LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- John Calipari might not need a panic button, but odds are he could use a hug.
Or another shooter. And one of those lottery pick point guards that directed many of his best Kentucky teams.
On a night when the Wildcats played well enough to surge to a 13-point lead in the first half, they staggered in the second half and lost to Kansas, 65-62, Tuesday in the Champions Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Davion Mintz had a three-point shot from the left wing to tie the game in the final five seconds.
He missed, long, one of the 18 shots Kentucky missed from distance in 21 attempts. The Wildcats are 3 for 31 from the three-point line in their two defeats.
This loss happened for many of the reasons Kentucky lost to Richmond Sunday afternoon in Rupp Arena:
The Wildcats could not make three-point shots, and they didn’t make enough plays to get the ball to guys in places where they could score.
Sixteen turnovers. Eight assists. The ratio is supposed to be 2-1 in the other direction. Eight UK players attempted three-point shots. Only two converted -- Mintz (2) and Dontaie Allen. B.J. Boston and Terrence Clarke each bricked four.
Now, for the first time since Billy Gillispie’s farewell season in Lexington, Kentucky is 1-2.
"Let me say this," Calipari said after the game. "If I was (Kansas coach) Bill Self I would be so happy because my team was held to 29 percent from the floor and 23 percent from the three and (they) win. I love those games, just to slog it out."
The game turned in the final three minutes. It was tied at 55. Ochai Agbaji stuck a three-pointer. Kentucky turned the ball over. Agbaji took a pass from Dajuan Harris and converted the turnover into a dunk.
With the five-point advantage, Kansas had enough wiggle room to survive, even after missing three of four free throws. Boston and Mintz led UK with a dozen points on a night when 10 guys played and nine scored.
"Let me tell you what they did to us in the second half -- they punked us," Calipari said. "They just got (physical). We couldn't even bring in the ball. All they did was went after people."
Some numbers for you: The Wildcats had five assists in the first 15 minutes and none in the next 15. After missing all 10 of their shots from distance against Richmond, they missed 12 of their first 13 against the Jayhawks. The first 10 minutes of the second half had Calipari running out on the court and trying to show his guys what he wanted them to do.
What he did not want was five turnovers without any assists or an offense that took six of its first 18 shots from distance and missed all of them, allowing Kansas to take control. Asked about UK's back-to-back ugly three-point shooting game, Calipari said, "Let's hope it's not three."
The closing stretch was a contrast to the way Kentucky started the game, keeping Kansas off the glass with its size and length.
The Wildcats missed their first six shots at empty Bankers Life Fieldhouse. They slipped behind, 5-2. Then, all of a sudden, it seemed as if Kansas had not scored since Calipari and Self were both recruiting Andrew Wiggins.
Kentucky’s size, longer arms and multiple bodies kept the Jayhawks away from the rim. Over a choppy stretch of more than 6 1/2 minutes, Kansas missed eight of nine shots and threw the ball away six times.
In the first half, the Wildcats swatted seven Kansas shots. Isaiah Jackson blocked four.
Write this down: Only five days earlier, the Jayhawks had scored 90 points against Gonzaga, a respected defensive unit as well as a team that is nearly the consensus No. 1 team in America. If there was reason to be encouraged, it was delivered by the UK defense.
In the beginning, the sloppy ball-handling and crooked shooting Kentucky showed Sunday while losing to Richmond by a dozen points in Rupp Arena was no longer the cause for 17 message board threads.
Kentucky had as many assists in the first 15 minutes as it had in 40 against Richmond. They built a 13-point lead before wobbling a bit at the end of the half while Kansas reduced the deficit to 35-29.
Kentucky’s inexperience showed at the beginning of the second half. Four of the first six shots the Wildcats attempted were from distance.
Miss. Miss. Miss. Miss.
The Jayhawks rallied to cut the deficit to 38-36. They figured it out from there.
On Sunday, the Wildcats are scheduled to play Georgia Tech, which is 0-2. And those losses were to Georgia State and Mercer. The Yellow Jackets are no Richmond or Kansas.
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