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Posted by catmandoo (Member # 1284) on 02-17-2020, 12:27 PM:

Kentucky avoided a potentially but not necessarily bad loss ... Here's a reminder that no matter how much the NCAA tweaks the selection process and introduces new ways of improving things, there will always be a bit of silly subjectivity. Had Ole Miss defeated Kentucky in Lexington that would have been a Quadrant 3 loss, Kentucky's second of the year. Maybe. Ole Miss was outside the NET's top 75, and losing to such a team at home is a Quadrant 3 loss. Unless beating Kentucky had moved Ole Miss inside the top 75, which it may well have. Anyone who has watched Ole Miss over the last two weeks knows that they're playing some quality basketball. But it could have been a really bad loss on Selection Sunday, which is the most important reason for fans to be excited about the win. What didn't happen is more important than what did happen.

It's impressive that a team wins when it shoots 2/22 from three ... That much is indisputable. It's impressive that Kentucky wins so often in recent years getting so little from outside the arc.

But it's also a reminder that this team is not out of the woods in terms of long-range proficiency ... Before Saturday's win against Ole Miss, Kentucky was better than 38-percent from three on average since the start of the 2020 calendar year. That's much, much better than Kentucky was during the 2019 portion of the '19-20 season. But this game, as well as just about every home Kentucky game this year, is a reminder that it's well within this team's capacity to go ice cold from outside. And you probably aren't winning from the Sweet 16-on, maybe earlier, if you shoot like that.

E.J. Montgomery is becoming a reliable contributor ... He may not be there yet and the description probably requires an explanation. By that it's meant that Montgomery will be an overall asset when he's on the court. His defense has improved, his rebounding has markedly improved, and he hustles. He doesn't back down. He's not on the same level as Kentucky's top four players, but he's moving in that direction as opposed to back towards the less reliable players on the team. He was big down the stretch against Ole Miss.

Link

Posted by m hamilton (Member # 127) on 02-17-2020, 01:21 PM:

We should take the fact that we won a close game (that we should've easily lost) to a team who has improved recently as the season has progressed. Louisville, Auburn, and LSU all three lost to teams with either a losing record or .500 record over the weekend. All three of these teams were ranked in the top 25, over the weekend. Since the new poll is out, LSU has been removed from the polls.

UL has lost back to back games to teams that won't be playing in the NCAA Tourney (Clemson, GA Tech).

Posted by Bama Cat (Member # 153) on 02-17-2020, 01:45 PM:

So for a couple days it looks like UK should be back up on at least the 4 line for the tourney. Notice I said for a couple days. Tuesday we face LSU down there and they are going to be mad as hell, or they should be. We will need to have a high % on our 3's or we may be in big trouble. Hope we can get a couple of their top players in foul trouble the first 10 minutes of the game. Then it's on to Florida in Rupp on Saturday. We should be helping the selection committee with those two games. Hope it's for the better of KY BB.

Posted by PaulCat (Member # 513) on 02-17-2020, 02:59 PM:

I saw today that LSU's 3-point percentage is worse than ours! Makes me think this game will come down to points in the paint.

Posted by CatFanInYankeeville (Member # 2025) on 02-17-2020, 03:16 PM:

You guys know it makes little difference how UK plays. No matter what happens we're going to get hosed on selection Sunday. Hell, any committee that doesn't count our conference tourney championship towards their seeding is a joke anyway.

Posted by catmandoo (Member # 1284) on 02-17-2020, 03:37 PM:

To be fair i think we have to wait and see what transpires and go from there.

Posted by rlt4uk (Member # 3194) on 02-17-2020, 05:08 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by CatFanInYankeeville:
You guys know it makes little difference how UK plays. No matter what happens we're going to get hosed on selection Sunday. Hell, any committee that doesn't count our conference tourney championship towards their seeding is a joke anyway.

Mitch Barnhart is on the committee this year and I believe we will get a better seed than we think.

Posted by Trey Ball (Member # 332) on 02-17-2020, 05:33 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by CatFanInYankeeville:
You guys know it makes little difference how UK plays. No matter what happens we're going to get hosed on selection Sunday. Hell, any committee that doesn't count our conference tourney championship towards their seeding is a joke anyway.

Amen. In my younger days I would get so made on Selection Sunday, but not anymore. Now I just feel sorry for the other teams that have to play UK. They are the one's that truly get screwed. Kind of like undefeated and #1 Ranked Wichita State back in 2014. What is their gift for being the #1 Overall Seed in the tournament....to play by far the most talented team in the tournament and one that had finally figured out how to play the game. Wichita State would have been in the Final Four that year without that screw job because they were legit.