Advertisement

UK Basketball: Cats' Teague still learning

November 18, 2011|By Keith Taylor | The Winchester Sun

Before the season began, Kentucky coach John Calipari predicted that it would take Marquis Teague time to develop as the team’s point guard.

Although Teague was steady in a 108-58 win over Marist in the season opener, he slipped somewhat from the first game to the second contest.

“He (did) everything a guard I have brought into the (Madison Square) Garden has done,” the Kentucky coach said earlier this week.

Teague committed six turnovers and dished out three assists in a 75-65 win over Kansas Tuesday night at Madison¿Square Garden in New York. Calipari said Teague’s early-season learning processs follows the same pattern as Derrick Rose, John Wall and Brandon Knight. All three players went on to become first-round draft picks in the NBA¿Draft.

Advertisement

“You know, it is like all of the sudden you forget about what you have to do for the team and you start to do your own thing,” Calipari said. “You think about Brandon (Knight) early (last year), who had eight turnovers against Washington and five against Connecticut. He averaged 13 (turnovers) and so that was early in the season. That is going to happen when you play the way we play and that guys has his hands on the ball a lot.”

Calipari would like to see Teague spread the wealth on offense like Doron Lamb and Darius Miller did in the win over the Jayhawks.

“What happened to us in the first half was we were not getting involved,” Calipari said. “When Doron is at point guard, you’re trying to get everyone involved and what Darius Miller did in the second half when they went to zone, we put him in the slot and told him to let it fly kid, and he took his shots and made them.”

Go-to Jones?

Calipari has indicated that he will think twice before using Terrence Jones as a go-to player in clutch situations. Jones scored a season-high 15 points against Kansas and made both of his free throws, but Calipari said his inability to make shots at the charity stripe down the stretch on a consistent basis makes him a target for opposing teams.“You can’t go to a guy who can’t make free throws,” Calipari said. “I have had players that shoot 25 percent from the line that want the ball and I said you’re not going to (get it), because they will make you shoot free 

Central Kentucky News Articles
|
|
|