Energy, enthusiasm and attitude have been staples of Matthew Mitchell’s philosophy this season.
Before the Southeastern Conference Tournament began, Mitchell said UK had the ability to both beat and lose to any team in the tournament. The key, he said, was the Cats’ approach.
That thinking was on full display Saturday night in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament vs. Mississippi State.
In the first half UK came out flat and careless. The Cats turned the ball over 14 times en route to an 11-point first-half deficit. In the second half, they regrouped with a fiery intensity that flustered Mississippi State.
Thanks to a stifling full-court press that ignited a 23-4 second-half run and a plus-nine turnover differential after halftime, UK came from 14 down to defeat the Bulldogs 76-65 and advance to the SEC Tournament finals for only the second time in school history and first since winning the championship in 1982.
UK will face Tennessee on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
“The pressure was able to turn the game around,” Mitchell said. “You cannot do that if you don’t have five players really spreading the floor and laying it on the line. That was as good as we’ve pressed all year in the second half. That was outstanding.”
The Cats have played with a consistent effort all season long. Their up-tempo offense, in-your face defense and school record-tying 25 wins have been predicated on effort and energy.
But for some reason in the SEC tourney, UK has been a bit Jekyll and Hyde in the first two games. The Cats fell behind early to Auburn in the quarterfinals game Friday and were on the verge of getting blown out of the gym early in the second half against Mississippi State.
A lot of factors contributed to the sluggish first half. One could point to the 14 turnovers, the lack of rhythm because of five stoppages of play (clock malfunctions and injuries) or A’dia Mathies’ foul trouble.
But the reality of the situation is that MSU was simply playing harder. The Bulldogs looked every bit the part of a team fighting for its NCAA Tournament life while the Cats seemed like a team that was content with an NCAA Tournament appearance.
UK played lethargic, lazy and sometimes just uncharacteristically dumb in the first half.
“Coach (Kyra) Elzy was like, ‘Are you going to lay down or are you going to bring the heat back to them?'” junior point guard Amber Smith said. “We had to make a choice.”
They chose effort and energy.
It started with Dunlap’s 10 points in the first four minutes, continued with Smith and Mathies’ second-half surge, and ended with UK’s smothering full-court defense.
It was simply a tale of two halves of effort. The energy statistics (points in the paint, points off turnovers and second-chance points), often times the decider in games, said it all.
At halftime, Mississippi State had an 18-8 points in the paint edge, led 12-9 in points off turnovers and held a 5-0 second-chance points advantage. After halftime, as if Mitchell suddenly flipped a switch, those numbers flip-flopped.
In the second half, UK won the interior game 24-12, scored 16 more points off turnovers than MSU and had a 12-2 second-chance points advantage.
If Mitchell was the person who flipped the switch, Mathies was obviously the switch. After taking an elbow to the face just a few minutes into the second half, the SEC Freshman of the Year returned – with part of a tooth missing – to score 18 second-half points.
“It’s gutsy play for a freshman or fifth-year senior,” Mitchell said. “She’s just a very talented basketball player. There’s no way I could have more confidence in A’dia Mathies.”
When Mathies was saddled on the bench in the first half with two fouls, UK’s offense looked lost and passive. When she returned in the second half, she was, as Mitchell has called her all season long, the difference maker.
The Louisville native scored 10 big points during the 23-6 run that saw UK’s seven-point deficit turn into a commanding 10-point lead. That elbow in the second half appeared to light the fire.
“I think it kind of gave the team energy,” Mathies said. “When I was on the bench, that’s when the run started. I think that actually gave us a little bit of momentum. We just had to get tougher and come together as a team. When I came back into the game it was already high energy so I just fed off of them.”
If UK’s semifinal game resembled what UK is capable of when its energy and effort is in the right place, then Smith’s game might be the prime example.
Smith, by her own admission, played poorly in the first half. She had more turnovers (six) than points (three) and fueled the Mississippi State defense. After the halftime talk with Elzy, Smith calmed down in the second frame and finished with 14 points and seven assists. She turned it over just one time the rest of the way.
“When things are going bad, generally if the leader gets down and doesn’t fight through, then bad things happen,” Mitchell said. “You’re working with her and trying to get her to understand that we go as you go emotionally. I know it’s frustrating (sometimes). I’m frustrated. Everybody’s upset.”
“We looked dead in the water. She was able to pull herself out of that and she made some plays that were incredible. … It was a good turnaround for Amber Smith and we’ll need to build off that.”
Next is Tennessee in the finals. With a team as talented as the 28-2 Lady Volunteers, UK can ill-afford to come out in the first half like it did in the first two SEC tourney games. That much was evident in the first meeting in Knoxville, Tenn., when the Cats came out anxious and tentative.
Before they knew it, they were down double digits to UT and never recovered.
“We have to come out from the beginning,” said Dunlap, who finished with 22 points, nine rebounds, five blocks and five steals. “Last time coach talked to us about not being ready for the shootaround mentally and not being mentally ready. Tomorrow, from beginning of the game we have to be ready.”
If UK can stick to its philosophy and come out with a full 40 minutes of effort and energy, it will have an opportunity to cap a historic league run.
“Our team needs to do and play as close to our identity as they can play to give themselves a chance to win this championship,” Mitchell said. “I expect them to do that. I expect them to come out and play extremely hard.”
