Blue/White Scrimmage

Before we get into the official "Wildcat Wrap" of tonight's scrimmage, here are some key stats...

Darius Miller 14 points and 5 rebounds
Darnell Dodson 26 points and 7 rebounds (four threes)
Jon Hood 14 points and 5 rebounds
John Wall 25 points, 7 rebounds and 11 assists
Demarcus Cousins 16 points and 9 rebounds
Eric Bledsoe 14 points, 5 rebounds and 9 assists
Daniel Orton 14 points and 8 rebounds
Patrick Patterson 24 points and 8 rebounds (11-15 from field)
Josh Harrellson 11 points and 15 rebounds
Ramon Harris 12 points and 7 rebounds (4-7 from field)
Mark Krebs 5 points and 2 rebounds
Perry Stevenson 2 points and 3 rebounds
Deandre Liggins 0 points and 4 rebounds

Ladies and Gentleman, your first official "Wildcat Wrap":

One of the biggest concerns of this team throughout the preseason, other than youth, has been whether or not the Cats would be able to find someone to replace Jodie Meeks as a premier three point shooter. Nobody questioned the team's athleticism and ability to drive to the basket in Calipari's Dribble Drive Motion Offense, but who would be able to step up and make a three when needed late in the game, Mark Krebs? Well yes, Mark Krebs has the ability to come in and make some shots. But out of the regular core of players that will be playing 25 or more minutes a game, Darnell Dodson showed that he could potentially lead the team in 3-point shots this season as he nailed four of them tonight and also added seven rebounds and 26 points.

Dodson, a Rivals.com 3-star junior college transfer, has been lost in the shuffle of the nation's top recruiting class this preseason that includes #1 ranked recruit John Wall, #2 ranked Demarcus Cousins, Daniel Orton, and Kentucky Mr. Basketball, Jon Hood. Darnell wins the award for the most pleasant surprise in tonight's scrimmage, but he wasn't the only one knocking down three's on a team that supposedly couldn't shoot. Ramon Harris shot well from outside and scored 12 points and even big men Patrick Patterson and Daniel Orton combined for a perfect 3 for 3 behind the arc, with Patterson hitting two of them!

While Dodson was the biggest surprise, Patterson was the most impressive tonight as we finally got to see him play his natural position and not with his back to the basket. If you thought Patterson was good before, you have seen nothing yet! Patrick will be a totally different player in the Dribble Drive Motion Offense, where he will no longer be forced to have his back to the basket as he did in Gillispie's high/low offense, which usually resulted in the Cats' inability to even get him the ball. With big men Demarcus Cousins and Daniel Orton now on campus, Patterson has now also moved to his natural NBA position at Power Forward. Tonight, we saw a much more flashy Patrick Patterson who drove to the basket and even knocked down two three's. These were things that were nearly impossible for Patterson to do last year while his back was to the basket and Michael Porter was responsible for getting him the ball. Now Patterson relies on projected 2010 NBA Draft #1 pick John Wall, as well as Eric Bledsoe, to dish him the ball.

In the first half of the scrimmage, Patterson got to play alongside Cousins in a lineup that seemed to feature Cal's projected starting lineup on the Blue team which dominated the White in an un-evenly matched 1st half. In the second half, Calipari switched things up and put Cousins on the White team. Patterson was now playing against big men Orton and Cousins who were both on the White team but it didn't seem to matter as Patterson finished with 24 points. Calipari also switched things up in the 2nd half by moving Eric Bledsoe to the white team. Instead of Bledsoe and Wall playing with each other, they were now playing against each other, and let me tell you...we won't miss one beat without John Wall for 3 games. Wall is every bit as good as advertised (25 pts, 7 rebounds, and 11 assists tonight), but Bledsoe is much better than advertised and would start on almost any team in the country. The best thing about Bledsoe is that we can expect him to be here at least a few years (Daniel Orton too).

Last but certainly not least, it was so great to see all the former Wildcat legends in the record crowd tonight in Rupp for the scrimmage. Ron Mercer and Wayne Turner were in the stands, Tony Delk and Scott Padgett are on staff and were shown numerous times on the video boards while receiving big cheers, and Joe B. Hall even sat on the bench for a while and chatted with Calipari. The program is back in every way. Everything that UK basketball hasn't been in the last 2 years, it has been and will continue to be this year. It's basketball time in Kentucky folks, buckle your seat belts and enjoy the ride!