Texas at Kentucky: 2020-21 storylines for Big 12/SEC Challenge matchup

The free-throw line

The free-throw is a valuable source of points, especially when it comes to determining a winner of a close contest. The success each team has from the free-throw line may not determine the winner of this close contest, but it very well will play a factor in making it a close contest. It is the Kentucky Wildcats who need as many easy points as possible and the free-throw line is just the place to do it.

The Wildcats’ free-throw percentage in conference games has improved almost five percentage points to 75 percent in comparison to their season shooting overall. This improvement from the line is a by-product of the WIldcats’ overall game improvement and has led them to be the best free-throw shooting team in the SEC.

In their four SEC victories, the Wildcats have shot 62-79 from the charity stripe and there is serious potential for the WIldcats to have a parade to the line versus the second most foul-prone team in the Big 12, as the fewest amount of fouls accumulated by the Longhorns in a Big 12 game has been sixteen. If the Wildcats are going to live from the line, it will have to be through Olivier Sarr and Brandon Boston. Those two leading the way to the line is an indication of the Wildcats’ game style being more conducive to winning.

If Sarr is getting to the line and getting opponents in foul trouble, that means Coach Calipari is pounding the ball in the paint and getting the Longhorns’ athletic, long players in foul trouble. If Boston is getting to the line, it is an indication that he is not settling for three-point shots and is getting to the rim for easy shots. While points are important, how teams get those points is even more important.