No. 13 Kentucky Fizzles Out in 63-53 Loss to No. 16 UCLA
NEW YORK — Kentucky was unable to get out of first gear on Saturday night, falling 63-53 in a rock-fight loss to the No. 16 UCLA Bruins in the CBS Sports Classic.
Free throw woes and a lack of an identity on offense cost the Wildcats, who fell to 7-3 with the loss. In 13 attempts from the line, UK was able to connect on just five, while also turning the ball over 18 times.
"Can't go 5-13 from the line, not in a game like this," UK coach John Calipari said post-game. "You don't have to make every free throw, but you can't go those numbers. We missed so many open shots, it becomes demoralizing."
True freshman Chris Livingston was a bright spot, leading the Cats with 14 points off the bench in 24 minutes. Jaime Jaquez paved the way for the Bruins' seventh consecutive victory, totaling 19 points and 12 rebounds.
It was a slow start for both sides, as the teams were tied up at seven at the first media timeout of the evening. Kentucky opened 3-10 from the floor while shooting guard Antonio Reeves missed his first three looks.
UCLA (10-2) was first to assert its dominance, as it made five consecutive field goal attempts, building a six-point lead despite Jaquez having just one shot fall in the early going.
The Bruins lead would swell to double-digits for the first time as the shots continued to fall, while Kentucky turned the ball over four times in a three-and-a-half-minute span. With less than eight minutes to go until halftime, the Cats already turned the ball over 10 times, which led to 10 UCLA points.
"Turnovers...most of it just rough play that we couldn't bust through," Calipari said. "You got to give UCLA credit, they made the plays they had to make."
Jaquez would get going, quickly building his point total up to 10, having his way with Jacob Toppin on the offensive end. UCLA's lead grew to 13, as Kentucky would go on a cold stretch that saw it miss seven of eight shot attempts.
An Oscar Tshiebwe layup would end a field goal drought that lasted nearly five minutes for the Wildcats, cutting the UCLA lead to 11 with less than three minutes to go in the first period.
Despite Kentucky's struggles, the Bruins were unable to build a bigger lead heading into the break, as it also suffered from turnover issues. A Lance Ware putback and Chris Livingston 3-pointer sparked a 7-0 run for the Cats that shrunk the Bruins lead down to six.
UCLA took a 35-27 advantage into the locker room despite making just one 3-pointer in the first 20 minutes. Jaquez's 12 points and eight rebounds led the way for the Bruins, while the Cats had twice as many turnovers (12) as they did assists (6). Reeves was an abysmal 1-9 from the floor, while CJ Fredrick and Toppin were unable to get on the board.
Kentucky quickly tied the game at 38 early in the second half, thanks to a Sahvir Wheeler 3-pointer and a trio of midrange buckets from Livingston.
"I was being very patient on the offensive end," Livingston said after the loss about what went well for him offensively. "Not settling for jump shots, being around the paint, I got myself going with my jump shot and so forth."
After trading baskets, UCLA ran-off a quick six points, concluded by David Singleton's second trey of the game. Livingston answered with a 3-pointer, but Jaquez countered with a 3-point play of his own, keeping the momentum with the Bruins.
"That became a bloodbath," UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. "We were really tough down the stretch on the backboard and loose balls. That was the key for us. I've been watching Kentucky. They're just so good defensively. They're so big. They're so strong. They're always so well prepared. They had a whole week to prepare for us. So it became a chess game."
Kentucky managed to stay within fighting distance, despite going on another cold streak that included eight misses in nine attempts. Reeves finally connected on his first 3-pointer of the night, bringing the Cats within three with less than six minutes to play.
UCLA refused to build a lead down the stretch, but another scoring drought kept UK from turning the tables. There would be no gas left in the tank for the Cats, as they missed 16 of their final 18 looks from the field, allowing the Bruins to cruise in the dying embers to a 63-53 win.
"I thought we were going to win the game," Calipari admitted. "I'm looking at it like 'Okay, we're in good shape, let's just keep going.' Then you make a couple of errors and we took a couple of bad shots down the stretch when it was a two-bucket game ... i'm disappointed."
The loss takes UK to 1-3 in games against non-conference Power Five opponents.
The Wildcats will return to action on Wednesday, Dec 21, welcoming the Florida A&M Rattlers to Rupp Arena, in what will be their final tune-up before conference play begins on Dec. 28 in Columbia against the Missouri Tigers. Tip-off between UK and FAMU is set for 7 p.m. EST and will air on the SEC Network.
