It's That Time Again (Finally)

Well, the pundits and prognosticators have had a full week to dissect all of the matchups, hype all of the rivalries and make their picks, but at nine o'clock tonight, the UK/UConn game will be decided by a small number of young men playing in the biggest basketball game of their lives.

I don't think I ever really expected to be here. Not this year. Not with this team. Mid-way through the season, even a sweet sixteen berth appeared nearly unattainable, and once the brackets were out, the collective groan from BBN was heard across the country.

But hand it to the players. Hand it to John Calipari. Traveling the undeniably toughest road to the Final Four, the Cats stuck together, executed their gameplans to perfection and proved a whole lot of people wrong.

Now, onto the matchup with the Huskies of Connecticut:

• For once in this tournament, the Cats actually have an experience edge on their opponents. UConn will start 3 freshmen, whereas UK will most likely go with Knight, Miller, Liggins, Jones and Harrellson, a great mix of young talent and gutsy veterans. Certainly there will be jitters on both sides at the beginning of the game, but I think whoever settles down earliest will have a huge advantage.
• The officiating in the tournament has been perplexing at its best and downright awful at its worst, and in order for the Cats to pull out a victory, a lot is going to depend on the men in stripes. If Harrellson and Jones can stay out of foul trouble early, I wouldn't be surprised to see UK win by double digits.
• Lamb, Liggins, Knight and Miller have all shot the 3 well in the tournament, and that will have to continue if they want to compete for the national title on Monday. Hopefully their shootarounds and practices have gotten them acclimated to the dome in Houston, and I think it will be obvious early on if they have adjusted well.

I think a lot of this game will come down to who wants it more, and based on the way Kentucky has played thus far, it should be a win for the Cats. Never discount Kemba Walker, however, who has, at times this season, put the Huskies on his back and carried them across the finish line. In the end, though, I think the Cats grind out another ugly win and head to the NCAA Championship Game with a 68-62 victory.

Party Like It's 1998

The Kentucky Wildcats have returned to the promised land. After 13 long years of exile on the periphery of college basketball, UK is back where it belongs: the Final Four.

I'll have a breakdown of the win against UNC tomorrow after I can collect my thoughts, but right now, I'm too hyped to type!! Go Cats!!

Quick Thoughts on OSU

I really hate the week-long layoff between the second round and sweet sixteen. All it does is give every Tom, Dick and Harry a chance to over-analyze the crap out of every upcoming game, including tonight's titanic struggle between the Kentucky Wildcats and the (unstoppable and almighty) Ohio State Buckeyes.

Some have said the Bucks will win by 30.

Some have said it will be the best game of the tournament.

Some have even said Coach Cal is going to wear a sweater vest.....okay, so I made that one up.

But anyway, as I see it, there are three keys to the Cats winning the game:

Number one: Contain (not stop) Sullinger with minimal traps and double-teams. Harrellson needs to prove he belongs with the big boys by simply making sure that the "best player in the tournament" doesn't get easy looks and doesn't explode for 25 points. I would also hope Vargas can play 5 minutes and at least foul the fat man really hard.

Number two: Knock down shots, early and often. It sounds obvious (and it is), but if UK is not making threes early in the contest, it won't be a contest. Ohio State gets balanced scoring from every position on the floor, and if the Cats can't match them, it will be a long night.

Number three (most importantly): Don't lose the game in the first or final two minutes of the first half. Kentucky has made a habit of starting games slowly or finishing halves poorly this season, and it would be absolutely killer to make the same kind of mistakes (think final 20 seconds of the WVU first half) against a superb opponent.

All in all, it should be a wonderful college basketball game, and regardless of the outcome, the Cats have had a wonderful season in what really is a rebuilding year.

Cats by 5.

Deep Breath.....

Well that was exciting, wasn't it? So much for the get-acclimated-to-the-big-dance-against-an-inferior-opponent opening round game. Princeton took Kentucky right down to the wire, and unlike another team from the bluegrass, the Cats escaped with a victory and move on to a rematch of last year's Elite Eight battle against WVU.

This time of year, a win is a win, and you have to be impressed with the grit and determination UK showed down the stretch. Brandon Knight was bottled up by Princeton's smothering defense until the final possession, making his first and only field goal of the game and sending the Tigers back to the Ivy League empty-handed.

The performance was not what I or most UK fans expected, given how well the Cats played in the home stretch of the regular season, but that can often be the end result odd matchups and postseason basketball.

It was a huge boost to have our juniors and senior step up and deliver, with Miller and Harrellson basically dragging the team towards the finish line. If I was West Virginia, my number one goal would be to shut down Miller, although I don't personally think they can stop him. He is so versatile on the floor, it is incredibly difficult for other teams to guard him. Put a big man on him, he'll drive past him or knock down triples. Have a smaller, quicker guard match up against him, and Miller will back down in the post and score in the paint.

All in all, an ugly win, but a win nonetheless.

Tourney Thoughts

A lot has happened since my last post, some good, some bad. The good? Kentucky won their second straight SEC title, meaning that in his two years at UK, Coach Cal is not only undefeated at Rupp Arena, but also undefeated in conference tournament play.

The Cats played their best basketball of the year in (C)Atlanta over the weekend, absolutely demolishing the West's no. 1 seed Alabama, while also cruising to a title game victory over rival Florida. It was great to see Liggins and Lamb shake off injuries to play in the tournament final and, as always, wonderful to see how many blue-blooded UK fans showed up to cheer on their team.

Then the latter half of Sunday came. Selection Sunday. I'll sum up my thoughts briefly, because I don't want to complain (too much) about the Cats' seeding.

Here are the numbers for UK, read them and tell me they should be a 4 seed in the overall no. 1 seed's bracket:

RPI: 9

Strength of Schedule: 9

Current Ranking: 11

Quality Wins: Notre Dame (neutral floor) / @ Louisville / Florida (twice) / Vandy / Tennessee (twice)

Bad Losses: @ Ole Miss / @ Arkansas (really stretching it by calling those bad losses)

Now if UK had lost that game to Florida on Sunday, I have no issue with us being a 4 seed. But after such a convincing win, I have no clue how the Cats don't get boosted up to a 3 or maybe even a 2. The only real explanation is that conference tournaments mean nothing. But wait. UConn won the Big East tourney and went from probably a 6 or 7 up to a 3. Double standard? Absolutely.

But enough about that. The fact is that Kentucky is going to have to go through hell and back to make it to the Final Four. Can they do it? Absolutely, especially with how well this team has shot the ball in the last few games.

The game against Princeton should not be difficult, given that the Ivy League squad will simply be outclassed in every facet of the game. The Tigers will not be able to handle the Cats' speed, athleticism, or size, and I think UK will cruise into the second round.

More thoughts on Thursday after the game.

Also, just want to take a moment to savor the fact that UK is back where it belongs: as the SEC's perennial dominant team, the one expected to roll through conference play and win the SEC tourney without much trouble.

Thanks to Coach Cal and his staff, and thanks to the players for giving everything they have so far this season!

Vandy HT Thoughts

It looks as though the Wildcats want to send off their senior in style tonight! It never ceases to amaze me how much better this team plays in front of 23,000 blue-blooded UK fans, although at this point in the season, I guess we should all be used to it.

UK has a double-digit lead for two reasons:

• Defensive intensity. The Cats have absolutely hounded John Jenkins, whose only points came off three free throws he got on a bogus foul call. He is forcing shots, he is flailing his legs trying to get calls and he is incredibly frustrated at his lack of scoring opportunities. All credit goes to Doron Lamb and Deandre Liggins, absolute lockdown defense.
• Perfect offensive tempo. We know this team can run the floor, but it is wonderful to see Knight and Lamb slow things up and execute in the half-court offense. I never thought I would say this, but Jones is doing a phenomenal job of creating in the low post. He took (and made) one three, but for the most part, he has pounded the block and taken it to the basket with authority.

There are, however, a few areas of concern heading into the half:

• Ezeli is absolutely dominating us. The guy is a beast, but really? UK's defenders are letting the big man catch the ball on the block with a defender on his back. End of story. Luckily, he is not a great free throw shooter, but if things get tight and they keep feeding Ezeli, it could be another frenetic finish.
• The Cats have made a habit of getting a sizable lead and then letting it slip away this year, and Calipari needs to have his guys playing with some serious intensity right out of the locker room. Kevin Stallings is a good coach, his team will be ready to play, and if UK lets them back into the contest, they will pounce.

Overall, a great half and it looks as though Jorts may go out on a high note tonight!

Josh Harrellson

With the yearly influx of young talent John Calipari brings to the Bluegrass State, it's easy to forget and sometimes overlook the juniors and, at least this year, lone senior that provide an important dose of leadership and stability on a very young Wildcat team.

Josh Harrellson has traversed a long and winding road to get to where he is today. Coming out of high school in St. Charles, Missouri, Harrellson was not highly recruited but signed with Western Illinois University, although he would end up at Southwestern Illinois College, a junior college school. After just a year there, Josh began attracting some serious D-1 attention, with the likes of Indiana, Ohio State and Purdue vying for his services.

In the end, it came down to St. Louis and the University of Kentucky, and Harrellson eventually picked the Cats and then coach Billy Gillispie. A tumultuous season for UK collectively and Harrellson individually ended with the 6-10 center averaging 3.6 points and 2.5 rebounds a game.

Enter John Calipari and the most talented group of freshmen to ever assemble at a single school, and Harrellson's numbers actually get worse his second year at UK, with Josh averaging just over a point and rebound a contest.

Five first round draft picks and a heavy-handed, idiotic ruling from the NCAA later, Harrellson is not only thrust into the Cats' starting lineup, but is also expected to carry the load up front along with unproven freshman Terrence Jones. Needless to say, Josh has answered the bell and become one of the toughest big men in the Southeastern Conference.

Averaging around 7 points a game, Harrellson has scored in double figures 7 times this year, with a career high 23 at hated in-state rival Louisville, the now signature win of the 2010-11 season. Even more impressive is that the seemingly unathletic and at times out-muscled center leads the SEC in offensive rebounds and averages 9 rebounds a game.

Double doubles have become commonplace for Harrellson when they were unthinkable just a year or two ago, and it comes down to the kid's work ethic. He shed a few pounds over the summer, put on some muscle and got into incredible shape to better mesh with Calipari's up-tempo system of play.

And just think, all of this from a kid that wore a pair of jorts on his official visit to UK.

Let's take a moment tonight to single out Kentucky's only senior, a hard-working, incredibly dedicated young man without whom this Wildcat team would be God-knows-where.

Best of luck to Josh Harrellson tonight, the rest of the season and in all his ventures after graduation.

UF Postgame

My feelings as a UK fan this season have transformed into two distinct but polar-opposite latitudes, and today's win over Florida pretty much cemented them.

I am almost afraid to watch away games (but still do) because of this gut feeling that, no matter what happens in the first half, the second half, the first five minutes or the final five minutes, the Cats are going to lose. With the exception of an early win at South Carolina, they have yet to allay my fears.

On the other hand, I have supreme confidence that when this team takes the floor at Rupp Arena, it will win. Pure and simple. The opponent doesn't matter. The previous performance doesn't matter. I have no qualms at all about watching UK destroy opponents on its home floor, and today's game backed up and boosted my confidence.

That being said, the Cats still didn't play a perfect game. Far from it, actually. There was, at times, a distinct lack of defensive rebounding, especially in key situations, and too many stupid fouls were committed too early in the contest.

On the other hand, Darius Miller stepped up in a huge way at Rupp Arena for the second time in as many home games. He shot the three well, he drove to the basket and used his size effectively and he was just an extremely difficult match-up defensively for the Florida Gators. Absolutely great performance out of an experienced player that should strive to consistently put up numbers like the ones he had today.

Brandon Knight, wonderful. Terrence Jones, solid, but still way too dependent on his left hand. Josh Harrellson, a beast, as usual.

I can't wait for Tuesday's prime-time matchup against Vandy at Rupp, I have no doubt the Cats will win.

The season finale @ Tennessee? Check back later.

MSU Half-Time

Wow. What a way to end the half.

Kentucky played without energy, without intensity and without the lead for the entire first half. But everything changed in that frantic, final second.

There is no doubt that Brandon Knight was shooting the basketball. He is a smart kid, a smart player. He knew that Mississippi State was going to foul because they only had 5 team fouls, so he saw the contact coming and threw up a shot.

No logical reason for Rick Stansbury to complain.

But even if you throw that aside, there is one, I repeat ONE second on the clock! What else is the guy trying to do? Throw a pass?

No logical reason for Rick Stansbury to argue for over three minutes.

Put ALL of that aside, and your team will have, at the very least, a two-point lead at half-time in Rupp Arena.

No logical reason for Rick Stansbury to get a technical foul and incite the Big Blue Nation.

And yet....

Stansbury argued the call, berated the officials for a good three minutes and got a technical foul for his troubles.

And in the process, he single-handedly reversed the momentum of the game and nearly blew his team's five-point lead in the final second.

Instead of having a five-point lead in a silenced Rupp Arena looking for something to cheer about, the Bulldogs now have over 23,000 rabid screaming fans and a negligible one-point lead to look forward to as the second half gets under way.

Mississippi State is tired. They are slow. They are a team comprised of a good, experienced point guard, a standstill shooter and a fat, pretentious center who doesn't play defense. There is no possible way the Cats will lose this game, especially after the way the half ended.

Stansbury has practically gift-wrapped this one for UK. All the Cats have to do is open their present and get the W.

Half-time

My, oh my, how half-time thoughts can change in a matter of minutes.

I had the intro ready to go: Home, sweet home. It's amazing how much better the Cats play at home.

Um, scratch that. Partially, at least.

Kentucky did indeed prove that they are a much better team at home. But they also proved, yet again, that they cannot play with a large lead. Up until this point in the season, the let-downs had all come late in the second half, but I guess the team figured since it is a rivalry game, after all, and it is on national TV, they should start blowing the lead in the first half.

It certainly doesn't help having Knight on the bench with two fouls, but the idiotic nature of some of our turnovers is just infuriating.

Liggins throws a one hand pass. Liggins drives straight into a defender and loses possession. Two or three players get called for player control fouls. Maddening.

UK shot just under 60% from the field after missing its first 5 shots and yet we are still only up 7. We need to learn how to put teams away. Fast. The only positive thing about having a melt-down in the first half is that it gives Cal a chance to motivate the guys at half-time, and I'm sure the paint is peeling.

Better on-the-ball defense will win us this game, and having Knight back on the floor will certainly help with that. It's obvious that the Vols cannot defend our quicker and more athletic wing players, so Liggins and Miller need to penetrate and look for kicks to Knight and Lamb.


As long as we come out with the same intensity as we played with for most of the first half - minus the jittery play - there is no way that a team as dysfunctional offensively as Tennessee should beat the Cats.

Pre-Game Thoughts

Keys to tonight's game @ Ole Miss:

• Shut down Chris Warren. He is by far the Rebels' best player, averaging over 18 points and almost 4 assists per game. I would assume that Liggins will be matched up against Warren who, at 5-10, will have a real problem dealing with Deandre's size and length. UK also needs to keep Warren away from the charity stripe, where he shoots an impressive 94%.
• Take the crowd out of it early. You can bet it will be a tough atmosphere, as always, and it would certainly benefit the Cats to come out and silence the crowd early on. 3's are a great way to do that, so let's hope Lamb and Knight can knock down some shots early.
• Put them away. The Rebels have lost 5 of their first 6 conference games, so this is certainly a make-or-break moment for them, and being at home, they'll be especially charged up. It should be a blowout victory for UK, but nothing is ever easy on the road in the SEC, and given the way the Cats have finished their last two games, it could be close until the end. Hopefully Calipari has worked on instilling that killer instinct in his team, and hopefully the boys respond.

Ole Miss has been one of the worst teams in the SEC so far this year, and hopefully UK will compound their misery with another defeat tonight. I think Jones and Knight will dominate early and get the Cats out to a big lead, one that they will not relinquish.

84-68, Cats.

UK/UGA

Well, it's that time of year again, when the youthful, Calipari-led Cats set out to prove why an inexperienced team can never win a national title. It happened last Saturday at South Carolina, and it happened again today at Rupp Arena. Kentucky jumped out to a big lead in the second half of a game and then allowed its opponent to cut the lead nerve-wrackingly close but eventually finished them off.

If history teaches us anything, it is that teams that allow this to happen time after time eventually get burned. Good teams will usually pull out the wins once they open up a sizable lead; great teams will step on the throats of their opponents and blow them away. At this point in the year, it's obvious to see that the Cats fall into the former category.

And the kind of lackadaisical play we saw today from Kentucky is certainly not a sign of good things to come, especially once we have to face quality SEC opponents like Tennessee, Florida and Vanderbilt.

Doron Lamb had a huge game, but once Georgia adjusted and switched to a man-to-man defense in the second half, the Cats really had a difficult time making shots and creating opportunities off the dribble. Teams can't play zone against UK because they shoot the ball too well, and teams shouldn't be able to handle our speed and athleticism if they switch to a man-to-man, but for some reason that wasn't the case today.

Hopefully these games are just blips on the radar. Hopefully Kentucky will come out and absolutely obliterate Ole Miss on Tuesday. But I have a (tiny) gut feeling that these second half letdowns will eventually cost the Cats at least two or three games, in turn costing them a few seeds in the tourney, in turn leading to an early exit from the tournament.

But hopefully I'm dead wrong.

Hopefully.

Polls

Quick note: I've added the first of what will hopefully be many polls to the blog, so vote early and vote often! (the poll is to the right)

The Morning After

I'm not gonna lie. I did not sleep well last night. And after a performance like the one the Cats gave last night, can you really blame me?

If the team had just folded and lost by 15 or 20, I wouldn't have watched the second half or elevated my heart rate immensely for about 30 minutes and a peaceful night's sleep would have been much easier to come by.

As it happened, though, UK staged a pretty impressive comeback and had not one, but two possessions in the final ten seconds with a chance to win the game. But just when UK fans had the audacity to hope for victory, the volatile nature of this young team reared its ugly head yet again, and a turnover and half court desperation 3 were all it could muster.

Moral victory? No. In fact, hell no. We are the Kentucky Wildcats. Moral victories are for teams that play us and keep the game close. The Kentucky Wildcats do not accept "moral victories," and I would hope that no fan is happy with any part of the performance last night. Last year's team realized very quickly what it means to have every team in the conference (and country for that matter) gunning for you, giving you their absolute best game night in and night out. This year's squad has lost its first two conference games on the road and still hasn't picked up on the lesson.

Every single team in the SEC circles its games against Kentucky every year. It is every team's biggest game. Our team needs to realize that and elevate their level of play accordingly. All I can hope is that they do it before Saturday @ South Carolina.

Bama 1st Half

Ingredients for an upset:

Poor shooting team makes a bunch of 3's: Check.
Great shooting team can't buy a bucket: Check.
Frenetic crowd not taken out of the game early: Check.

What is with this team and road games? Kentucky played straight up scared in the first half, and Alabama's physicality is really causing problems on both ends of the floor. It really is disheartening to see guys like Terrence Jones, Darius Miller and DeAndre Liggins get pushed around and just take it. At least last year Demarcus Cousins would have punched somebody in the face by now.

It's going be an uphill battle to get back into this game, but I think if Knight can make just one or two shots, not even 3's, the Cats will settle down and begin to play their style of offense. The flow of a game is largely determined by the play of each of point guard and, at least in the first half, Knight has done nothing offensively.

You know the paint will be peeling off that visitor's locker room, let's hope it inspires a better performance in the second 20 minutes.

LSU First Half

After a week of hearing Coach Cal talk about how disappointed he was in the team and its effort, today's first half was about as good as any fan could expect. Terrence Jones once again started the game on the bench but still became a scoring presence for the Cats, this time-thankfully-from the low block.

Other thoughts:

• Great to see Hood and Vargas get some solid first half minutes. I think Cal is tired of hearing it from the reporters about how sparingly the bench is used and when your team is up 30, you really have no excuse. Hopefully Poole will get a chance in the second half as well, and I would think Hood and Vargas will see at least 8 to 10 minutes apiece.
• At the collegiate level and as a freshman, I honestly think Brandon Knight may be better than John Wall. He is not (quite) as explosive or creative, but the kid can shoot the lights out from anywhere on the floor and plays so poised and within himself, it's hard to think he is only 18 years old. His basketball IQ is off the charts and he seems to get better at maintaining possession and limiting turnovers every time he steps out on the floor.
• Liggins seems to have regressed a bit the last couple of games and hasn't been the omnipresent force we're used to seeing as Wildcat fans. Hopefully that can be attributed to better play from Knight, but it feels strange not seeing Liggins diving around on the floor all the time, although the swat at the end of the half was a good sign.

All in all, a great performance once we started rolling, and it certainly helps that our defense held the Tigers to a woeful 6-of-33 (18%) from the field.

Will UK get to 100? Doubtful. But I'll take winning by 50.

Mr. Jones and Me

Beating a team as bad as Auburn isn't much to get excited about, but no one would argue that it's exactly what Kentucky needed at this point in the season.
UK never trailed, held the Tigers' leading scorer to 1 point and cruised through the second half en route to a 78-54 victory at Rupp Arena. After struggling to knock down shots at Georgia over the weekend, Kentucky's shooters showed up en masse, going an even 50% from the field and draining 11-of-26 threes.
Terrence Jones has been apathetic in the last few games, and even though he was benched because of a "cold," you can't help but wonder if Cal wanted to make sure he realized that his starting spot is not guaranteed.
Whatever the reason for Jones becoming the Cats' sixth man, it sparked an historic performance from the Washington big man, who exploded for 35 points, the most ever by a Kentucky freshman. Jones came up two rebounds shy of a double-double but still led the Cats with 8, and also nailing 4-of-5 from behind the arc, much to the chagrin of his head coach.
Calipari was beside himself at times, trying to get the 6-foot-9 power forward down on the block, but it seemed that in the last few minutes he finally relented and allowed Jones some freedom on the floor.

Comments:

• Did a little better getting the ball inside in the second half, but Jones still doesn't understand that not only does he belong on the block, but we need him on the block.
• Have to agree with the ESPNU commentary crew in wondering why Cal doesn't give the bench players more minutes. With UK up 20 with just under 10 minutes to play, what's the harm in resting Knight and Lamb and bringing in Hood and Poole?
• It is sometimes sad to hear how quiet the Rupp Arena crowd can be. I realize it wasn't much of a game, but some intensity out of the student section (or the old folks section) would have been very much appreciated.
• Liggins did a phenomenal job of shutting down Earnest Ross, who up until this game was averaging over 13 a game. Having a lockdown defender like that is really something that will come in handy over and over again this year. (see the Notre Dame and Louisville games for evidence)

Next up: Saturday, 4:30 v. LSU

Auburn 1st Half

Couple of things jumped out at me watching the first half tonight:

• Obviously, hosting Auburn is maybe the best thing that could have happened after losing on the road in Athens, but it was good to see the Cats come out with some intensity early. A small part of every UK fan was worried that his/her team would come out flat.
• Is it possible that the sixth man for UK (regardless of who it is) is the best player on any given night? It's normally Doron Lamb, our best shooter and at times our best scorer, but tonight it was Terrence Jones, and he just happens to lead the Cats with 13 points at the break.
• Why doesn't this team post up more? We have a size and strength advantage against most every team, including Auburn, but we continue to take three after three. We can shoot the ball pretty well on most nights, but it would really serve this team well to focus on scoring in the paint to prepare for games when the threes aren't falling.
• Triple-Double Alert! Brandon Knight has 8 pts, 6 asst, and 4 rebounds at the break. Just saying, keep an eye out. Oh, and he also has 1 block, but I think the quadruple double may be out of reach.
• Eloy Vargas is still an incredibly big waste of space. The amount of times that man/boy goes up from inside 5 feet and gets blocked/fouled is absurd. Stick him in the weight room with nothing but EAS Myoplex and a UFC fighter for a month and then let him play again. In all seriousness, though, he needs to step up because we need bodies off the bench or this team will be exhausted come tourney time.
• Jay Williams almost had me. I was starting to respect him as a commentator and he actually made several insightful remarks throughout the first half, and then Jones took a knee to the face after being hacked while lying on the floor, and Williams said "that's exactly what you want to see if you're Auburn's coach." Really? I'm all for hard fouls and playing physically, but cheap shots? Only a Dukie.

Should be a good second half, my guess is that Polson sees about 95 seconds of the game and UK wins by 32.