By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
Top-ranked Kentucky’s loss to UCLA last week wasn’t necessarily the Super Bowl, but the unranked Bruins approached it that way.
After suffering their first regular season defeat in more than a year, the Wildcats, who likely will tumble from the top spot when the Associated Press Top 25 poll is released today, learned a lesson in overcoming adversity.
“We’ve just got to fight, not individually, but collectively as a team,” Kentucky freshman guard Isaiah Briscoe said. “Every team’s going to come out pumped and excited and things are not always going to go our way. But, it’s the way we deal with adversity and the way we get back and just try to fight.”
The 87-77 loss to UCLA also proved the Wildcats (7-1) can’t depend on their athleticism like they did a year ago when they won all 31 regular-season games by wearing down their opponents and winning with ease.
“We can’t just win off talent,” Kentucky point guard Tyler Ulis said. “We have to work hard.”
Ulis added that a loss this early in the season will yield positive results for the Wildcats in the future, starting with Wednesday’s game against Eastern Kentucky University.
“I think taking one early is going to help this team because sometimes we come out not playing too hard and guys are going to understand we can lose,” he said. “Nobody wants to have this feeling again so I feel like we’re going to come out better.”
Following the team’s first true road game of the year, Briscoe wasn’t surprised by the Bruins’ aggressiveness and ability to push around Kentucky’s post players inside the paint.
“This is what we signed up for,” Briscoe said. “(It) is no surprise to me. I knew coming into Kentucky that it was going to be this way.”
Kentucky’s lack of fight, especially inside, was evident against the Bruins. The Wildcats snagged just 16 offensive rebounds, had just two blocks and scored just 19 second-chance baskets, a rarity for Kentucky.
“There are other games that we have coming up that are going to be exactly the same,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “It just will come down to are you going to be tougher than the people we’re playing and if you don’t understand that, then we have to figure it out.”
Kentucky center Skal Labissiere was ineffective in the post and scored just six points and grabbed just one rebound against the Bruins. Senior Alex Poythress fouled out and Marcus Lee missed most of the game after taking a hit to the head four minutes into the contest.
“We have a couple of guys who aren’t fighting right now, but we’re going to get there,” Ulis said. “It’s early in the season. We just have to get to practice, work on that and demand more of (some) guys.”
How Kentucky responds to the loss remains to be seen, but Briscoe said the Wildcats will be judged by “how we bounce back and respond” instead of the setback in itself.
“A loss, it happens (and) it’s not like I wanted it to happen,” Briscoe said. “Of course I wanted to win, but I don’t think we’re going to be judged off this loss. I think we’re going to be more judged about how we bounce back and how we continue to play from here on out.”
Game tracker: Eastern Kentucky at Kentucky, 7 p.m., Wednesday. TV/Radio: ESPN2, 98.1 FM WBUL.
Briscoe honored as Freshman of the Week: Kentucky freshman guard Isaiah Briscoe was tabbed the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week on Monday after averaging a team-best 19.0 points and 4.5 rebounds for the top-ranked Wildcats last week.
Against Illinois State, Briscoe took over point-guard duties for the injured Tyler Ulis (hyperextended elbow). Briscoe was 7 of 13 from the field en route to a career-high 18-point performance. He also dished out a team-high three assists and hauled in seven rebounds, which was the second most of any player on the team.
Playing in the first true road game of his career against UCLA, Briscoe was a team-best 7 of 10 from the field to top his previous career high this time with 20 points. He is the fourth different player to top 20 points this season for the Wildcats. For the week, Briscoe utilized a team-best .609 field-goal percentage of players who shot more than 10 times.
Briscoe, a Union, N.J., native, is averaging 13.3 points and 5.7 rebounds in seven games this season. His scoring average is second on the team and his rebounding numbers are the best of any UK guard. He’s scored in double figures in all but one game.
It’s the first weekly SEC honor of Briscoe’s career and the third such award for the Wildcats this season. Ulis previously won SEC Co-Player of the Week honors and freshman forward Skal Labissiere was named the SEC Co-Freshman of the Week to start the season.
Keith Taylor is a columnist and senior sports writer who covers University of Kentucky athletics for KyForward.com