Tuesday, November 30, 1999
UK puts up air ball at Firstar
UD upsets cold-shooting Wildcats
BY NEIL SCHMIDT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Kentucky's Keith Bogans falls backward as he attempts to pass over Tony Stanley, who scored 23 points for Dayton.
(Gary Landers photos)
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Kentucky basketball coach Tubby Smith said in preseason that “defense would be our calling card.” His offense needs a Hallmark card: Get well soon.
The 13th-ranked Wildcats, making their annual trip to the Queen City, had best be glad they weren't playing top-ranked Cincinnati. Dayton was more than enough for them Monday, shocking them 68-66 before a sellout crowd of 17,232 at the Firstar Center.
“It was hard to get the guys to appreciate how good Dayton is,” Smith said. “They outworked us, got the loose balls, outhustled us, out-toughed us.”
The unranked Flyers (4-0) held UK without a basket for a 13:17 stretch in the second half, roaring back from a 10-point deficit and sending UK (3-2) to its second straight loss. UK shot 25 percent in the second half and produced 20 turnovers in the game.
With ranked foes such as Indiana, Maryland and Michigan State on the horizon, the Wildcats had better cook up some offense in a hurry.
“We had our opportunities tonight, but we didn't come through,” UK senior center Jamaal Magloire said. “We've got to come out more aggressive.
“I'm not worried, though. We're doing the right things. We're a young team; we work hard — good things will happen.”
Despite their offensive woes, the Wildcats nearly pulled this one out.
Down 68-63 with nine seconds left, UK's Desmond Allison drew a foul while attempting a three-pointer. He made three free throws to make it 68-66. UK fouled Edwin Young, who missed the front end of a one-and-one with 7.9 seconds left, and Saul Smith grabbed the rebound and raced upcourt.
Kentucky's Jamaal Magloire puts up a shot over Dayton's Mark Ashman during the first half Monday night.
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The defense collapsed on him at the free-throw line, and he passed to Tayshaun Prince, wide-open for a 3-pointer from the left wing. When it crashed hard off the right side of the rim, Prince crashed to the floor in disbelief.
When he rose, he smiled and shook his head as he walked off the court.
“When it left my hand, I thought it was in. I knew it was in,” Prince said. “Somehow, it didn't go down.”
It was a sweet upset for the Flyers, who hadn't played UK in 32 years.
In the last 15 years, the only other time UD beat a team ranked higher than this was an upset of then-No.12 Xavier three years ago in Dayton. It was UD's biggest regular-season victory away from home since an upset of No.11 Louis ville in 1969.
“It's a huge win for our program,” Dayton coach Oliver Purnell said. “We felt confident we could play with Kentucky. Defense was what won it for us.”
Defense, and muscle. The Flyers pushed the bigger, taller Wildcats all over the court.
“I'm concerned with our lack of physical play,” Tubby Smith said. “People are getting up, playing physical, and taking us out of it. When they get on you, you've got to get them off you, and I didn't see that tonight.”
It was a polite way of saying Dayton wanted it more.
“The reason we didn't make plays is the same reason we lost last time (to Arizona): lack of concentration,” Prince said. “We weren't keeping up the intensity the whole game.”
Experience helps, too. Dayton started two seniors and two juniors; UK starts just one senior and one junior.
“Our guys are young,” Smith said. “The pieces are going to come together; that comes with time and maturity.”
NOTES: UK senior center Jamaal Magloire drew a first-half technical foul for throwing an elbow. It was his sixth career technical, believed a record by a UK player. ... Dayton junior guard Cain Doliboa (Springboro High), who scored 10 points, gave Dayton its first lead on a 5-foot run ner with 7:55 left. The basket capped an 11-0 run for the Flyers.
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