Oakland defeats Kentucky: Four key takeaways and post-game humor

In the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday night, the Oakland Golden Grizzlies defeated the Kentucky Wildcats 80-76. There was something about the first half. It didn’t last long as both teams had poor starts. Jack Gohlke of Oakland made seven 3-pointers—more on that later—in the first half! Aside from it, Kentucky’s defensive performance was largely strong; yet, the Golden Grizzlies led 38-35 at the half. Nothing much improved in the second half. Oakland was unstoppable, and Kentucky was unable to score in the manner they had done all season. Once more, the Bluegrass flows were let down by a terrible performance.

Tre Mitchell excels That was, indeed, surprising. In the six weeks or so that he has been dealing with injury, Tre Mitchell has offered Kentucky almost nothing. Although he didn’t appear to be getting any better since his return, he had 14 points and 13 rebounds when he began the game today. Though, to be fair, earlier in the season Mitchell kept Kentucky afloat, it nearly seemed as though the younger Cats had outgrown the veteran. Naturally, injuries are a major factor, but Kentucky managed to win even without him.

The midrange is frequently open in Oakland’s zone defense, which is the only reason he began. Though I fully respect the decision made here, Adou Thiero is Kentucky’s best option at the four. Mitchell excels at making use of his ability to create shots, but Thiero is greatest at attacking the rim. The only problem is that since his return, Mitchell hasn’t regularly taken any action. Although this choice isn’t regrettable given the circumstances, it was made 2.5 months ago. Fortunately, Mitchell performed admirably and disproved everyone who had doubts, including me.

Reeves makes amends Antonio Reeves’ 1/15 effort in the previous season’s NCAA Tournament loss to the Kansas State Wildcats could have been the end of his career at Kentucky. His performance in this game did not deviate from his season-long consistency, as he scored 27 points on 11/18 shooting. When the Cats had no business keeping it close, Reeves kept them in the game. The seasoned guard gave it his all to ensure that Kentucky’s March Madness hopes would not die. It’s unfortunate that without him, Kentucky would never have had a shot. Although the Calipari era’s top scorer made a full redemption, it was all in vain.

Sheppard goes missing. Even though Reed Sheppard has been amazing this season, at the crucial moment, he failed to show up. Sheppard was entirely taken out of the game by Oakland by virtue of his lackluster play. He appeared unrecognizable as he missed easy opportunities and leaped at fake ball movements. Hopefully, Sheppard follows Reeves’ lead and gives himself a chance to make amends for the disappointment of March. Although his regular season was great, this was probably a cruel way to end his career at Kentucky.

Jack Gohlke takes a nuclear turn Do I need to add anything else? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a child act in this way during a game. Before the game, Gohlke made a lot of statements, and he followed them up with 10/20 shooting from the field, including all threes, and a game-high 32 points—all coming from the bench. This child’s style of play has earned him notoriety. He has made more than 300 3-pointers compared to just seven 2-pointers going into this contest. You did really read correctly.

He certainly lived up to the notoriety. Gohlke was limited to shooting threes, and he was unstoppable despite Kentucky’s best efforts to contain him. With seven deep balls in the first half alone, he broke the NCAA Tournament record for most deep balls in a tournament game against the Cats! I doubt that anyone could have provided a response. At the expense of the Cats, the performance was legendary. BBN, what a depressing day. Though it most likely won’t happen, this should be John Calipari’s final game leading the Kentucky Wildcats. Let’s vent now.