Well, that is a bitter pill to swallow. Gonzaga rolled into Seattle and made Kentucky look like an AAU team for the first 20 minutes. The Wildcats returned the favor in the second half, tying the game and ultimately prevailing, 90-89, in overtime.
Here are some thoughts as viewed on from the 200 level of Climate Pledge Arena.
Bad three point shooting night + bad free throw shooting night = slim chance of a win
The Zags finished the night 6-of-27 from three but that ignores the fact that leading into overtime, Gonzaga was just 3-for-21 from long range. The Zags have five games in history in which they’ve shot under 15 percent from three with 20 or greater attempts. Gonzaga’s overall record in those games: 1-4.
So with that stat already working against their favor, the Zags also didn’t hit free throws at a clip they are used to this season. Most specifically, at a critical juncture in the second half, the Zags missed multiple front ends of one-and-ones.
Combine that with just some gimmes at the hoop that should fall and didn’t, as happens every game, and Gonzaga lost a game that by all accounts they should have won. That is basketball.
Gonzaga had no answer for Kentucky’s halftime defensive adjustment
This is what Gonzaga’s offense looked like on its final possession in a tie game. Five players basically standing still around the three-point line. Graham Ike eventually moved into the post with nine seconds remaining on the shot clock. Kill me.
The WIldcats shifted to a 1-3-1 zone at times in the second half and the Zags just could not for the life of them figure it out, in incredibly frustrating ways. After Gonzaga scored an unsustainable 1.47 points per possession in the first half, that dropped to 1.03 in the second half.
It was a similar situation to the West Virginia loss. Gonzaga’s offense just looked absolutely befuddled and anemic in the second half. Credit to Kentucky’s defense for sure, but Gonzaga demonstrated a complete inability to adjust in the second half, irregardless of their shooting woes.
Grab an defensive rebound for once
Bad three-point shooting will happen and free throws will be missed. It doesn’t make it any easier to swallow. However, the most enraging part of the game was how the Zags let Kentucky, who are decidedly very AVERAGE on the offensive glass this season, absolutely feast. The Wildcats finished with 16 offensive rebounds.
Like I said in my game preview, Kentucky is too good of a team to allow extra possessions, and that is exactly what Gonzaga allowed. The Wildcats finished with 16 (!!!) second-chance points.
We need to stop thinking Gonzaga is on some other level
Ever since the Zags nearly rattled off an undefeated season, there is a tendency within the fanbase to sort of elevate the Zags in our mind and get REALLY upset every time a loss happens.
But, in general, you look across the No. 1/2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament year-in and year-out and they are made up of good teams who usually have 3-5 losses to their names.
Gonzaga doesn’t have that wiggle room thanks to the WCC, and there is a good chance that this loss to Kentucky and the earlier loss to West Virginia scuttled a potential No. 1 seed. But the point is that good teams have losses to their name and still do good things in March.
I thought Gonzaga was a Final Four capable team on Saturday morning and I still think they are a Final Four capable team this morning. When the offense is dominating the Zags are unbeatable. They just need to figure out how to do it for more than 20 minutes in a game.