Kentucky has now Lost Four out of Five Following Loss to Ole Miss -

If it wasn’t apparent before, Kentucky is in a funk on the basketball court. They lost to #25 Ole Miss in Oxford 98-84 last night to drop them to 15-7 overall and 4-5 in SEC play.

It was a nightmare of a beginning for Kentucky and a dream for Ole Miss. Ole Miss was not only able to get any shot they wanted in the first half, they also made them at a high percentage. They shot 20-33 (60.6%) from the field and 9-17 (52.9%) from 3 on their way to a 23 point halftime lead, 54-31. It was Kentucky’s largest deficit of the season. Ole Miss had 3 players in double figures in the first half Matthew Murrell 14 (5-6 fga, 4-5 from 3) Malik Dia 10 (4-6 fga, 1-3 from 3) and Jaemyn Brakefield 10 (3-7 fga 2-3 from 3). It wasn’t just the offense of Ole Miss though, their defense smothered Kentucky in the first half.

That defensive pressure from Ole Miss held Kentucky to just 38.7% from the field (12-31) although they were 50% from 3 (5-10). Unlike Ole Miss, who had 3 double digit scorers in the first half, Kentucky had zero. It was as bad of a half of basketball as a team could play.

Kentucky did have 7 assists on their 12 made baskets, but Ole Miss had 15 on their 20. After a few games where Kentucky had 10 first half turnovers, they got that under control with just 6. However, Ole Miss had zero. 15 assists and zero turnovers.

Kentucky did make and adjustment after halftime. They came out and aggressively started back cutting the Ole Miss pressure defense, and it worked. Kentucky came out and made their first six shots after halftime, all of them layups or dunks. However, Ole Miss came out firing and making as well, hitting 6 of their first 7 shots on the way to pushing the lead to 27points, 60-33 just 1 minute into the 2^nd half. At the under 16 timeout that came at 14:59, Kentucky’s hot start had led to a 25 point Ole Miss lead.

Kentucky would go on a run after that, cutting the lead to just 11 points on 2 Otega Oweh free throws with 7:43 left in the game, giving fans hope for a miracle comeback. That would be the closest they would get. Jaylen Murray would hit a 3 over Kobe Brea as the shot clock was running down and 2 free throws to push it back to 16. Kentucky would get no closer than 12 the rest of the way.

Ole Miss would finish the game shooting 54.7% (35-64) from the floor and 43.3% (13-30) from 3. They had 5 players in double figures, led by Murrell with 24 (8-13 fga, 6-11 from 3). Also in double figures were Dre Davis 17 (7-10 fga, 1-2 from 3), Dia 16 (6-13 fga, 2-4 from 3), Murray 15 (5-7 fga, 2-4 from 3) and Brakefield with 10, who didn’t score or attempt a shot in the second half.

As bad as the first half was for Kentucky, the second half was a complete 180. Kentucky shot 63% (17-27) from the field, 45% (5-11) from 3 and 77.8% (14-18) from the line. They also dished out 14 assists and only turned it over 2 times. The defense was also markedly better as Ole Miss would shoot 48.4% (15-31) from the floor and just 30.8% (4-13) from 3 in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the disaster of a first half.

Kentucky would finish the game shooting 50% (29-58) from the floor and 47.6 (10-21) from 3 and 72.7 (16-22) from the line.

The star of the game for Kentucky was Amari Williams. After a first half that saw him put up a line of 6 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, the second half would have him do something more. Williams would put up the 4^th triple double in Wildcats program history, the first since December 29, 2016 versus Ole Miss. The first was Chris Mills on December 28, 1988 against Austin Peay and finally De’Aaron Fox on November 28, 2016 against Arizona State. Williams would finish with 12 points (5-7 fga, 1-2 fts), 11 rebounds and 10 assists…the final assist coming on an Oweh dunk with under a minute left.

Others joining Williams on his historic night in double figures were Oweh 24 (8-17 fga, 2-4 from 3, 6-6 fts), Jaxson Robinson 18 (6-13 fga, 5-10 from 3), Brea 10 (4-10 fga, 2-6 from 3) and Andrew Carr 10 (3-3 fga, 4-6 fts).

After two of the worst halves of basketball against Arkansas and Ole Miss, Kentucky will need to get back on track. The second half was a step that direction, but their next chance will be Saturday. They welcome in a South Carolina team that is winless in SEC play at noon on ESPN2/ESPN.