Kentucky’s Patience Pays Off: Wildcats Ride the Foul Line to Gritty Win Over Texas
Mark Pope’s Kentucky squad didn’t just beat Texas on Wednesday night - they earned every bit of it, grinding out an 85-80 win at Rupp Arena by doing something they haven’t consistently done all season: dominate the free-throw line.
The Wildcats drew 35 fouls and cashed in on 30 of them, shooting a blistering 85.7% from the stripe. That’s not just efficient - it’s the most free throws a Pope-led Kentucky team has ever made in a single game. And it came in a contest where the margin never stretched beyond 11 points.
For Texas head coach Sean Miller, the story was simple: his team can’t stop fouling. And he didn’t mince words.
“We have a virus called fouling,” Miller said postgame. “It’s plagued us from the first tip of the season until tonight.
We’ll foul a 3-point shooter. We’ll foul at the end of the clock.
You name the foul, we’ll commit it.”
To his credit, Miller didn’t point fingers at the officiating crew - Doug Shows, KB Burdett Jr., and Tony Chiazza - instead owning the issue outright.
“It’s hard to win an SEC road game when the home team is 30 for 35 from the line,” he added. “But the officiating was fine. We fouled.”
And foul they did. The Longhorns sent Kentucky to the line 35 times, while they themselves only got 20 trips. That 12-point swing at the stripe proved decisive in a game where every possession mattered.
Kentucky’s Free-Throw Frenzy: A Statistical Outlier
This wasn’t just a good night at the line - it was a statistical outlier for Kentucky. Coming into the matchup, the Wildcats ranked 213th nationally in free-throw rate, per KenPom, with a 34.4% mark.
Against Texas? That number ballooned to 60.3%, as Kentucky attempted 35 free throws on just 58 field goal attempts.
And when it came time to knock them down, they delivered.
Denzel Aberdeen led the way with a 9-for-12 showing. Collin Chandler was perfect at 6-for-6.
Mo Dioubate chipped in 5-for-6. All told, the Wildcats shot 15 percentage points better than their season average of 72.6%, which had them sitting 169th in the country before tipoff.
Free throws accounted for 35.3% of Kentucky’s total points on the night - a massive jump from their season average of 18.5%. That’s the kind of shift that can change the complexion of a team’s offensive identity.
“It was patience,” Pope said afterward. “Sometimes you get to the line because you’re reckless.
But tonight, we were poised. We earned those fouls with the way we attacked.”
No Field Goals, No Problem
Here’s the wildest part: Kentucky didn’t hit a field goal in the final 5:48 of the game. And still, they won.
That’s how effective their foul-drawing and foul-shooting were down the stretch. In a game that demanded composure, the Wildcats found a rhythm at the line and never let go.
“We’ve got a lot of guys that can get downhill and get to the free-throw line,” said senior guard Otega Oweh. “We’ve just got to keep putting pressure on the refs to call it. That’s going to open up our three-point shots too.”
It’s not just about getting to the line - it’s about doing it with purpose. Pope has emphasized that this team has the tools to draw fouls, but it has to be intentional.
“You can’t just jump in the air and hope the ref bails you out,” he said earlier this month. “You’ve got to force the defense into tough decisions.”
Against Texas, those decisions led to whistles - and points.
Texas Brings the Fouls, But Kentucky Brings the Pressure
Coming in, Texas was actually the nation’s top team in free-throw rate, and 7-foot sophomore Matas Vokietaitis had been leading all high-major players in free throws per game, averaging nearly nine.
But against Kentucky, Vokietaitis only got to the line six times. That’s a testament to how well the Wildcats executed their defensive game plan - and how much they flipped the script on a team known for living at the stripe.
Miller gave Kentucky credit for attacking Texas’ drop coverage, saying the Wildcats’ guards were able to get downhill and put pressure on the interior defense.
“I thought they did an outstanding job of attacking our drop,” Miller said. “Their guards got us on their hip and got into that middle game.”
Halfcourt Growth Shows Up Big
For Pope, the win wasn’t just about free throws - it was about how his team operated in the halfcourt. That’s been a work in progress all season, but Wednesday showed real signs of growth.
“We probably had more second- and third-side possessions than we’ve had all season,” Pope said. “The drop coverage can trick you into going fast and taking shots you don’t want. But we stayed patient.”
That patience didn’t just get Kentucky to the line - it helped them control tempo, stay poised under pressure, and find ways to score even when the shots weren’t falling.
And with SEC play heating up, that kind of offense - deliberate, physical, and smart - could be the key to unlocking Kentucky’s ceiling.
“We’ve been getting a lot of paint touches,” Dioubate said. “It makes it harder for the defense. As long as we keep that up, we’re going to shine.”
On a night when Kentucky couldn’t buy a bucket late, they didn’t need to. They found another way - and in the process, maybe found a new identity.