LEXINGTON, Ky. — Toss out the season-opening loss to Duke and Kentucky's schedule has been one long trip to the pastry shop. Through seven games, the Wildcats are 6-1 with a sweet tooth.
So what could John Calipari’s team possibly be getting from blowout wins over a string of inferior opponents?
“Building confidence and togetherness,” the UK coach said Monday after Kentucky flattened Tony Barbee and Central Michigan 85-57. “You talk to them about how we’re playing against us, ourselves and our best.”
Combine the soft schedule with an early spat of roster injuries and illness and there’s another benefit to easing into the season.
“Who got his chance to play a bunch?” Calipari asked the media.
One answer: Dontaie Allen, the former Pendleton County (Ky.) star and Big Blue Nation fan favorite trying to work his way up the rotation ladder.
After not playing against Duke, Allen has played in all six games since. He’s averaging 12.4 minutes, which ranks ninth among the 10 Cats averaging double-digit minutes.
Here’s the rub: Known as a sharpshooter, he has made just 13 of 37 shots from the floor for 35.1%. And he’s made just six of his 26 3-point attempts for 23.1%. After starting out the season 3 for 6 from 3-point range in his first three games, Allen is 3 for 20 in the last three.
In UK’s 86-61 win over Albany on Nov. 22, Allen missed all five of his shots, all of which were 3-point attempts. In last Friday’s 86-52 thumping of North Florida, Allen finished 2 for 8 from 3-point range after going 0 for 3 in the first half. Monday night, he was 1 for 7 from beyond the arc.
“Even the one he made, I said, ‘Hey, it’s about time you made one. And, hey, you rattled it in. It hit the rim seven times.’ And he started laughing,” Calipari said. “Because, again, Dontaie can be a game-changer for us to go in the game and have great confidence because he did something defensively. He blocked it. And all of a sudden, he gets a shot and, bang, he gets another shot, bang. And all of a sudden, the game changes. There is a spot for him.”
His shots aren’t falling, but Allen has done other things. The things Calipari has been urging him to do. He was 3 for 4 from 2-point range on his way to 14 points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes against North Florida. Monday night, Allen scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds in 18 minutes against Central Michigan. He also has been credited with four assists over his last three games.
To be fair, his teammates have struggled with their shots, too. UK was 6 for 25 from 3-point range against North Florida, then 7 for 26 against Central Michigan.
“Consistency in shooting the ball is what we need to work on,” forward Jacob Toppin said. “Defensively, we can get better. We have practice every day where we work on defense because that’s what we want to be, a defensive team.”
Calipari is a defense-first coach. That’s what he stresses, especially to Allen. If the 6-foot-6 junior isn’t making shots, then he must defend to stay in the game.
“I told him, ‘You can miss shots. If you fight, I’ll leave you in,’ ” Calipari said after the North Florida game. “He didn’t fight early in the game. He didn’t come up with the ball, he ran the wrong way, he pushed. You’re not missing shots and playing. Then all of a sudden, he missed shots, but he fought. When we came in at halftime, the guys said, ‘That’s the way to fight, Dontaie.’
“I’m giving them the answers to the tests. You can miss shots if you fight, if you defend, and if you go after balls.”
After all, there’s just one more tune-up game against Southern on Dec. 7 before tougher tests arrive — at Notre Dame on Dec. 11; Ohio State in Las Vegas on Dec. 18; Louisville at Rupp on Dec. 22.
“You have your chance,” Calipari said. “Now get in there and do it.”
