By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Amid lineup changes and injuries, Kentucky has made strides on the defensive end of the court during the past two weeks, giving the team more confidence as the regular season winds down.
Since surrendering 98 points in a loss at Ole Miss on Feb. 4, the No. 17 Wildcats (18-8, 7-6 Southeastern Conference) have given up just an average of 66 points per game during the past four encounters. The Wildcats have moved up from 112 in defense to 69th in the latest KenPom rankings. During the last two weeks, opponents have shot just 19 percent from long range.
Kentucky coach Mark Pope likes the way his team has responded during that stretch encounter despite the absence of a fully healthy Lamont Butler and Jaxson Robinson.
“Over the last five games, I’m really proud of what we’ve done,” Pope said. “After Ole Miss, we were sitting there at 112th defensive team in the country and we’ve jumped to 69. That’s a massive jump and it’s been a real commitment by our guys over the last five games. Over the last five games, we’ve had the 13th-best defense in the country. That’s not somewhere we have lived most of the season.”
Pope said a big reason behind the improvement has been his team’s commitment to “really dialing into (becoming) a more cohesive kind of team-oriented functioning defense.”
“More importantly, it is guys taking it really, really personally,” Pope said. “It’s been a lot of things. It’s been us being more effective on the defensive glass, us guarding without fouling, us protecting the box. It’s been step-by-step as we’ve gone through the last several weeks and we’re really proud of the progress.”
For the second time this season, the team’s improved defense will get a test from Alabama, which has a knack for scoring points in bunches and eclipsing the century mark on a routine basis. The No. 4 Crimson Tide (21.5, 10-3), who are coming off losses to No. 1 Auburn and 15th-ranked Missouri, defeated the Wildcats 102-97 on Jan. 18 in Lexington.
“Alabama is a whole new situation,” he said. “They are one of, if not the most explosive offensive team in the country. They challenge you in so many different ways. Alabama poses the biggest challenge defensively that we will probably face this season.”
Pope praises relief efforts
Pope praised first responders and the Kentucky National Guard for their efforts during last week’s flooding that impacted several parts of the state, including Eastern Kentucky.
During his weekly press conference Friday, Pope singled out the National Guard for “the incredible work they’re doing right now” and added that “airlifting 296 people out of apartments in Martin County is pretty incredible.”
“We’re all kind of working through these weather disasters in Kentucky together,” he said. “I just think it’s important we remember what’s going on around this state right now as we continue to pursue basketball. The people are still working night and day to do this. I want to give a huge, huge shoutout. There’s been so many people that have jumped in and made huge contributions.”
Donations from Kentucky’s game against Vanderbilt on Wednesday night totaled more than $200,000, Pope said.
“Hopefully we can all kind of keep focused on this,” he said. “This is not just going to be days, but it’s going to be weeks and months and years …. and (I’m) grateful that everybody’s making huge contributions.”
Gametracker: Kentucky at Alabama, 6 p.m., Saturday. TV/Radio: ESPN, UK Radio Network.