Kentucky failed at the free throw line again

Quite a bit went incorrect in Kentucky Basketball‘s loss to UCLA in Madison Sq. Backyard, the Wildcats’ third loss in 4 non-conference video games towards Energy 5 groups. You’ll be able to level to the sluggish begin when the Bruins led by as many as 13 factors earlier than halftime or the continued poor shot choice or the 18 turnovers or going 0-for-11 from the sector throughout a four-and-a-half-minute scoring drought to finish the sport after clawing again and chopping the result in two. All of these issues weighed closely on the sport’s end result.

However proper now let’s discuss concerning the free-throw taking pictures as a result of Kentucky’s 5-for-13 night from the road might have accomplished probably the most injury to the group’s probabilities. Oscar Tshiebwe was the worst of the bunch with 4 misses on his solely 4 tries. That’s not a Nationwide Participant of the Yr efficiency.

After the sport, John Calipari was requested about Lance Ware’s minutes with the primary query of the press convention and he shortly redirected the dialog to his group’s free-throw woes.

“You’ll be able to’t go 5-for-13 from the road, not in a recreation like this,” he stated. “You’ll be able to’t go 4 entrance finish one-and-one, so, actually, you’re 5-for-17. You don’t should make each free throw, however you possibly can’t go these numbers.”

Calipari then did that factor he does the place he says one thing utterly false and expects us to imagine it, telling everybody within the room, “We’re not a foul free-throw taking pictures group. We had been right this moment.”

Greater than “right this moment,” Kentucky is at present ranked 304th within the nation at free-throw taking pictures, based on KenPom, with a 66.3 proportion by way of 10 video games. Simply final Saturday, Kentucky went 16-of-28 on the line at dwelling towards Yale, along with different poor taking pictures video games we’d all wish to neglect from earlier within the season. Keep in mind Michigan State?

Calipari added, “Psychological toughness comes into play in all that. You’ve simply obtained to be robust sufficient to know, I’m going to the road. I’m making these.”

OK. However how does it get higher? As a result of it has to get higher or outcomes like tonight will grow to be extra of the norm.