You don’t often hear of a coach calling a full timeout between two opponent free throws with two minutes left with his team leading by double digits, but that’s exactly what John Calipari did at Vanderbilt.
The move was a bit puzzling … until Coach Cal explained what was up.
Ashton Hagans had a minor cramp. Calipari wasn’t about to let his team try to close an important SEC road game without the player who makes the Wildcats go.
“I said, ‘If I gotta burn another one, I will. I’m not taking you out,’ ” Calipari said. “So he laughed. He said, ‘I’ll be all right.’ … He has an air about him that the other guys feed off of and he makes them more confident. He does.”
That air Calipari is talking about starts on the defensive end, where Hagans is the best and most disruptive defender in the country.
On the ball, Hagans is a terror, making even the most fundamental plays difficult. Off the ball, Hagans makes it hard for his man to even get it back, and good luck executing a dribble handoff against him.
“You’re not going to find a player that is better on the defensive end both on and off the ball than Ashton Hagans has been,” ESPN’s Jay Bilas said. “I think he’s the frontrunner for national defensive player of the year.”
Hagans recorded 58 steals in the regular season – 1.9 per game. In spite of playing in Coach Cal’s defensive system – which prioritizes sound on-ball defense over going for steals – Hagans’ hands are so quick that he already ranks top 25 in school history in steals and is third in steals per game behind only Rajon Rondo and Derek Anderson.
Hagans’ toughness also translates to offense, where he spearheads Kentucky’s attack from his point-guard position.
His scoring is important, as he averaged 11.5 points per game in the regular season, but Hagans sets the tone whether he ends up taking the shot or not. He ranks in the top 20 nationally in assists per game at 6.4 and has had at least three in every game this season.
“We could say there are better point guards in the country, but you got to tell me who you’re talking about,” Calipari said.
In driving the basketball, Hagans does not discriminate between passing and seeking his own shot. When he does decide to attack on his own, Hagans is unafraid of contact. He is among the top 100 nationally in free-throw rate, attempting 142 during the regular season. When he goes to the line, he converts at an 81.0% clip.
Hagans statistical contributions are undeniably notable, but his will to win and ability to make the biggest play in the biggest moment are much more significant.
Sometimes that means taking on the challenge of guarding someone like player of the year candidate Cassius Winston in a season-opening win over No. 1 Michigan State. Sometimes that means coming up with a key defensive rebound in traffic like he did against Tennessee. Sometimes that means coming from nowhere to make a deflection on an alley-oop pass that doesn’t even appear on the box score and poking away a potential game-tying shot in the final seconds at Texas Tech.
Whatever the play, whatever the moment, Hagans is the heart and soul of this Kentucky team.