Kentucky came out blazing Tuesday night in Chicago, hitting its first five shots against Kansas in the Champions Classic. Then the game turned, and it turned hard.
Mark Pope’s team faded into an 89-69 loss that left plenty of Kentucky fans staring at the same uncomfortable question: what exactly comes next for this group?
Kansas freshman Tyran Stokes, the Louisville native Pope had hoped to sign, looked every bit the elite newcomer. He finished with 21 points, nine rebounds, three assists and just one turnover, giving the Jayhawks a huge lift in a game they controlled for long stretches.
Kentucky did get a strong scoring night from Zoom Diallo, who poured in 24 points on 10-for-13 shooting. But the Wildcats couldn’t match Kansas possession for possession. The Jayhawks finished with 22 assists on 31 made field goals, while Kentucky had more turnovers, 15, than assists, 12.
The Wildcats also lost control inside when 7-foot center Malachi Moreno picked up two early fouls. He played only seven minutes in the first half, finishing that stretch with two points and three rebounds before Kansas seized the momentum. Moreno ended up with 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists, but by then the game had already tilted sharply the other way.
Kansas was led by a career-high 30 points from Trey White, who shot 11-for-16 from the field in a dominant performance.
ESPN analyst Jay Bilas did not mince words about Kentucky’s defense.
“Kentucky’s defense has been a little disappointing,” ESPN analyst Jay Bilas said. “Kansas had so many shots where they were lonely (with no one around them).
“Kentucky is getting zero defensive pressure at times and (Kansas) can just pick them apart. Kentucky just has not offered the type of defensive resistance you need to win a game against a team like Kansas.
“It is going to be a work in progress (for Kentucky). There is a lot to clean up. But Kansas has a lot of new players but just played harder on its defensive end than Kentucky has.”
Former UK All-American Jack Givens pointed to the turnover battle and the damage it caused. Kentucky finished with 15 turnovers and only 13 assists, while Kansas had 24 assists and 10 turnovers. The Jayhawks also held a 22-0 edge in points off turnovers.
“That (22-0) is just pretty amazing to me. That just tells me Kansas is getting out on the break and Kentucky is not getting back in transition to take some of those points away,” Givens said on the UK Radio Network.
Kentucky also struggled to get Milan Momcilovic involved. The 3-point shooting standout from Iowa State, who came to Kentucky at significant expense, had just seven shots and finished 2-for-7 from the field and 1-for-3 from deep.
“They have got to get him moving so he can come off screens and they need to get the ball in the paint a lot more,” Bilas said.
The physical side of the game was another problem for Kentucky, and that’s a concern with Southeastern Conference play looming.
“Sometimes you have to flex your muscles and prove to the other team how you are going to play. This game Kentucky allowed Kansas to flex its muscle,” Givens said. “There are times you just have to man up and this is how I am going to play.”
Late in the game, Bilas said Kentucky looked overwhelmed.
“There has not been much ball movement. Kansas is taking Kentucky out of every offensive action. Certainly a shell shocked look on the faces of Kentucky players and Kentucky fans too,” Bilas said late in the game.
For Pope, the loss fit a pattern that has haunted him before, and for Kentucky, it was another night that raised more doubts than answers. Givens urged fans not to jump ship just yet.
“Really, really frustrating for me because we are better than what we showed here tonight. We just allowed Kansas to dictate to us how we are going to play. That is hard to accept because you know you are better,” Givens said.
“For us to allow them to play as freely as they played and to run their offense as smoothly and effortlessly as we allowed them to do … we kind of allowed them to dictate how we were going to play and that has to change for this team to be as good as I think it can be. This team has the pieces.”
Still, the numbers from Tuesday tell a harsh story: 4-for-21 from 3-point range, only seven shots for Momcilovic, a 22-0 disadvantage in points off turnovers and Moreno’s early foul trouble. It was a rough night in a big spotlight, and Pope has plenty to sort out.
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