LAS VEGAS _ After Wednesday's surprising 69-66 loss to Utah, John Calipari did not sound angry. Yet another instance of Kentucky being the gang that couldn't shoot straight _ this time making only 2 of 17 3-point shots _ left him seemingly perplexed. He sounded unsure of how to address his team's well-documented problem with making shots from outside the paint.
"I'm going to tell you, all good looks," the UK coach said of his players rolling 3-point snake eyes again and again. "Probably five of them were air balls. So, I don't have the answer. I wish I did."
UK's three starting guards _ Tyrese Maxey, Immanuel Quickley and Ashton Hagans _ combined to make 1 of 12 shots from beyond the arc. That included two well-executed plays in the final 15 seconds that resulted in 3-point misses by Maxey and Quickley.
Calipari has repeatedly said UK must make more 3-point shots. He again said he'd like to see the Cats make five to seven shots from beyond the arc on a regular basis.
"I believe we have good shooters," he said. "(It's) just they may be timid right now. Literally pulling up and (the shots) not close to the rim. 'What's on your mind?' So we've got to fix some of that."
Kentucky came into the game ranked 344th in the nation in 3-point baskets per game (4.4 per) and 296th in 3-point shooting accuracy (29.4 percent). Those numbers slipped to 4.2 per game and 27.5.
When asked why UK's 3-point shooting remains problematic, Hagans was philosophical in his response.
"Open shots," he said. "We're just missing them ... . Just got to keep getting back in the gym. Keep shooting the shots. 'Quick' missed some big shots. He's one of our best shooters. Tyrese missed some big shots. He's one of our best shooters. I missed some shots. It happens to the best of us."
Kentucky (8-2) missed all seven of its 3-point shots in the first half. Kahlil Whitney, who had not made a 3-point shot since Nov. 22, made UK's first with 17:54 left. The second _ and last _ came from Hagans with 10:06 left, and reduced Utah's lead to 56-44.
