Oscar returns and Wallace stars, but UK basketball loses to Michigan State in double OT

Stretches of offensive sloppiness and a game played at the pace of its opponent eventually caught up to Kentucky on Tuesday night, as the Wildcats lost for the first time in the 2022-23 season.

Despite a massive double-double from Oscar Tshiebwe in the reigning national player of the year’s season debut, as well as a historic defensive effort from freshman guard Cason Wallace, the Cats squandered a pair of late-game leads and lost to Michigan State 86-77 in double overtime in the State Farm Champions Classic at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

UK, now 2-1 on the season, still hasn’t started a season 3-0 since 2016-17.

Kentucky was in pole position to win the game both in regulation and in the first overtime period, but the Cats missed free throws and had crucial defensive breakdowns in both situations.

UK led for more than 33 minutes on Tuesday night. Michigan State led for barely more than seven.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo drew up several sensational ATOs (after timeout plays) to twice tie the game with just seconds remaining.

Further complicating UK’s chances of winning was the fact Tshiebwe fouled out near the end of the first overtime period.

Playing the entire five-minute second overtime period without their prized big man proved to be too much for Kentucky, which lost again in Indianapolis just eight months after losing to Saint Peter’s in the NCAA Tournament in the same building.

Oscar-worthy performances from Tshiebwe and Wallace

Wallace scored 14 points and dished out five assists in the UK loss, but it was the freshman’s defense that grabbed the headlines during the game.

Wallace had eight steals, equaling the Kentucky single-game steals record. Wallace is tied with Ashton Hagans, Rajon Rondo and Wayne Turner in the UK record books.

Sporting a sleeve on his right leg, Tshiebwe made his first appearance of the 2022-23 season for Kentucky after undergoing a knee procedure last month, which kept him out of UK’s Blue-White Game, exhibition contests and first two regular-season games.

Tshiebwe’s season debut provided much of what we’ve come to expect from the reigning National Player of the Year.

He recorded a double-double in 34 minutes off the bench, finishing with 22 points on 9-for-17 shooting and 18 rebounds. He secured his double-double with more than 14 minutes remaining in the second half.

It was his 17th consecutive double-double.

Tshiebwe led all UK players in scoring and all players in the game in rebounding.

In 12 first-half minutes, Tshiebwe recorded a game-leading 11 points and seven rebounds. He finished through contact on offense and snatched rebounds with gleeful energy on the defensive glass.

There were moments, though, when it was evident that Tshiebwe hasn’t played much live basketball in recent weeks. A miscommunication in transition offense led to Tshiebwe tossing the ball straight out of bounds as UK moved up the court.

Another time, Tshiebwe failed to keep control of the ball as he tried to demonstratively drive to the rim.

Tshiebwe fouled out with 32.8 seconds left in overtime.

As expected, Tshiebwe remains utterly dominant at his best, and better than just about anybody else in college basketball.

The impact he provided Kentucky in his return to game action was significant.

Also significant?

That Tshiebwe and Wallace put on this kind of performance against a plethora of NBA front office executives in Indianapolis for the Champions Classic doubleheader.

Among the famous NBA front-office faces who watched the game in person were Landry Fields (Atlanta Hawks), Mitch Kupchak (Charlotte Hornets), Bob Myers (Golden State Warriors), Sam Presti (Oklahoma City Thunder) and Brad Stevens (Boston Celtics).

With this said, Kentucky failed to properly execute in several late-game situations at the foul line and on defense, which cost UK a game it should have won.

Tuesday was a rough shooting night from distance for Kentucky: UK was just 7-for-25 (28%) shooting three-pointers against the Spartans, despite entering the game as the fourth-best three-point shooting team in the nation.

The Cats also only managed five fast-break points, further emphasizing how the game was played at Michigan State’s preferred pace and style.

Kentucky shot 16 of 24 from the foul line, a mark that burned the Cats in the closing seconds when it was time to put away Michigan State.

Ahead of Tuesday’s game, Calipari stressed that outrebounding Michigan State in a physical contest would be paramount to a UK victory.

The Spartans outrebounded the Wildcats 45-38.

Next game for UK

Kentucky has — on paper at least — a chance to recover, rest and refine things before its next significant nonconference test.

In between Tuesday’s neutral-site loss Michigan State and Sunday night’s marquee matchup in Spokane, Washington, against No. 2 Gonzaga, UK will host South Carolina State (0-3) on Thursday night inside Rupp Arena.

Out of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), S.C. State went 15-16 overall last season.

S.C. State will play its first 11 games this season on the road. So far, the Bulldogs have lost by three at South Carolina, by 19 at Tennessee State and by 25 at Duquesne on Monday night.

By comparison, UK beat Duquesne by 25 last week in Lexington.

Ranked No. 347 in KenPom as of Monday night, the Bulldogs are led in scoring by Lesown Hallums (12.7 points per game) and Davion Everett (12.3 points per game). No other Bulldog averages more than 6.7 points per game.

Thursday night’s game will tip off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on the SEC Network. The game is part of the Tribute Classic presented by Kentucky Tourism multi-team event.

Next game

South Carolina State at No. 4 Kentucky

What: Tribute Classic

When: 7 p.m. Thursday

TV: SEC Network

Radio: WLAP-AM 630, WBUL-FM 98.1

Records: South Carolina State 0-3, Kentucky 2-1

Series: Kentucky leads 1-0

Last meeting: Kentucky won 82-67 on March 13, 1998, in the NCAA Tournament at Atlanta