INDIANAPOLIS - Kentucky basketball's March Madness run is finished after just one game.

The Wildcats became just the 10th No. 2 seed to lose to a No. 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history with a 85-79 loss to Saint Peter's in their March Madness opener.

"We got good players," Saint Peter's coach Shahen Holloway said. "I know this is getting old, it's a cliché, but we have guys that really have a chip on their shoulder; that really believe they belong at big-time schools."

Despite Kentucky's considerable advantage in professional-level talent and depth, the two teams were tied at 37 after one half. Kentucky briefly looked on the verge of pulling away after taking a six-point lead with 4:12 remaining, but Saint Peter's scored the next seven points to gain a 69-68 advantage on a Doug Edert 3 with 1:25 remaining.

Kellan Grady then hit his first 3 of the game to give Kentucky back the lead before Edert tied the game at 71 on a floater in the lane. UK freshman TyTy Washington missed a possible game-winning jumper in the final seconds of a disjointed UK possession to send the game to overtime.

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Kentucky scored the first four points of overtime, but Saint Peter's tied the game again on an Edert 3 with 2:40 left. UK missed a chance to put the game away by missing 5 of 6 free throws in the first three minutes of overtime.

Saint Peter's took a 77-76 lead with 1:45 left with two free throws then stretched it to three after a Kentucky turnover. UK coach John Calipari called a timeout with UK down three and 56.1 seconds remaining. A Keion Brooks layup was blocked on the following possession though, and Saint Peter's converted two free throws to extend its lead to five.

A Washington 3 followed for Kentucky, but the Peacocks made both free throws again. Grady then missed a 3 to end UK's hopes of the comeback.

"I wish I had some answers with three minutes to go to help them through it to get by the first one," Calipari said. "But I tell you what, we missed shots, and Saint Peter's made shots. They made 3s. They made layups; we missed. They made free throws; we missed. It's one of those games that I was hoping I could get it by them to get them on to the next game to get their feet underneath them, and obviously I didn't do a very good job with it."

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Promising Kentucky season ends in disappointment

Midway through February, Kentucky looked like arguably the best team in the country following blowouts of Tennessee, Kansas and Florida.

Injuries to Washington and Sahvir Wheeler seemed to disrupt the team’s rhythm, though, and even after the two guards returned to the court the Wildcats struggled to find their previous form. After an SEC Tournament loss to Tennessee, Calipari called for longer practices this week with more than an hour of scrimmage time in hopes of rediscovering the team’s confidence.

That strategy did not work as Kentucky looked like a team worried about collapsing under the sky-high expectations of a month ago throughout the game against Saint Peter’s.

"It was the whole game," Calipari said of the nerves. "It wasn't just (the end). I took guys out because they wouldn't shoot the ball. I did that about three times."

The Wildcats’ season ends at 26-8. It would be easy to dismiss the late-season collapses as simply a product of the ill-timed injuries, but even a less-than-perfect Kentucky team had too much talent to lose to a No. 15 seed.

For most of this season the roster looked like a blueprint for Calipari to return the Wildcats to the early success of his UK tenure by building around transfers. After a first-round exit, Calipari is at a crossroads again.

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Oscar Tshiebwe can't keep Kentucky from disaster

Consensus first-team All-American Oscar Tshiebwe led Kentucky with 30 points and 16 rebounds.

Tshiebwe converted 11 of 16 shots and grabbed six offensive rebounds. He recorded his 16th consecutive double-double, extending his UK record for most double-doubles in a single season to 28.

"It is sad because I've been wanting this moment for a long time," Tshiebwe said. "I'm a junior and this is three years in college and this is my first March Madness. I even told my teammates, this is not going to be easy for us. If we are not willing to fight, any team in March Madness, they make it for a reason. So we've got to be locked in. We've got to be ready to go.

"I think everybody tried and did their best they could. I did the best I could. It just happens sometimes like that."

For awhile it looked like Tshiebwe's heroics might be enough. Instead, his National Player of the Year season ended in heartbreaking fashion.

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Kellan Grady shooting slump continues

After struggling to find his shooting rhythm for most of the last two weeks, Grady was ineffective again against Saint Peter's.

Grady missed 8 of 9 field goal attempts, including 6 of 7 3s.

"If I bang a couple and I was myself the last couple games, we probably would have won them," Grady said. "I'm not trying to escape that accountability. I shot like crap again tonight. It's unfortunate."

At one point early in the second half after Grady passed up a 3-point attempt on a possession that ended with a Kentucky shot-clock violation, Calipari pulled him to the bench with a loud reminder to keep shooting. Several teammates and assistant coaches shared a similar message in a stint on the bench that only lasted a few seconds before Grady was sent to check back in the game.

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The direction did not seem to help much later in the half, Grady hesitated to take another open 3 then badly missed his attempt after the pump fake. Calipari removed him from the game again.

Grady was more aggressive early in the game, setting a season high with six free throw attempts before intermission, but he did not shoot another free throw in the second half.

Grady was not alone in his struggles. Washington made just 2 of 10 shots. Wheeler had six turnovers. Davion Mintz fouled out.

Email Jon Hale at jahale@courier-journal.com; Follow him on Twitter at @JonHale_CJ.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Saint Peter's upsets UK basketball in NCAA Tournament: 3 takeaways