Takeaways from Kentucky Wildcats’ loss to UCLA Bruins

The last time these schools met was last season when a dominant Kentucky team embarrassed UCLA by a score of 83-44.

During the broadcast, Jay Bilas made note of how UCLA coach Steve Alford stressed to his players to pack the paint and make Kentucky a jump-shooting team. “They beat our brains in”, John Calipari told the assembled media in Los Angeles.

Past year remained as deep of a low point as imaginable.

UCLA freshman Prince Ali came flying through the lane and dunked one-handed in the second half, drawing a foul and completing a three-point play.

It will be Kentucky’s first appearance in historic Pauley Pavilion. The Crusaders (7-2) shot just 35 percent, going 6 of 25 from 3-point range.

It also liked the continued development of sophomore center Thomas Welsh, who, if he keeps playing like he did in this 21-point, 11-rebound masterpiece, assuredly won’t be in college basketball next year. Kentucky entered the game having trailed a total of 17:50 in seven games.

After Kentucky scored first to make it 2-0, Bruin fans may have very well feared that this game could go the same way as last year’s game against the Wildcats in Chicago.

Kentucky did not come ready for a game that was circled as a trap game all season long.

Here’s the difference between 38-1 Kentucky and 7-1 Kentucky in a nutshell: Lee was the sixth-best frontcourt player on last year’s roster, but the Wildcats looked completely lost without what is now their best offensive rebounder.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Leticia Romero was 8 of 13 from the field, including making her only 3-point attempt, and scored 18 points as Florida State (6-1) won in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge game against Rutgers (5-3). They still lead the all-time series 7-5. “I’ve coached against him a couple times”. “But this is a good thing”, Calipari said. The Bruins have lost to #3 Kansas by 19 on a neutral floor, #77 Wake Forest by 3 on a neutral court, and to #101 Monmouth by 3 in overtime. “I thought we were more prepared than we were, and we weren’t”. The Wildcats are No. 2 behind UCLA with eight national titles…. The Bruins played like their season was on the line, and in a way, it probably was based on how bad of a start the they got off to this season.

The junior’s 3-pointer four minutes into the matchup put the Bruins up by seven, a lead they wouldn’t relinquish for the next 36 minutes. The Wildcats cut the early Bruins lead to eight at the half, but it would never get any closer than that.

Calipari was seeking advice from Wooden during the 2009-10 season, his first with the Wildcats as Kentucky was preparing for the NCAA Tournament.

The UCLA Bruins trailed 24-0 before they got their first bucket.

UCLA led 37-29 at the half – again an opponent’s biggest halftime lead over the Cats since 2014 – but when we really knew it was the Bruins night was when a UCLA student hit a layup, a free throw and a halfcourt shot in 30 seconds at halftime to win a contest.