Game Notes: Gonzaga 88, Kentucky 72

Game Notes: Gonzaga 88, Kentucky 72

Below are post-game notes from Kentucky's 88-72 loss to the No. 2 Gonzaga Bulldogs on Sunday evening in Spokane:

Team Records and Series Notes

• Kentucky is 3-2, Gonzaga is 3-1.
• The series is tied, 1-1. The previous matchup was an 80-72 Kentucky win on Nov. 27, 2002, in Maui, Hawaii.
• Next for Kentucky: the Wildcats return home after the game and will seek to extend its 22-game home win streak Wednesday vs. North Florida. Game time is 4 p.m. and it can be seen on SEC Network+.

Team Notes

• Since the inception of the Associated Press rankings, Kentucky has an all-time record of 38-23 vs. top-five matchups (both teams in top five), including 24-13 in regular-season matchups and 7-5 in top-five road matchups.

Player Notes

• Oscar Tshiebwe collected 20 points and 15 rebounds, his second 20-15 game of the season and ninth in his two seasons as a Wildcat.
• In addition to making 7 of 12 from the field, he was a perfect 6 of 6 at the foul line.
• Jacob Toppin got hot with the mid-range jumper in the second half and tied his career high with 16 points.
• Freshman Cason Wallace had 14 points, two assists and four steals.
• Wallace entered the weekend as the only player in the nation with at least 20 assists and 12 steals.
• Antonio Reeves had 10 points, his fourth double-figure game this season.

Coach John Calipari

• Calipari has a 4-1 record vs. Gonzaga.
• Calipari has an 813-243 all-time on-court record and a 368-103 mark in his 14th season at UK.
• UK is 67-45 against Associated Press-ranked competition under Calipari, including 13-13 vs. top-five teams. Calipari is 7-5 at UK when both teams are ranked in the top five.

In the First Half

• Kentucky started the combination of Sahvir Wheeler, Cason Wallace, CJ Fredrick, Jacob Toppin and Oscar Tshiebwe for the first time this season.
• Lance Ware was UK’s first substitute at the 16:29 mark.
• Gonzaga led all the way, as the Bulldogs got the game’s first eight points before Tshiebwe got UK on the board with a layup at 17:33.
• Ahead 10-6, Gonzaga’s 9-0 run put UK in its then-largest deficit of the season, 19-6.
• Later in the half, GU’s 8-0 spurt gave the Bulldogs their largest lead of the half at 39-21.
• Gonzaga went to halftime ahead 41-25 as UK shot only 25 percent (8 of 32), including 0 of 11 on 3-pointers. Tshiebwe’s 14 points and seven rebounds led the Wildcats.

In the Second Half

• Kentucky began the second half with Wheeler, Fredrick, Wallace, Toppin and Tshiebwe.
• Gonzaga got the first basket, but a 14-4 Kentucky run got the Wildcats within 47-39, coaxing a Bulldog timeout at 14:26.
• Back-to-back threes by Wallace and Reeves narrowed the gap to 49-45.
• UK was within 61-55 when a 7-0 GU spurt gave the home team a 68-55 cushion and the Wildcats got no closer than nine points the rest of the way.
• Gonzaga stretched the lead to 19 at 88-69 before a UK 3-pointer settled the final score. 

Wildcats Today will have post-game coverage from Kentucky's tough loss to the Zags.