-ball defender would have a foot in the paint (or would at least be close to it).

The results certainly worked in Utah’s favor. Kentucky still didn’t shoot a lot from deep despite they open looks they were presented and, when they did, they didn’t shoot them well (2/17).

I’d fully expect Ohio State – a better defensive team than Utah, mind you – to implement a similar strategy and have even more success on that end. Simply put, Kentucky is going to have to make perimeter shots if they’re going to win.