Could the script be any better?

Over the course of the past five months, it has been a topsy turvy season for Big Blue Nation. There's been ups, such as UK's fifteen point win at Louisville. There have also certainly been downs, like going 2-6 on the road in SEC play. I regret that I have not been here to document the season, because it has been more than what I think anyone imagined that this season could be. The script couldn't have been written any better. I cried on Sunday when Kentucky returned to the Final Four for the first time in thirteen seasons, the longest drought in school history.

Flashing back to a year ago, I would not have been emotional if Kentucky beat West Virginia and made the Final Four last year, because that team was expected to do so. I also would not have been emotional if the Cats made the Final Four in 2003 or 2005, when top seeded UK teams lost in the Elite Eight, a major road block for the Cats since the Championship season of 1998. The fact that last year's team DID NOT make it with five first round NBA draft picks, and this team DID reach the Final Four despite 8 regular season losses, no Enes Kanter, and an incredibly tough region to get here (defeating WVU, OSU, and UNC), all adds to the beautiful script of this amazing run.

Josh Harrelson, who averaged a couple of minutes per game a year ago sitting behind big men DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson, and Daniel Orton, and expected to sit behind Enes Kanter this year, is the best 'feel good' story in all of college basketball this season. DeAndre Liggins also has a pretty good story himself, and the other veteran, Darius Miller, had dreamt of this experience his entire life growing up in Maysville, KY. John Calipari, who has been known as a fantastic recruiter and an average coach, has proven that he is in fact one of the best X's and O's coaches in the game this season, beating every team that has defeated him in a rematch games this season. The only "V word" describing this Final Four appearance for Calipari is vindication. He's proven that he can win with less, like he has already proven at UMass (but others seem to forget), and that he can also do it without even a hint of trouble with the NCAA with this current roster.

Of the Wildcats' eight losses, six of them have been avenged, earning them the potential nickname of the "Payback Cats". Five of the six SEC losses on the road were avenged with wins at Rupp Arena or in the SEC Tournament, including two wins against Florida after losing in the final seconds in Gainesville. The Cats also lost to North Carolina in the regular season after defeating them in the East Regional to advance to the Final Four. They lost to UConn in the Maui Invitational Championship in November, and they also hope to avenge that loss on Saturday in the Final Four. If they do, 7 of their 8 losses will be avenged. Arkansas, who they only faced once, would be the only team on the schedule that the Cats did not defeat. You'd expect Harrelson and Brandon Knight, who had 0 and 6 points respectively in November against the Huskies, to have much more of an impact this time around.

There couldn't have been a better script for this team to make it to the Final Four, and perhaps, a National Championship. Regardless of how the team fares in Houston, they have accomplished the very rare feat of exceeding the always high exepctations at the University of Kentucky. With Enes, this team was thought to have a chance to still be playing right now. Without him, they weren't given much of a shot at all. It's been a blessing in disguise for Josh Harrelson, who has emerged as a fan favorite and has played himself into a chance of playing at the next level. On paper, the Cats look to be even better next season, perhaps a pre-season #1 ranking, but that team has a tall task infront of them to accomplish what this team already has and hopes to do Saturday and Monday night: bringing home the 8th National Championship to its rightful place in Lexington, KY.

Just how big were the last 2 wins?

Since falling to South Carolina and losing the #1 ranking in the country, the Cats have bounced back with solid wins over #20 Vanderbilt and Ole Miss, who just barely dropped out of the rankings this week by just a matter of a few votes. Vandy and Ole Miss might just be the best 2 teams the Cats have played all year.

Before the season started and even through the month of December, the best teams and biggest wins on UK's schedule appeared to be UNC, UConn, and Louisville. All three of these teams have been major disappointments and all three of them will have to step it up just to make the NCAA Tournament. The Cats had counted on those three victories to be major factors in earning a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Now that those aforementioned wins aren't considered as big as they once were, the last 2 wins have been crucial.

In fact, if the season ended today, Vanderbilt and their 17-4 overall and 6-1 conference record would be the highest seed on UK's schedule to this point. If the Cats had lost to Vandy, they would've been 2 games behind the Commodores for 1st place in the SEC. Especially considering how hard it is to win on the road at Vandy and already down a game in the SEC Standings, beating Vandy at Rupp was a must win, and the Cats responded well to the loss in Columbia with a much needed win, and with Lebron James in attendance (just days after receiving a phone call from President Obama- and losing that night)!


Ole Miss would likely be seeded the 2nd highest on UK's schedule so far, with a 12 point win over Kansas State and "good" losses against Villanova, West Virginia, and in overtime at Tennessee. The Rebels feature one of the best players and NBA prospects in the league in Terrico White. White, from Memphis, TN, was recruited by Calipari to be a Memphis Tiger before he chose to attend Ole Miss, so you know the guy is for real. He attracted more NBA scouts to Rupp than any game this season but the Cats were up for the challenge. Much like Vanderbilt, the game was never really in doubt even though they never really pulled away and kept a large lead. In the end, however, it was another nice double digit win for the Cats which could end up being a factor in earning their #1 seed, if it ever is in doubt.

As they stand right now, the Cats are a lock as a #1 seed, but you never know what could happen the rest of the way with 2 games left against Tennessee, a rematch with South Carolina, and road games against Mississippi State, Vandy, and Florida. Even f they lose a few of those games, the last 2 wins have put the Cats on solid foundation to still get a #1 seed.

News and Notes: 12-14-09

• Kentucky has now reached all-time win #1,998. They face Austin Peay on Saturday and then the December 21st matchup with Drexel will likely be win #2,000. Any ideas on finding tickets, anyone?
• John Calipari was contacted by Madison Square Garden officials about playing an annual home game there, after UK arguably had more fans than UConn and St. Johns combined, in their own backyard at the SEC/Big East Invitational last week against UConn. I would personally love to see a UK/Duke matchup at MSG, since Coach K won't come to Rupp.
• UK moved up to 3rd in both polls today and received one first place vote. #2 Texas faces UNC on Saturday, which could push the Cats into the #2 spot with a Tar Heel win.
• #1 ranked Kansas plays Michigan and California the next two games, then plays a solid Belmont team, then Temple (who just knocked off previous #3 Villanova), and then faces Tennessee on January 10th. Look for the Cats to be ranked #1 after these stretch of games for the Jayhawks.
• John Wall received SEC Freshman Player of the Week honors for the fourth consecutive week. This is a streak that might not last the entire season by John Wall, but I wouldn't be shocked if Cousins and Bledsoe contribute to this award being won by a UK freshman every single week of this season. Which is really, simply amazing.

Last but not least, I want to thank Kentucky Sports Radio for this Youtube video they posted. Really, really funny stuff!

John Wall, the greatest?

This week an ESPN insider article suggested that John Wall could be the best college point guard ever. I don't think anybody can really argue that it's not a possibility if he can lead the Cats to a title. Here is a great video of his dazzling moves Saturday against Carolina. Below the video, check out a few other must-read links. One of them is on John Wall, the person, and the difficult childhood he had and the young man off the court that he has turned out to be. It also mentions that Wall, like another famous basketball great, was cut from his high school team as a sophomore. Another link below is a great article written by a UNC fan on his experience at Rupp Arena on Saturday. Tomorrow night the Cats have another fierce battle on their hands in Madison Square Garden with the Connecticut Huskies at 9:30 on ESPN. If the following video doesn't get you pumped up for the game tomorrow night, I don't know what will.




Behind John Wall

A UNC fan's experience at "the cathedral of college basketball".

The critics have been silenced

Kentucky 68, North Carolina 66

(Photo Courtesy of the CatsPause)

In the first half, the Cats showed their full potential for maybe the first time this year as they blew the Tar Heels out of the gym and broke away with a 19 point lead. John Wall amazed everyone in front of a record setting Rupp Arena crowd of 24,465 fans and Patrick Patterson led the way with 19 points and 7 rebounds. The Cats improved to 8-0 for the first time since the 1992-93 season and it was the first monumental victory in the Calipari era. After the Cats rallied on a 28-2 first half run, Wall was cramping and had to leave the game for an IV shot, Bledsoe was still favoring his ankle and only played 17 minutes, Demarcus Cousins was again in foul trouble, and the Tar Heels were just too good to fall down flat on their face. They came back, but the Cats made key free throws down the stretch to seal the victory. The young Cats finally had the opportunity against a top 10 team to prove that they were as good as their #4 ranking indicated, and they did just that!

Savor the victory while you can, Big Blue Nation, because in just a few days the Cats will face UConn at Madison Square Garden in the SEC/Big East Invitational. It will be the first true neutral site game of the year. A game in which I believe will be more difficult to win than UNC at Rupp. Yes, there will be a lot of Kentucky fans making the trip up to New York, but it won't be the same atmosphere that helped the Cats beat UNC in front of a record frenzy crowd at Rupp. The players responded very well to the crowd and played off of their intensity yesterday. They need to play with that same intensity Wednesday night in a building that UConn is very familiar with playing in. If the Cats play with the intensity, desire, and passion that they exhibited against the Tar Heels, they cannot be beat. They must keep this same intensity on Wednesday night and going into SEC play. After UConn, the Cats will have their first true road game of the season at Indiana, which will surely be another great learning experience for this young team. It's always great to win while still learning, and with 21 turnovers committed against UNC, there is still a lot to learn. However, this team has a will to win, and that's what they do: win. It's scary to think how good they can be in March.

Previewing Carolina and Kentucky

(Photo Courtesy of Kansascity.com...yeah, I know, random huh?)

If you havn't heard yet, there's a pretty big basketball game tomorrow.

It's between college basketball's two winningest programs that are both chasing each other to be the first to 2,000 all-time wins this season. I'm not sure if it's actually Kentucky vs. North Carolina, or Kentucky vs. The World; however, because it seems like the Cats still have a lot of doubters and a lot to prove to the college basketball world, despite their #4 ranking, 7-0 record, and the fact that they are a 3 point favorite in this game.

Yes, it's the first really big and nationally hyped-up game for Calipari's young team this year. On a national stage, it's almost like this is the real beginning of the Calipari era. North Carolina has certainly played a much tougher schedule to this point, but I'm really not sure if they've look much better than the Cats. UK had close calls against Miami (OH) and Stanford, but the Cardinal could end up actually being a solid team this year out of the PAC 10, only time will tell, and I'm not sure if there's any team in the country that would beat that red hot Miami team by double digits on that given night. But what about Carolina's lackluster 1st half performance against Florida International? What about their 11 point win over Valparaiso and their seven point win over Nevada? Oh yeah, they also lost to a rebuilding Syracuse team by 16 points. And if you think UK's defense has been bad, they've given up 7 less points per game this season than UNC has. After the amount of players the Tar Heels lost from a year ago, it seems to me that they have just as much to prove as Kentucky does. They're a young team too, not as young, but still a young team.

I'm not doubting UNC is as talented of a team that Kentucky will face this year and maybe their biggest test, but I'm not more worried about UNC than I am about a handful of other teams such as UConn, Louisville, Tennessee, and even Florida after their suprising start of the season. Don't get me wrong, this is a HUGE game for both teams, but it's not the end of the world either way. We could win and have the best feeling in the world about this team, but then we play UConn at Madision Square Garden a few days later and could lose to the Huskies. We could also lose to UNC, but then redeem ourselves against UConn. If Kentucky just wins 2 of their next 3, they shouldn't fall too much at all in the rankings, if at all.

I see this game playing out in a couple of ways. If UNC shoots anywhere close to the way that a couple of teams have already shot against the Cats behind the arc, UK could get embarassed and lose by double digits. If UNC has a good shooting day, coupled with a productive game in the paint (which UK has not seen from anyone yet), it could be a long day. If both teams are on top of their game, I see the Cats winning by single digits with John Wall making a clutch play to end it, maybe in the final seconds. If UK plays to their full potential, plays stiffling defense, limits turnovers, plays under control, and doesn't let the hype of Rupp Arena get to them....I see UK winning by double digits. Remember though, this is the first really big game that these freshman have played at Rupp, and I'm not sure if they really know what to expect or not. The key is for them to stay focused and not get too hyped up or destracted from a few certain celebrities that could be in attendance. They don't need to be running up and down the court at 200 miles per hour either. UNC is too good of a team to do that against, and they will force too many turnovers.

If I had to pick an outcome out of the previous possibilities already given, I believe the Cats guard play will be the difference in the game. Everyone knows that UNC has a great frontcourt. Everyone knows that UK has a great frontcourt as well. Both teams are very talented and very deep down low. Both teams' big men must stay out of foul trouble as well, especially Demarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson for UK and Deon Thompson for UNC. It's obvious, however, that UNC's guards are not at the same level as Kentucky's. The Carolina kid, John Wall, will save the day once again in the final seconds of this one as Kentucky wins a thriller at Rupp.