By Jaden Basham, November 13, 2024
How about that Big Blue Nation? The #19 Kentucky Wildcats took down the #6 Duke Blue Devils 77-72 behind a second half comeback led by the senior producers. From the moment Mark Pope and his team first got shown on television you could see the composure on everyone’s faces. For a team that came in highly touted on offense with some questions on defense, it was the defensive side of the ball that sparked the second half comeback. The Blue Devils saw their field goal percentage decrease by 19.2% and their three point percentage decrease by 15.9% from the first half to the second half. The experience and maturity of Kentucky showed itself in the second half and gave Mark Pope his first signature win as the coach of his alma mater.
Second Half Adjustments
Andrew Carr led the way for the Cats with 17 points, followed by Otega Oweh (15) and Amari Williams (10) to round out the double digit scorers for Kentucky. The offense started the game 5-5 from distance, then fell into a massive 0-8 slump which gave Duke the momentum throughout the majority of the first half. The Blue Devil lead extended to 10 as foul trouble quickly started to become a problem for Kentucky. Three stats stood out to me from the first half that told the story of Duke’s advantage: points in the paint (28-6 Duke), fast break points (8-1 Duke), and points off turnovers (11-0 Duke). The script was flipped in the second half as Kentucky started to focus on these hustle aspects of the game. After halftime, Kentucky held a two point lead in points in the paint, a five point lead in fast break points, and a five point lead in points off turnovers. Mark Pope showed an ability to adapt his lineups and make halftime adjustments to take away the things Duke was taking advantage of. Going with Brandon Garrison for a large stretch of the second half and sending a double to Flagg for the first time late in the game stood out as a couple of changes made to throw off the Blue Devils plan at the end of the game
Experience Won In The End
Coming down the end of the second half we saw Pope put Duke freshmen Maluach and Knueppel in a three-man action for an easy layup for Brea. Kerr Kriisa hit a pull up three to get Kentucky into striking distance, Andrew Carr took the opposing freshmen to the paint multiple times for layups, and Otega Oweh gave Kentucky the lead 69-67 with 2:40 left. The experience factor set in at the end of the game Oweh doubled the superstar Flagg as he turned his head leading to a steal and transition opportunity for Kentucky. While not having an efficient night on offense, Amari Williams did what he is known for and pulled out a massive defensive stop on Flagg again. In one final act of heroism, Oweh found a way to pin Flagg under the basket and get the game-sealing rebound. The conversation coming into this game was whether experience or talent would win, and fortunately for Kentucky, they found themselves on the experienced (and winning) side for the first time in a long time.
The Cats stuck true to themselves and shot the ball well again from deep at 40%, keeping them in the game for large stretches of the first half. Ultimately, the shooting disparity from three and defensive intensity gave Kentucky the edge in the end. Mark Pope passed his first test as the head coach of Kentucky basketball by doing all of the things Big Blue Nation has been begging for for years. Rotation adjustments, keying in to take away Duke’s first half advantages, and switching defensive coverages kept the talented Duke freshmen off balance through crunch time. Enjoy this one BBN, it’s a big one.
