Parting Scott: UC lucky to escape with win

Well, for starters, I never would’ve guessed the Bearcats would’ve been down 15 at one point, or 8 at the half, or would be sweating it out to retake the lead (since 3-2 early on) at the 9:30 mark 47-46 on a Yancy Gates dunk.

Then again, I don’t guess UK figured they’d need a John Wall shot with a half-second left to beat the Miami Redhawks in Rupp either. So, if it makes you feel any better (and it really doesn’t me) Bearcat fans weren’t alone in watching a disappointing game tonight.

To me, the first half was atrocious and inexcusable. That collection of talent has no business being down to a team that plays NAIAs and the like and only plays schools like UC for the check. To their credit, they outhustled and outworked UC in the first half. Personally, I think the tone of bad things to come was set when Yancy Gates missed a dunk early on. (And can anyone explain to me how a guy who supposedly trained and went to “big man camp” etc. still plays as timid as he does sometimes underneath?)

Sure, Gates had 10 rebounds and he’ll have his games, but I don’t see the progress I would’ve liked to have seen coming into this year. Big men in UC uniforms are supposed to throw the ball down and take no prisoners!

My next item: TOO MANY THREES!!

I like the three-point shot. It’s a novelty we’ve all come to enjoy because of the impact it can have in a game. However, it clearly can have a negative impact on the game. The Bearcats were a woeful 3-18 at the half and finished 8-30, which is just under 27%. I see some OK shooters, but I don’t see Field Williams, LaZelle Durden, Darnell Burton or anyone like that out there and I haven’t for some time. Vaughn can get in rhythm and I like how Larry Davis’ stroke looks, but I see a lot of guys capable of scoring in a variety of ways hoisting up threes that are unwarranted.

Free throw shooting is another source of great pain. 56% isn’t going to cut it in the Big East. Nor is a 2-7 night from your point guard (Cashmere Wright). Lance Stephenson at one point bricked three in a row (although one was wiped out on a lane violation) so he finished 3-5. Sure, these guys are young and new, but they were also highly-touted and have played in front of bigger crowds than the 6500 or so that bothered to attend the home opener.

Lance will get his points eventually, it’s just a matter of figuring out how he fits into this team concept. He shows glimpses of some outstanding play (like when he went underneath and kicked back out to Vaughn for a three) and he shows glimpses of uncertainty. I have said he’s as talented a freshman player that I’ve seen since Dontonio Wingfield…maybe I need to scale that back. He is extremely talented, but Wingfield played with NO uncertainty. Still, you’re going to be happy Lance is on your team and not another as this plays out.

On a side note, another young player you won’t see apparently this season is Sean Kilpatrick. He’s another guy I really liked over the summer, but Mick Cronin said on his pregame show tonight that the plan is to redshirt Sean. Hopefully, in the long run that’ll help because I was curious as to why he wasn’t getting more floor time in the exhibitions.

Dude can score.

On the upside, in the end, talent won out and the Bearcats held off Prairie View A&M 69-62. Truth is, tonight and tomorrow more Sportscenter time nationally will be spent pondering Kentucky’s narrow escape to Miami since Kentucky’s ranked. The fact the Bearcats aren’t ranked, keeps this one out of the headlines and just left for us locals to grumble about.

You hope this is an eye-opener for the boys as they were certainly “on the ropes” for awhile against a team that draws less than 400 to their own home games in Texas. I would hope to see a much more inspired performance Wednesday night against Toledo.

We’ve all gone on about how much more talented this team is, when they stumble about like they did tonight, it’s tough to come up with any more excuses.