Clobbered in Columbia: No. 19 Kentucky Falls 89-75 to Missouri in SEC Opener
No. 19 Kentucky got hit with a harsh dose of reality on Wednesday night in Columbia, as the Missouri Tigers steamrolled the Wildcats in a 89-75 beatdown inside Mizzou Arena.
Senior forward Kobe Brown followed up a career-high 31-point performance last week with a whopping 30 for the Tigers, doing severe damage to the Wildcats' defense from the perimeter and in the post. He connected on 10 shots, four of which came from 3-point range.
The Tigers (12-1, 1-1 SEC) shot 49 percent from the floor, jumping down the Cats' throat from the get-go. Center Oscar Tshiebwe led Kentucky (8-4, 0-1) with a 23-point, 19-rebound double-double. Freshman guard Cason Wallace added 19 points thanks to five 3-pointers, and point guard Sahvir Wheeler compiled 12 points and eight assissts, though none of it amounted to anything close to a victory.
WHAT HAPPENED
The Tigers wasted no time getting out in front, making five consecutive field goal-attempts to snag a quick 12-5 lead. Tre Gomillion and Brown each totaled five points in the early spurt, while Wallace took four of UK's first seven shots, making a pair for all five of the Wildcats' points at the first timeout.
Coming out of the timeout, forward Noah Carter splashed a 3-pointer before Brown added another basket, growing the Tiger-lead to double-digits at 17-7. Wallace continued to fire from deep, but missed four of his first five looks from three.
Despite entering the game as the top 3-point shooting team in the SEC at 39.9 percent, Kentucky failed to connect on wide-open looks from behind the arc, making just one of its first 10 attempts.
Senior point guard and Louisville native Sean East II would enter the game and make an immediate impact for the Tigers, going on a solo 7-0 run to get the lead to 24-13 with less than 10 minutes to go in the half.
The Cats continued to look discombobulated on both ends of the floor, missing seven of eight shots. Jacob Toppin threw away an inbound pass, while Tshiebwe continued to be harassed in the paint when he had the ball.
Shooting guard CJ Fredrick was taken back to the locker room during the ensuing timeout, grimacing as he held his right fingers. He would return to the bench with his right pinky and ring finger taped together rather heavily, but would be held out for the remainder of the game.
UK would try to get going late in the half, making three shots in a row, trimming the Tiger lead to 32-24. Hodge raced his way past the Wildcat defense to eight points in the half, stymying any momentum.
East and Brown would knock down a pair of treys, driving the lead back to double-digits, where it would remain for the remainder of the half. UK would make six of its last eight shots before heading to the locker room, but the deficit failed to shrink.
A Wheeler turnover that saw the point guard lose the ball directly after the inbound pass encapsulated the abysmal first 20 minutes for the Wildcats, who trailed 42-30 at the break. Mizzou shot 48.5 percent from the floor while canning six 3-pointers as East and Brown combined for 24 points.
The second half opened with more of the same, as Brown immediately got to the rim and earned a 3-point play thanks to Wallace's third personal foul. The Cats would turn the ball over on their first two possessions out of the break as Mizzou's lead blossomed to 47-30.
Kentucky continued to miss shots and suffer from defensive blunders, as the Tigers found easy bucket after easy bucket. True freshman Adou Thiero would check in the game for UK and try to light a spark, making just the team's third 3-pointer of the game.
Lance Ware threw down a mean dunk after running the baseline, but it failed to matter as Mizzou continued to score baskets, keeping the lead at 15 points at the first timeout of the half.
The surge would finally come for the Cats midway through the second period, as five points from Wheeler led to a 7-0 run, bringing UK within 10. Mizzou would go on a field-goal drought that lasted around four minutes, but a steal and transition 3-pointer from Hodge would wipe away any momentum that Kentucky had garnered.
Brown would land two more threes in the following possessions, sucking whatever life was left in the Wildcats, pushing the lead to 67-50.
Kentucky had no gas left in the tank, as Mizzou continued to impose its will. Tshiebwe would foul Brown on a 3-point attempt down the stretch, which led to the veteran making all three freebies, giving UK its first 20-point deficit of the season at 81-61.
The Cats would collect a meaningless 7-0 run in the game's final minutes, but the final buzzer would sound with Mizzou Arena rocking as Kentucky continues to search for answers.
WHAT IT MEANS
- Kentucky is now 69-20 all-time in SEC openers
- John Calipari is now 11-3 in SEC openers as UK head coach
- Missouri has now won three of its last four games against Kentucky in Columbia
- Oscar Tshiebwe became the fifth player in UK history to record 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in his career
- Tshiebwe has 34 double-doubles in 44 career games
WHAT'S NEXT
Kentucky will take a quick detour from SEC play to welcome its struggling rival, the Louisville Cardinals. The Cats are looking for their first win over the Cardinals since 2019.
The game will also serve as the return of longtime Kentucky assistant and first-year UofL head coach Kenny Payne. Tip-off is scheduled for Noon EST on Dec. 31, and will begin at the exact same time as Kentucky football's Music City Bowl matchup against Iowa.
Want the latest on national football and basketball recruiting, including Cats targets? Head over to SI All-American for the latest news, blogs, and updates about the nation's best prospects.
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