Boy, that was absolutely ugly.
After a week of flying high from a dominant win over No. 1 Purdue, Kentucky basketball came crashing back to Earth Thursday night in a stunning 84-70 exhibition loss to Georgetown. It was a jarring, disjointed performance that brought a whole new meaning to "preseason tune-up."
Now, take a deep breath, BBN. It didn't count. That's the most important takeaway.
But the bad news? That was, to borrow a phrase from Kevin McCallister, woof. It was a cocktail of turnovers, bad shots, porous defense, and arguably the worst offensive showing we've seen under Mark Pope.
The offensive collapse
Kentucky actually held a 19-18 lead midway through the first half after a Jasper Johnson three. That was the last lead the Wildcats would hold for the rest of the night. From that moment, the wheels completely fell off.
The offense, so fluid and connected against Purdue, devolved into stagnant, one-on-one basketball. Players were running into each other, standing in the same spots, and forcing bad shots. After a respectable 7-for-17 from three-point range in the first half, the Cats went a shocking 0-for-13 from deep in the second.
They committed 13 turnovers in the first 30 minutes of play and, once again, the free-throw line was an adventure, as the team shot a collective 65.7% (23-for-35).
No answers on defense
As bad as the offense was, the defense may have been worse. Georgetown shot a blistering 55.4% from the field (31-for-56), with Malik Mack (22 points) and Kaden Lewis (19 points) getting whatever they wanted.
The Hoyas' lead ballooned to a staggering 17 points in the second half. At one point, Kentucky went over five minutes without a field goal, allowing Georgetown to seize complete control. Tellingly, Kentucky trailed by 10 or more points for the entire final 15:57 of the game. There was no momentum, no juice, and no sign of a comeback.
Missing pieces and silver linings
To be fair, Kentucky was shorthanded. Junior guard Denzel Aberdeen, a key ball-handler, sat out for precautionary reasons with a lower leg injury. This forced sophomore Collin Chandler (11 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists) into the starting point guard role, and the offense clearly missed Aberdeen's steadying presence. Especially since Jaland Lowe was already out.
Despite the team-wide struggles, Otega Oweh (17 points) and Mo Dioubate (13 points, 7 rebounds) continued to play with relentless energy. Even though the efficiency was awful. The team combined to go 20-60, ouch.
The good news? It didn't count.
This loss doesn't erase the Purdue win, nor does it doom the season. This is exactly what exhibition games are for: to expose weaknesses. And Thursday night exposed a mountain of them. The good news is that Mark Pope and his staff now have a crystal-clear, very long list of things to fix before the real season tips off next week.
The hype has been checked, and the hard work truly begins now. The first game of the season is Tuesday night. We will need to see a lot better if this team wants to be there at the end of the year.
Drew Holbrook is an avid Kentucky fan who has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time he enjoys downtime with his family and Premier League soccer. You can find him on X here. Micah 7:7. #UptheAlbion