Kentucky snuffs out Davidson’s top scorers in NCAAs to advance in Boise
If you’re Kentucky, with three days to prepare for a Davidson team full of momentum, your objective is to contain Peyton Aldridge and Kellan Grady.
Those were the two Davidson players comparable to the talent Kentucky saw in the SEC this season. Those were the two players who, by and large, Kentucky snuffed out in a 78-73 victory in the opening round of the NCAA tournament Thursday night.
Aldridge and Grady, who combined for 39 points per game this season, shot 8-of-31 from the field, as fifth-seeded Kentucky advanced. Davidson, which qualified for the NCAAs by winning the Atlantic 10 tournament Sunday, finished the season 21-12.
Kevin Knox put away the victory for Kentucky with 10 seconds left, making two free throws to extend the lead to eight. Knox finished with 25 points for Kentucky, now 25-10.
Three who mattered
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: The box score doesn’t quite reflect how well his ability to work the ball into the lane forced Davidson’s defense into frequent predicaments..
Jon Axel Gudmundsson: What a comeback for the Davidson sophomore – particularly from 3-point range – in the second half. He finished with 21 points.
P.J. Washington: The Kentucky forward was such a force on the boards.
Observations
▪ That Kentucky was going to get the ball to the rim with more efficiency than Davidson was no surprise. That Davidson was so ineffective from 3-point range in the first half was far more problematic.
▪ Gudmundsson’s 3-pointer early in the second half was big, not just because it cut Kentucky’s lead to three, but because Gudmundsson needed a boost after going 0-of-6 from the field in the first half.
▪ Kentucky attempted only three 3s in the first half (missing them all), but they are that rare team that doesn’t need a lot of perimeter scoring, with so many options off the dribble.
▪ Gilgeous-Alexander, from Hamilton, Ont., needs to gain bulk and muscle, but he is so smooth, particularly in change of direction off the dribble.
Worth mentioning
▪ This was the ninth NCAA Tournament appearance for Davidson under Bob McKillop, the 14th overall . McKillop’s teams entered this game 3-8 in those appearances, which started in 1998.
▪ Davidson senior Peyton Aldridge’s frustrating game was epitomized by a wide-open 3 he missed along the baseline early in the second half.
KENTUCKY 78, DAVIDSON 73
DAVIDSON (21-12): Aldridge 4-17 3-3 12, Michelsen 2-4 0-0 5, Grady 4-14 7-8 16, Gudmundsson 6-14 3-4 21, Pritchett 2-2 0-0 6, Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Magarity 5-7 1-2 11, Wynter 0-0 0-0 0, Collins 0-0 0-0 0, Reigel 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 24-61 14-17 73.
KENTUCKY (25-10): Richards 1-1 0-0 2, Knox 8-16 9-11 25, Washington 5-8 1-2 11, Gilgeous-Alexander 5-13 9-10 19, Diallo 3-4 2-2 8, Killeya-Jones 2-5 4-5 8, Gabriel 0-1 1-2 1, Green 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 26-51 26-32 78.
Halftime—Kentucky 34-24. 3-Point Goals—Davidson 11-33 (Gudmundsson 6-11, Pritchett 2-2, Michelsen 1-3, Grady 1-5, Aldridge 1-9, Magarity 0-1, Reigel 0-2), Kentucky 0-6 (Green 0-1, Gabriel 0-1, Diallo 0-1, Knox 0-3). Fouled Out—Washington, Reigel. Rebounds—Davidson 26 (Magarity 6), Kentucky 34 (Gilgeous-Alexander 8). Assists—Davidson 12 (Gudmundsson 3), Kentucky 11 (Gilgeous-Alexander 8). Total Fouls—Davidson 22, Kentucky 19.
This story was originally published March 15, 2018 at 9:27 PM with the headline "Kentucky snuffs out Davidson’s top scorers in NCAAs to advance in Boise."