Cats Get 'Statement' Win in Tough Venue
In Lawrence, Kansas, one can purchase a t-shirt with a picture of venerable Allen Fieldhouse, home of the Kansas Jayhawks’ basketball program, on the front. The black shirt contains white writing that states “It’s OK…Everyone loses here.”
That was the scene that Kentucky walked into on Saturday night. Allen Fieldhouse has been a house of horrors for Kansas’ opponents for years, but especially during the tenure of current KU head coach Bill Self.
The numbers are, frankly, staggering. Kansas entered Saturday’s game against the Cats on an 18-game home winning streak. The Jayhawks were 55-2 at Allen Fieldhouse over the last four seasons. During Self’s time in Lawrence, Kansas has an amazing 286-15 record. That’s not a misprint. The Jayhawks had lost just 15 times in 18 years under Self.
Kentucky faced not only playing in Allen Fieldhouse, but against the fifth-ranked team in the country. And it was ESPN’s College Game Day.
So when Kentucky figuratively punched Kansas in the mouth in the first half, leading by double figures within the first nine minutes of the game and by a whopping 20 points, 51-31, at the break, almost everyone watching was surprised. Kentucky’s inside duo of Keion Brooks Jr. and Oscar Tshiebwe had their way in the first 20 minutes, with Brooks scoring 12 points and Tshiebwe adding 11.
Kentucky’s first half was very impressive, especially against the talented Jayhawks. UK shot 61.8 percent from the field and hit four of eight from beyond the arc.
In the second half, Kansas made their run, as everyone in the building, including UK head coach John Calipari, knew they would.
“When they got it to 13, I said, look, we’ve got to make three or four shots and this thing’s over,” Calipari said. “But, did you not think they were going to make a run? They’re a top-five team!”
The problem for the Jayhawks was, their 7-0 run only got them within 14 points, 62-48. The other problem was that Kentucky answered the run with a 16-6 streak of its own, stretching the lead to a game-high margin of 24 (78-54). The Cats would ultimately win 80-62.
Brooks was outstanding in both halves, but he carried the Cats for a large span in the second half. At one point, Brooks scored 15 straight points for the Cats while Kansas was trying to climb back in the game. Brooks new it had been a while since he had done something like that.
“Coming up through little league, high school, but that’s the first time having it happen in college,” Brooks said. “I was just trying to make plays.”
Tshiebwe gushed about his teammate after the game.
“I’m so proud of him for what he did tonight,” Tshiebwe said. “He helped us to win this game.”
Calipari knew that something like this could be coming from Brooks.
“Yeah, because of how he played the last game and what he’s been doing in practice,” Calipari said. “You notice he took all twos. He rebounded, he played tough.”
As a team, the Cats felt like they needed to make a statement after coming up short on the road a couple of times this season.
“That was one of our main focuses as a team. We went to some very tough environments against some ranked opponents on the road and we didn’t come out with a win, regardless of the circumstances,” Brooks said. “We knew we had an opportunity tonight, getting everybody back healthy, to play a really good team that’s coached really, really well. We wanted to see how good we were and we went in and made a statement.”
Calipari knew the reason that his team was able to put together a complete performance on Saturday.
“Our guards are healthy,” Calipari said. “Keion played well, Jacob (Toppin) played well, Oscar was a beast but we were healthy at guard.”
The Cats will be energized by winning not only against a Final Four contender, but in a building where about 90 percent of the opposition over the last 20 years has left with a loss.
