Q&A: Gonzaga faces injury-riddled Kentucky with concerns at both ends of court

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Gonzaga and Kentucky could use a resume-boosting win Friday.

The 11th-ranked Zags were throttled 101-61 by Michigan in their last outing while the 18th-ranked Wildcats lost at home to No. 16 North Carolina, 67-64.

Kentucky is 5-0 in Quad 4 games, but 0-3 in Quad 1 after the disappointing loss Tuesday to the Tar Heels.

We got the lowdown on Kentucky in a Q&A with Ben Roberts, Wildcats’ beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Q: What were the factors that added up to another UK loss to a marquee opponent on Tuesday?

Roberts: The biggest factors in the loss to UNC were the Cats’ inability to pass, shoot or rebound. It was really a wonder that they actually led for the vast majority of the second half, before it got away at the end. UK was 1 for 13 on 3-pointers. Backup center Brandon Garrison hit the only one of the game, his first of the season.

The Cats gave up 20 offensive rebounds – a season high for UNC – and lost second-chance points 22-5. And they had only eight assists, a major departure for how (coach) Mark Pope wants his teams to play.

Kentucky was terrible on defense in its other two marquee losses – Louisville and Michigan State – but showed improvement there Tuesday. The problem is many of those possessions got prolonged through UNC’s offensive rebounding, and the Cats’ inability to grab defensive rebounds prevented them from getting out in transition, which is what they want to do this season. (And Pope thinks playing that style will lead to more open 3s.)

Factor in the poor playmaking in the halfcourt offense, and it was just a bad night all the way around.

Q: What’s your best guess on the status of Jayden Quaintance (knee), Jaland Lowe (shoulder) and Mo Dioubate (ankle) entering Friday’s game vs. Gonzaga? Which absence hurts most?

Roberts: I asked Pope about all three Thursday morning. He said Dioubate will not play against Gonzaga, and Quaintance is still likely weeks away from making his UK debut. Pope didn’t completely rule out Lowe for Friday’s game, but I’ll be surprised if he’s able to go.

Quaintance could be a total-game changer for the Cats when he’s ready to play, but UK’s coaches knew he wouldn’t be back by this stage in the season, so – for the purposes of this question – I think Lowe is the guy they’re missing the most at the moment. He’s the only “true” point guard on the roster, and Kentucky has struggled mightily to generate good offense against quality competition when he’s been out.

Of the three losses, UK was clearly at its best offensively against Louisville – the only one of those games Lowe played in – and his ability to penetrate and make plays off the dribble is crucial to this group finding itself as a scoring unit. With Lowe out, Denzel Aberdeen has served as Kentucky’s primary point guard. While he’s been arguably the Cats’ best player so far this season, he’s not nearly the all-around offensive playmaker that Lowe can be when healthy.

Q: Otega Oweh was named SEC preseason player of the year in October. His numbers have fallen off compared to last season, but he scored a season-high 16 points in each of UK’s last two games. Any theories on Oweh’s struggles thus far?

Roberts: Oweh has looked better over the past week or so, and it’s worth noting that he suffered a turf toe injury toward the end of summer practice that sidelined him for several weeks and limited his ability to participate in regular preseason practice sessions during the fall. It sure seems like he might still be rounding into game shape from that injury.

But the larger problem will persist once he’s 100% healthy. Oweh clearly benefited from all of the elite and/or high-volume shooters on last season’s team – Koby Brea, Jaxson Robinson and Ansley Almonor, to name a few – and this UK team is missing that kind of production.

Collin Chandler has 20 makes in eight games at a 46.5% clip, but the team as a whole has struggled. UK is at 33.6% from deep going into this one, averaging just nine makes per game. The Cats are also shooting just 26.8 3s per game. Pope wants them in the 30-35 range on attempts.

These perimeter struggles have really gummed up the floor for Oweh, who is finding a lot less space to operate compared to last season, while opposing coaches are also clearly targeting him more in their defensive game plans. His quick-burst ability off the dribble just doesn’t work when there’s nowhere to go on those drives. For him to get going, it really seems like his teammates will need to start shooting (and making) more perimeter shots. And keeping that ball moving would be a major help, too. The offense was especially stagnant Tuesday night.

Q: What are Kentucky’s biggest keys against Gonzaga?

Roberts: This UK team needs a lot of work. It’s not nearly as far along as the squad that Pope brought to play Gonzaga this time last year (and even those Cats trailed the Zags by 18 at one point). I don’t think their rebounding is as bad as the UNC game would indicate, so that shouldn’t be a long-term worry.

Getting in the flow offensively is probably the biggest thing to watch. With Lowe out, they don’t have a true point guard, and the ball just doesn’t move the way it did for most of last season. They have to get those assist numbers up. Obviously, making shots would help – and they probably need to punch above their weight on 3s to get a victory Friday – but they really didn’t get a lot of great looks against North Carolina either.

Kentucky’s defense is also a major question mark. Can they defend against a good team and be in position to grab the rebound when they miss? They haven’t shown it yet, and it would be difficult to overstate just how poor the overall defense was in those losses to Louisville and Michigan State.

The injuries to key players have hurt, but this UK team is just a major work in progress at this point. They’ll need to show improvement in multiple areas to win Friday night.