NCAA Basketball Kentucky Wildcats

SEC Coaches Assembling Formula to Beat Kentucky Wildcats

Fresh Videos

By @TimLetcher

Troy Taormina, USA TODAY SPORTS

Troy Taormina, USA TODAY SPORTS

Basketball coaches in the SEC seem to have figured out a formula to beat the Kentucky Wildcats. Yet neither of the Wildcats’ opponents to this point have figured out how to finish the deal.

Kentucky won, in double overtime, on the road against the Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday 70-64, and it was even closer than the score might indicate. Texas A&M employed the same formula that the Ole Miss Rebels used on Tuesday night, playing a zone and forcing Kentucky to take shots from the outside.

Teams must play zone to try to beat Kentucky because no team outside of the NBA can match the Wildcats’ size. Playing a zone allows teams to shut off the lane, which makes Kentucky take outside shots. Coaches figure that they will take their chances with Kentucky shooting jump shots rather than letting the Big Blue get the ball inside and take advantage of their size.

The main problem with this formula is that it is much harder to rebound out of a zone as opposed to man-to-man. That fact allows Kentucky to get offensive rebounds and shots close to the basket. The Wildcats are among the nation’s best at rebounding their own missed shots due to their size advantage over nearly every opponent.

Another problem for opposing coaches is that Kentucky shooting guards Aaron Harrison and Devin Booker seem to be finding their range from downtown. Andrew Harrison, Tyler Ulis and Trey Lyles can also hit the long-range jumper.

What SEC coaches have not figured out is how to get enough points to beat Kentucky. Ole Miss scored 86 points it its loss at Rupp Arena, and that was not enough to do the trick. Kentucky allows opponents to score just over 50 points per game on the season and the ‘Cats can generally use their talent to get at least that many in a game.

There continues to be talk about Kentucky going undefeated. The Wildcats are now 15-0 on the season, but the last three games have been their closest all season. If the right team can play a tough zone and figure out how to score on Kentucky, that unbeaten streak could come to an end.

Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

Share Tweet
Trending Now on