Kentucky men’s basketball fell 73-68 to Missouri at Rupp Arena on Jan. 7, marking the Tigers’ first-ever win in Lexington. The loss exposed a recurring issue for the Wildcats this season: slow starts and first-half struggles against top competition.
UK trailed at halftime in seven of eight games against high-major opponents, including Louisville, Michigan State, Gonzaga, Indiana, St. John’s, and Alabama. Against Missouri, Kentucky faced a slim 33-32 deficit at the break, despite senior guard Otega Oweh sinking a jaw-dropping 3-pointer from three-quarters of the court as time expired. Across these matchups, the Wildcats have an average halftime deficit of more than 11 points, and when trailing at the half, they are 2-5 this season against top teams.
Coach Mark Pope pointed to pace and movement as key factors behind the slow starts. “I think I’m really stressing with our pace and our movement. I’m just really frustrated,” Pope said after the game, where he also picked up his first technical foul as UK coach. “We’re emphasizing sprinting to screens every day… but it is like we’re in molasses out there. We’re not going to be good offensively until we find some pace.
Sophomore wing Kam Williams, one of three player representatives speaking to reporters, agreed that Kentucky needs to play faster. “Coach has been emphasizing playing faster, but we just didn’t execute that in this game,” Williams said. He noted that mistakes happen in basketball, but the team made more than they should have.
Slow starts are not new under Pope. Last season, Kentucky trailed at halftime in 14 of 27 games against quality opponents, winning only three. Combined with this season, the Wildcats are now 5-16 (23.8%) under Pope when trailing at halftime against top-level teams.
Even with standout moments, like Oweh’s long-range buzzer-beater, Kentucky continues to struggle with consistent first-half execution. With conference play underway, the pressure is mounting to fix these slow starts before the season slips further.
