Saint Peter’s slays Kentucky — No. 15 seed stuns Wildcats 85-79 in OT in NCAA first round2 min read

Saint Peter’s slays Kentucky — No. 15 seed stuns Wildcats 85-79 in OT in NCAA first round

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – In perhaps the most stunning upset loss in University of Kentucky basketball history, No. 15 seed Saint Peter’s stung No. 2 seed Kentucky 85-79 in overtime.

The MAAC champion Peacocks did it straight up. They got whatever they wanted on offense. They never got rattled. They took shot after shot from All-American Oscar Tshiebwe, and they kept coming.

Kentucky players collapsed in tears after the game.

“Kentucky’s a great team, (John) Calipari’s a great coach. But I told you we weren’t going to be intimidated,” Saint Peter’s coach Shahee Holloway said. “Some of my guys think they can play for Kentucky … I told them, this is what you dream about. Go out there and take it.”

This was not the NCAA Tournament opener that anyone from Kentucky expected.

Here they were, tied at the end of regulation. Kentucky riding Oscar Tshiebwe and Sahvir Wheeler down the stretch, Saint Peter’s erasing a 6-point deficit to tie the game.

Here they were, down 3 with less than 50 seconds to play in overtime.

The crazy thing was that it wasn’t a fluky result. Saint Peter’s just played Kentucky straight up. It shot 50 percent from the field and from 3-point range in regulation.

In overtime, Kentucky went 1-6 from the free-throw line. Saint Peter’s didn’t miss theirs.

A pair of free throws by Saint Peter’s guard Daryl Banks with 1:45 left put the Peacocks up one.

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Then Sahvir Wheeler overthrew Tshiebwe inside and Saint Peter’s got the ball back, and worked the ball inside for a layup that gave it a 3-point lead and forced a Kentucky timeout with 56.1 seconds left.

Out of the timeout, Brooks drove, had his shot blocked, and forced a video review. After a lengthy review, officials determined that the ball grazed off Brooks’ thumb and Saint Peter’s got the ball back.

Kentucky wound up fouling Banks, and he made both to put the Peacocks up 5 with 30 seconds to play.

Then, a Kentucky 3-pointer. TyTy Washington took the ball, drove right, pulled up at the top of the key and buried a 3 to pull UK within 81-79 with 21.6 seconds left.

Saint Peter’s ball, and a Kentucky foul sent Matthew Lee to the free-throw line with 20 seconds left. Lee made the first, then the second, as Kentucky players on the bench watched in disbelief. A Kellan Grady miss from 3. Two more Saint Peter’s free throws. And that was it.

Kentucky comes home with as bitter a loss as Calipari has suffered the NCAA Tournament, with one of the teams he has liked the best.

Kentucky was foiled by poor perimeter shooting — it was outscored 29-12 from 3-point range. And by defensive lapses that allowed Saint Peter’s to shoot 50.9% for the game.

Saint Peter’s slays Kentucky — No. 15 seed stuns Wildcats 85-79 in OT in NCAA first round

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