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The road to “rock bottom” apparently runs through Athens, as Kentucky somehow found a way to lose 63-62 at Georgia on Wednesday night.
With Kentucky leading 62-61, Devin Askew missed the front end of a one-and-one with 23.5 seconds remaining that resulted in the Bulldogs holding for the final shot. Isaiah Jackson then blocked a Georgia layup attempt with 3.6 seconds left to set up the final inbounds play that saw PJ Horne bobble the ball, before splitting two Kentucky defenders for the game-winning basket.
UK head coach John Calipari has often questioned when his team would hit “rock bottom” this season, as the Wildcats are now 4-9 overall and 3-3 in the SEC. Unfortunately, Wednesday night just might be the low point of the season, as Kentucky led 56-49 with just over seven minutes remaining and missed six of its final eight field goal attempts to close the game. The last time Calipari was five games under .500 was in his first season at UMass during the 1988-89 season.
Brandon Boston Jr. led Kentucky with 18 points. Jackson and Keion Brooks Jr. both added 12. Once again, Kentucky was brutal from long range, finishing 1-of-13 from three-point range, while also struggling in the half-court offense with 17 turnovers.
Box Score
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Game MVP
After losing his starting spot for the first time in 12 games, Boston responded with his best game of the season, scoring 12 first half points to keep the Wildcats within striking distance. Most importantly, the Georgia native was active on the boards, finishing with seven rebounds and showed better patience on the offensive end, making 9-of-16 field goals.
Boston, projected as a first-round NBA draft pick, has failed to meet expectations this season, coming into Wednesday’s game shooting 34% from the field (50/144) and 18% from three-point range (7/40). On Wednesday, Boston shot just one free throw and will have to get to the charity stripe more frequently to help UK find the win column.
Kentucky must now prepare for a daunting five-game stretch that includes a home contest against second-place LSU (10-3, 5-2) on Saturday followed by games with top 25 teams Alabama (18), Texas (5), Missouri (19) and Tennessee (6).