Gonzaga gives up big lead in ugly 90-89 loss to Kentucky

Last nights game was pure insanityand not in a good, fun way.

I mean that in the idiomatic sense of insanity: doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting a different outcome.

#7 Gonzagas 90-89 overtime loss to Mark Popes #4 Kentucky Wildcats was exactly thatpure insanity.

Kentucky just came back from 18 down on a Gonzaga team that returned 81% of its scoring.

In Seattle.

Down two guards.

That's as impressive a win as any in college hoops this year.

The game started strong.

The Zags came out firing, sinking deep shots and stifling Kentuckys high-powered offense for a solid 20 minutes.

Initially, the Zags looked to be playing some of the best basketball theyve played all season.

By halftime, Gonzaga led 50-34, and everything seemed to be in place for the Bulldogs to calmly and confidently sail to a much-needed Quad 1 win over a quality opponent.

But in the second half, the wheels completely fell off.

Kentucky stormed out on a 16-2 run before Gonzaga could remember how to play defense.

And by then, theyd forgotten how to play offense.

The Zags went ice cold from the field and couldnt keep up defensively with Kentuckys newfound enthusiasm for rebounding or their renewed momentum in transition.

In the second half, it seemed like all the Bulldogs did was miss.

They missed layups, they missed outside shots, they missed midrange floaters, they missed dunks, they missed second- and third-chance shots, they missed at the free-throw line, they missed big shots and easy buckets alike.

They missed calls.

They got out-hustled and missed out on a number of 50/50 loose balls.

They sorely missed Ryan Nembhards steady hand at the wheel after Kentucky successfully neutralized him defensively.

And they missed Graham Ikes defensive presence inside after he once again found himself in foul trouble.

Graham Ike with the monster block and then Koby Breas last-second shot comes up short.

Gonzaga and Kentucky headed to overtime.

Unbelievable second half from the Cats who trailed by 16 at the half.

pic.twitter.com/i040hsba6K Desperation crept in as the Zags lead just slowly but surely evaporated.

Kentucky forced overtime, and after a quick breather and a chance to get their heads right, Gonzaga instead went right back to the business of repeatedly shooting itself in the foot.

The Wildcats quickly went up six points in under a minute.

Despite some big shots by Dusty Stromer, Nolan Hickman, and Ryan Nembhard, it was too little too late.

Gonzagas final possession was heartbreakingly chaotic.

Down 1 point with under 5 seconds to play, they didnt even manage a shot off, and Kentucky escaped Climate Pledge Arena with the win after being down by as much as 18.

Andrew Carr missed both of his free throws, and had the game winning steal to seal the win over Gonzaga.

It doesn't matter how you play in the game, it's how you finish.

pic.twitter.com/48gPYllhA6 What the box score fails to reveal is exactly what makes this loss so particularly frustrating for longtime Gonzaga fans.

There were bright spots, of course.

Graham Ike delivered his best, most complete performance of the season against some of the toughest competition hell face all year.

Ryan Nembhard continued to make his case as one of the best point guards in the country.

Dusty Stromer played some spectacular on-ball defense, and Nolan Hickman hit a couple clutch shots in key moments.

Furthermore, even with poor defensive communication, a devastatingly unforgiving rim, inconsistent officiating, and a rapidly dwindling list of reasons to remain optimistic, the Zags never quit.

They stuck to their schemes, kept searching for their rhythm, and kept pushing the ball toward the basket.

Unfortunately, toward was the operative word, herenot in, and doubly unfortunately, it may be exactly this brand of persistence that kept the Bulldogs from a win against the Wildcats last night.

While an unwillingness to compromise can certainly be a strength, last night revealed once again that Mark Fews strategic inflexibility is also a major source of this teams vulnerability.

Credit where its due: Kentucky is exceptionally talented, and Mark Pope proved why hes one of college basketballs top strategists against the Zags.

His in-game defensive adjustments made Nembhard and Ike non-factors at critical moments, and his ability to keep getting good looks from inside speaks volumes to his cunning as an offensive strategist.

Kentucky exposed the Zags defensive weaknesses and its unwillingness (or inability) to adapt to the new looks he was throwing at them.

It resulted in a lot of uncontested shots around the rim and then a lot of contested threes when those clean looks werent available.

And sometimes, most of those shots just go in.

In the box score, theres some good, some bad, and a lot of ugly: The Good The Bad The Ugly What we now know for certain is that this team is indeed capable of playing some really bad basketball despite playing really good basketball just minutes before.

We also know that Mark Few can, in fact, be out-coached.

And, most frustratingly, we know that the type of bad basketball this team plays is nauseatingly familiar to those who have watched Mark Few get out-coached in the past.

Heres how losses like last nights almost invariably play out: offensively, our guards cant hit from the perimeter, so the focus shifts inside, burning time to set up low-post players who like to take their time in hunting for clean looks.

Sometimes it works, but often it doesntespecially against bigger, more athletic rim protectors who can then outmuscle our frontcourt for rebounds.

Defensively, our bigs get into foul trouble against these more physical opponents and sacrifice their ability to aggressively protect the rim on our side of things for fear of incurring more fouls.

This wouldnt be catastrophic if our backcourt defense was able to then adjust a bit and keep the ball out of the paint while contesting shots from the perimeterbut it never does, ever.

The result is a snowball effect: the other team gets uncontested shots near the rim, we get antsy to push pace in transition and suddenly forget how to box out for rebounds, they get huge second-chance points from outside, and the clock keeps ticking away while the Zags look increasingly desperate for a Plan B.

Instead of making adjustments of any kind, on either end of the floor, Coach Few sticks to the same clock-draining high-low strategy that has failed time and again up to that point.

The bag of tricks is revealed to be empty.

Our guards keep clanging outside shots.

Our bigs keep fouling.

Our opponent keeps sinking free throws.

And fans keep pulling their hair outor throwing things at the wallin frustration.

This is how you beat the Zags.

This is how youve always beaten the Zags.

In spite of all this, I refuse to take this game as evidence that the sky is falling.

Yes, this loss stings.

Its a tough one to swallow.

But we should try and keep in mind that Kentucky is a top-five team, a legitimate Final Four contender, especially with a healthy Lamont Butler.

Furthermore, early-season losses hurt rankings, but they dont define seasons, and with all the turmoil among top-ranked teams in the last two weeks, damage incurred from a close loss to an exceptionally good team like Kentucky could be minimal in terms of our tournament bona fides.

This Gonzaga team is still one of the deepest, most talented rosters Few has ever assembled.

This is still a Top-5 team.

Early-season kinks are still being ironed out, upgrades are still being installed, and theres still a wealth of potential yet to even be unlocked ( looking at you, Ajayi, where are ya, buddy? ).

If this team makes the same mid-season jump last years team was able to make, theyll be nearly unstoppable by tournament time.

Theres room for growth, and March is all that truly matters.

Finally, for a quick pick-me-up after last nights loss, I suggest Gonzaga fans scroll through Twitter and enjoy some of the more classy hot takes from Kentuckys loyal Wildcat Nation.

Kentucky may have won the game, yes, but take solace, Zag Fans, that youll never have to pretend you liked John Calipari..

This article has been shared from the original article on slipperstillfits, here is the link to the original article.