Willis Finding Balance between Defensive Focus, Shooting

Well established as a dynamic offensive threat, Derek Willis has accepted John Calipari’s challenge to become a complete player in recent weeks.

He’s been pleased with the results of his hard work.

“For the past games, I feel like I did good stuff and rebounded well,” Willis said, “so I was happy with myself on that aspect.”

Over three games against Louisville, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, Willis pulled down 15 rebounds and added two blocks and two steals. More importantly, he was no longer the primary target for opposing offenses and Kentucky’s team defense improved accordingly.

For all the strides he had made entering Saturday night’s game against Arkansas, there was still a voice in his head bugging him about the shots that weren’t falling.

“But it was really frustrating where I would be open and I was bricking shots,” Willis said. “It was really getting on my nerves.”

Willis – who shot 44.2 percent from deep overall and 50 percent in Southeastern Conference play last season – had averaged just six points over those three games in which his defense and rebounding showed signs of improvement. In those games, he made 7-of-21 shots from the field and 3 of 13 from 3.

“I feel like I was so focused on playing defense and rebounding and trying to do all those things right, which I improved on a lot, that it kind of also takes away from your offensive game a little bit too,” Willis said. “I was working a lot harder than I ever have before on defense and so I think it could have been a little bit of a conditioning thing where my legs weren’t really used to it and affected my shot and I reverted back to old habits.”

Foremost among those old habits, Willis said, was falling back and leaning to the left on his jump shot. With assistants Kenny Payne and Joel Justus in the twilight of Camp Cal, Willis worked to correct that and strike a balance between his newfound defensive focus and his offense.

“We’ve been shooting and stuff,” Willis said. “So just been trying to get into more of a routine of every time I catch the ball that’s just what I’m doing. I feel I kind of fell out of that where I was so focused on defense and rebounding and trying to add that to be a more complete player.”

The complete player that Willis wants to become was on full display against the Razorbacks.

Thanks in large part to Willis and his 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 3 of 5 from 3, UK (13-2, 3-0 SEC) overcame a quiet night from Malik Monk against his home-state school to blast past the Razorbacks (12-3, 1-2 SEC) with a dominant second half, 97-71.

“The guy that keeps haunting us,” Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson said, referencing Willis’ 12-point, seven-rebound performance in January 2016. “Last year he haunted us at Bud Walton Arena, and tonight he haunted us as well.”

Not surprisingly, it still wasn’t Willis’ offense that once again drew Coach Cal’s praise.

“I thought Derek Willis was outstanding, getting better defensively, getting better rebounding the ball,” Calipari said.

Due in part to the fact that Calipari is confident in Willis’ shot whether it’s falling or not, defense and rebounding are always going to be the first points of evaluation. For Willis, however, seeing his shot fall felt undeniably good, especially with the work he’s put in.

“I just got in the gym a little bit more and I came through today,” Willis said. “So I’m pretty happy with that.”

It was Willis’ floor-stretching ability that first paved the way for his emergence last season alongside Tyler Ulis and Jamal Murray. Now, Willis finds himself on a team with more scoring options and a point guard with game-changing speed and penetrating ability.

“Every time he drove, I felt like I had all the—the guy that was guarding me was sucked all the way in to stop Fox, so it gave me about five, 10 feet to just be open,” Willis said of De’Aaron Fox. “I just felt really comfortable shooting. It was real good for me.”

Willis was the beneficiary of three of Fox’s six assists on a night when the freshman guard was at the top of his game. He poured in a career-best 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting in leading a UK offense that scored 1.311 points per possession against Arkansas. Fox has been good all season, but perhaps it should come as no surprise that his most efficient night came on the same one Willis found his stroke.

“It’s ridiculous,” Fox said. “It’s another guy that can stretch the floor out. We know they’re going to guard Malik. Isaiah’s (Briscoe) been hitting shots. Then Derek adds to it. It helps me out, it helps Bam (Adebayo) out, if anything. It helps Zay out just driving lanes and being able to kick for easy baskets. Not having to put my body on the line going up. I can stay on the ground and just throw it to Derek knowing he’s going to make the shot.”