NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Three observations at the buzzer from Gonzaga’s 94-59 win over Kentucky at Bridgestone Arena.

Starting lineup changes

Nine games into the season, Gonzaga coach Mark Few hasn’t been afraid to shake up the starting lineup.

It probably wasn’t a big surprise that GU shuffled its starting unit coming off a 40-point loss to Michigan in the title game of the Players Era Festival. The Zags opted to go with Emmanuel Innocenti and Steele Venters in place of Adam Miller and Tyon Grant-Foster, who had 14 points and eight boards against the Wolverines.

Innocenti logged 11 first-half minutes and produced four assists, four rebounds and hit his only shot. Venters was 1 of 3 on 3-pointers in 16 minutes in the opening half as Gonzaga moved in front 43-20.

Braeden Smith didn’t start, but he played the majority of first-half minutes at point guard after Mario Saint-Supery picked up two early fouls. Smith came up with seven points, five rebounds and four assists to help GU build its big halftime lead.

Smith finished with one of his best games statistically: 11 points, six rebounds and six assists. Innocenti also was effective with five points (2 of 2 shooting), six assists and six boards.

Defense bounces back

Gonzaga’s defense went from giving up 101 points to now -No. 1 Michigan to 54 against No. 18 Kentucky.

Yes, Kentucky’s ineptness, especially in the first half, had a lot to do with that, but so did the Zags, who were far more dialed in on their assignments than nine days ago against the red-hot Wolverines, who couldn’t seem to miss.

Kentucky missed early and often, whether it got open looks or contested ones. The Wildcats were scoreless at the first media timeout. They were without a field goal at the second media break inside the 12-minute mark.

Three nights after going 10-plus minutes without a field goal in the second half of a home loss to North Carolina, the Wildcats didn’t connect from the field against the Zags until Denzel Aberdeen’s 3-pointer with just over 11 minutes remaining, ending an 0-of-10 stretch. Kentucky missed 13 shots during its long dry spell against North Carolina.

Kentucky was 5 of 31 from the field, including 3 of 20 on 3s, while scoring 20 points in the opening half. The Wildcats were better in the second half, shooting 27% overall. They finished just 7 of 34 from distance.

Wildcats fans voice frustration

Some longtime UK basketball observers couldn’t recall a Wildcats team hearing so many boos in a game.

The first rumble of boos came on Kentucky’s second turnover with the game barely two minutes old. Their first turnover was an errant pass that ricocheted off an official. The second flew way off target, into the backcourt before going out of bounds.

UK faithful were in full throat watching the team misfire on its first 10 shots. The boos came cascading down from a nearly full house at Bridgestone Arena as Kentucky left the floor trailing 43-20 at half and resumed when the Wildcats came back on the court before the start of the second half.

Wildcats’ fans are no doubt dismayed with UK’s lengthy offensive funk and the team’s 0-4 record in Quad 1 games. Kentucky is 5-0 in Quad 4 with the best win coming against Valparaiso, coached by former Zag assistant Roger Powell Jr. Valpo is No. 221 in the NET rankings.