By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Fourth-ranked Kentucky suffered its first loss of the season with a 70-66 setback to a physically superior Clemson in the ACC/SEC Challenge Tuesday night at rowdy Littlejohn Coliseum.
The Wildcats (7-1) shot just 38 percent from the field and made just seven 3-pointers on 27 attempts against the Tigers (8-1) in their first road game of the season. They watched as the Clemson contingent stormed the court at the buzzer to celebrate the Tigers’ fourth straight win over an opponent ranked in the AP top 5.
Kentucky limited Clemson to 37 percent shooting but committed 12 turnovers and got a season-low seven points from its reserves in the narrow loss. Averaging 11 treys per game, the Wildcats made just three in the second half and missed two on one possession down the stretch with the Tigers clinging to a 66-62 lead.
The Wildcats entered the contest averaging an NCAA-best 96.7 points per game but were held 30 points below their average.
“I think the problem is if we don’t have that kind of effort and toughness, it’s not going to be easy for us since we’re not as talented offensively as some of the teams that we could play,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “Our team understands that and accepts that.”
Clemson took the fight to Kentucky and was the more physical team, Pope said.
“It was a really physical game. It’s a credit to them,” he said. “It’s how they play. Their bigs are relentless with their physicality toward working it into the post.”
The Wildcats erased a 37-30 halftime deficit within the first five minutes of the second half and took a 43-42 lead on Amari Williams’ turnaround jumper with 15:28 left. After that basket, neither team led by more than two points for nearly seven minutes.
Clemson then began to stretch the lead, going ahead 66-58 with less than four minutes to play. Kentucky closed the gap to 66-62 but missed four consecutive shots – all 3-pointers. Butler hit a 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds left to cut the Tigers’ lead to 68-66.
Clemson forced 12 turnovers and blocked nine shots, more signs of the toughness the Tigers showed.
“We tried to — out of the goodness of our hearts and the care for our team — fix a lot of things by ourselves. It’s just not how we play. We’re not a minus assist-to-turnover ratio team,” Pope said, referring to 12 turnovers and only 11 assists. “That’s not who we are, and all the credit goes to Clemson for creating that environment.”
Otega Oweh led Kentucky with 17 points, followed by Lamont Butler with 16 and Jaxson Robinson with 12. Butler and Robinson made four of the team’s seven shots from long range. Koby Brea, the team’s second-leading scorer (14.1 points per game), made just one 3-pointer and managed just three points.
Kentucky trailed 66-58 with four minutes remaining and chipped away at the eight-point margin, but couldn’t find a way to overcome the deficit down the stretch. The loss was the only one in 10 games for the SEC on the first night of the ACC/SEC Challenge.
Kentucky has no time to feel sorry for itself with top-ranked Gonzaga next on the docket Saturday night.
“We’re Kentucky,” Pope said. “We’re everybody’s Super Bowl. That’s why you come here. It’s an honor, but it requires us to be great. We weren’t quite great enough.”
Ian Schieffelin led Clemson with 11 points and 20 rebounds, including 12 on the defensive end.
In last year’s challenge, the Tigers defeated Alabama on their way to reaching the Elite Eight.
Gametracker: Kentucky vs. Gonzaga in Seattle, 10 p.m., Saturday. TV/Radio: ESPN2, UK Radio Network.