And then it happened again. We've seen it all too often this year and it could very well come back to bite this team in the tournament, and that is the inability to put teams away in the first half. Florida started making some shots, the Cats forgot how to play solid defense and the lead was slowly whittled down to ten at the half. Certainly, a ten point lead at the half isn't terrible, but when you're up 19 at home on senior day, you would hope that a team as talented as this one would step on the collective throat of the Gators and put the contest out of reach.
However, at this point in the year, I think the tight games and lack of a killer instinct are things that UK fans are going to have to deal with because, let's face it, if the team hasn't developed that knockout punch mentality by now, it ain't gonna happen in the next week.
Some more thoughts on the game:
- The seniors on this team played really well and showed just how deep of a roster the Cats have this year. I don't think anyone should have any qualms about having to see Harris or Stevenson out on the floor at any point during the SEC and NCAA tournaments.
- Obvious credit goes to Mark Krebs for being able to stay on this team for four tumultuous years and ultimately get a scholarship under Calipari; the kid has tremendous heart and work ethic and it was great to see him start for the first time in his career at UK.
- Can we say that the shooting slump is behind us now? Darius Miller, John Wall, Patrick Patterson and Darnell Dodson all had three's in this game and the three was a big reason we were able to keep the lead the entire 40 minutes. Hopefully the hot shooting continues as we head into tournament play, because as I've said before, if we hit 40 or 50% from behind the arc, no one can beat us.
Now onto the SEC tourney, the first games of which will be played this Thursday in Nashville, TN. Let me first say that regardless of what the Cats do in Music City, they will enter the tournament with a no. 1 seed, but I think they're still the obvious favorites to win the tournament title. That being said, with the way the bracket is set up, UK will most likely have to face Devan Downey and South Carolina in the second round, as the Gamecocks will be matched up against Alabama. Doesn't really make me nervous, but it's worth pointing out.
Other thoughts:
- I would not be shocked if the SEC West doesn't win a single game in the tournament. Their best chance in the first round is Arkansas against Georgia and that's far from a guaranteed win. If the East wins all the first round matchups, you'd have Ole Miss taking on Florida (a team that needs to win to stay in the Big Dance) and Mississippi State against Tennessee. Trust me, the West is that bad this year.
- It should be very interesting to see how the Cats respond to (hopefully) playing three games in three days. It will be a great barometer as to how we'll do in the NCAA tournament without have a ton of rest between games. I think our depth will be crucial and if we can blow out a team or two, it will go a long way to being well rested once Selection Sunday is over and the real fun begins.
SEC Tournament Finals: Kentucky v.s. Vanderbilt
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