🏀 🏀Kentucky beats Bama 117-95 [Oats postgame press conference added]

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

 

[UAgrad93]

Man that was ugly to watch!! Glad I turned it off when UK went on like an 18-2 run there late in the first half.
There are 3 absolutes in life……Death, taxes, and BAMA basketball playing like dogshit in Rupp Arena!

 

[AFF]

Not trying to spit-shine a turd (OK, maybe a little), but scoring 95 in Rupp Arena isn't bad at all. UK was shooting lights out - both halves.

What can you do but just...move on, try to win the SEC regular season then maybe we get them back in the SEC Tournament.

Roll Tide, y'all

 

[bamafan9201]

Looking at this from afar before it started I had a feeling we'd see some home cooking. Many have forgotten a Saturday Afternoon game in Rupp...Kentucky always has some home cooking going. They started out very weak with the calls against us and it helped to build a lead. Add to that Kentucky was shooting lights out and you have a recipe for disaster. Time to move on and let it go but you can't convince me that wasn't a way for Kentucky to build a lead early. 10 fouls to 1 against in the first 10 mins of the game. they evened it up at the tail end once it was well within hand.

 

[mando]

If they take advantage of this spacing...they can run UK out of Rupp today.

This did not age well.

I was not able to follow the game but checked it at half and then early in the 2nd half and knew the game was over. I am making a huge assumption here that the same issue Bama has had all year bit them in this game. No D you get blown out. This is why I just do not see this team making a run. I honestly thought the D was getting better but a even average D does not give up 117 points. Maybe I fully missed the boat hear but I doubt it.

 

[mando]

Just a few days ago, they was wanting to fire Calipari..

They still do. I was around a UK person today with what little I did see and they are saying they should have gotten rid of Calipari years ago. Based on what that UK fan was saying a lot of UK fans are not big Calipari fans.

 

[TerryP]

This did not age well.

No. Aged quite well.

 

[mando]

Oats has always tried to ride the fence with guys that are good offensive players but so so on defense. Maybe that approach is not going to work with this bunch. Try to sit some of these "starters" and see if that makes a difference with effort on defense.

 

[BamaFan334]

Looking at stats alone, we shot lights out. Unfortunately they did too and shot even better.

 

[mando]

No. Aged quite well.

You will need to explain that one... Not taking advantage of the spacing or us running UK out of Rupp? I guess we ended up scoring 95 but the running out of Rupp did not happen.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

If we strictly go by the Kenpom numbers, Alabama isn't a national championship team based on their defense (in terms of teams that have won it all during the Kenpom reign). That isn't news and it isn't surprising. And unfortunately for Bama, the numbers aren't even close (on one end). I know some have seen this stat before, but since 2002, every national champion has finished the season ranked in the Top 40 Kenpom adjusted offense and the Top 25 in Kenpom adjusted defense. Bama is sitting pretty on offense at #1. Adjusted defense? 97th. The bright side? Teams with worse numbers than that have made the final 4, recently even. If Bama can get high level guard play out of Sears, Wrightsell, Griffen, and Estrada when it matters come tournament time? They can go deep. When the time comes, I'm going to be more worried about that, than the lackluster defense. But despite some games where they had good nights, we are dealing with a defense that is on the opposite end of the spectrum from it's own elite offense. And nothing is going to change that this season, which Oats seemed to finally begrudgingly accept during his opening remarks after today's loss.

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

Also, just for fun...

During Oats' tenure at Bama...

Adjusted Defense
2019- 58th
2020- 114th
2021- 3rd
2022- 92nd
2023- 3rd
2024- 97th (currently)
2025- ?

Pattern anyone?

 

[AFF]

Also, just for fun...

During Oats' tenure at Bama...

Adjusted Defense
2019- 58th
2020- 114th
2021- 3rd
2022- 92nd
2023- 3rd
2024- 97th (currently)
2025- ?

Pattern anyone?

Next year we should be 3rd - fer sher...
...a lot of good that does us now, eh?

 

[Brandon Van de Graaff]

Next year we should be 3rd - fer sher...
...a lot of good that does us now, eh?

Hey, the promise of hope is never a bad thing...

 

[im4uainva]

No. Aged quite well.

As in, this crap got old real fast. Well, they can take it out on the next team in line.

ROLL TIDE ANYWAY!

 

[mando]

Hey, the promise of hope is never a bad thing...

I had given up hope the D would become elite this year but I thought they had shown signs of getting better. I still think they have but they digressed in this game. Putting that aside, we all know that UK in Rupp historically has been an issue. This years UK team is really good offensively so combine the two and these results are not surprising. In another thread I had said we could go 4-2 in this last stretch or 2-4. We fortunately eaked out the UF game at home. Now we need to deal with OM in then the Viles. Honestly not sure what is going to happen with this group. With the combination of offense and defense we have you never know. Let's just hope the good guys put together a better showing this week.

 

[252BAMA]

Man that was ugly to watch!! Glad I turned it off when UK went on like an 18-2 run there late in the first half.
There are 3 absolutes in life……Death, taxes, and BAMA basketball playing like dogshit in Rupp Arena!

One big exception. 1982. Bama won the SEC Tournament there beating Kentucky in the final.

 

[alabama mike]

Turnovers and poor defense absolutely killed us. We just do not play lockdown defense overall. We are going to have turnovers with the tempo we play but goodness gracious alive.

 

[Bammerboy321]

Also, just for fun...

During Oats' tenure at Bama...

Adjusted Defense
2019- 58th
2020- 114th
2021- 3rd
2022- 92nd
2023- 3rd
2024- 97th (currently)
2025- ?

Pattern anyone?

Lot of help coming next season with Sherrell, Cunningham, and Reid.

The way we're competing this season with roster limitations defensively, losing three assistants, and getting blind sided by Bediako and Quinerly is a huge W in my book.

All that said - and with the understanding that it isn't on the coaches and Oats - but it would be nice to have some consistency on D year in and year out. I think he's proven that the offense will remain elite.

 

[footballer]

I wonder if our players realize that good defense means staying between your man and the goal?