Cats Slap Dogs, Go To 3-0 In SEC

Another big-margin road win.

I could definitely get used to this.

Before getting to game comments, I thought I'd relate a few facts that were brought to my attention by (ultimate UK fan) Fred. Namely, he had culled from the interwebz a few enlightening facts about just how highly Kentucky is ranked in several D-1 statistical categories, despite the team not being ranked in the top 25.

The ones that jumped out at me were the rankings in free throw percentage (#3), assists (#10), and defensive rebounds (#4). Taking them in reverse order, one can surmise that UK should be quite successful in limiting teams to only one shot per possession, which was certainly the case against Georgia today. That has to be one of those stats that coaches really love, because it is an "effort" stat-- it shows how hard a team is working the glass and preventing putbacks. Assist-wise, it would reveal that UK shares the ball, which is a demonstration of the team being (for the most part) selfless. You don't want Jodie or Patrick to have to create everything from scratch, but rather allow the picks and entry passes of the offensive structure to do a lot of the setup work. Lastly, the free-throw percentage is pretty self-explanatory, but that gives a team a tremendous advantage in closing out games.

Taken together, and in light of the blitz of exposure the Cats got last week, I think they do make a strong case to crack the rankings sooner rather than later. We will be hearing a lot about how the conference is down this season, but it will be tough to ignore UK if things should keep rolling. (Thanks again, Fred.)

Now, to temper things just a smidge, let's keep in mind that was not the Los Angeles Lakers that Kentucky manhandled this afternoon. Still, the defense was plenty smothering and contributed greatly to Georgia looking like, well, a bunch of (lower case -d) dogs. UK got its usual tremendous effort from Mr. Meeks, and the offense was able to score points in bunches at times. Really, a couple of mini-runs was all it was going to take today.

I am encouraged by the further signs of development flashed by Perry Stevenson. He has to be that guy that can pick up a little more garbage just by being in the right place at the right time. He needs to remember his range and use that shot fake a little more, which works so much better when he makes the defense respect that little 8 ft. jumper. (Make it, Perry. Make it!)

Plus, he has either worked a ton on his ball skills, or has simply gained more confidence with the handles. I really like the fact that he can occasionally dribble more than once or twice before getting scared and looking for help. He's never going to be confused for a slasher, but he really doesn't have to be one.

Coach Gillispie again used his bench abundantly, which was quite fitting as the margin ballooned in the second half. (Of course, when did Coach G ever need a big margin to use the bench?) It was nice to have a Josh Harrellson sighting and to get a few minutes for Galloway as well.

So it's consecutive road wins and a dream 3-0 start to conference play. I'll take the wins and let the rankings sort themselves out like they always do.

Thanks for reading.

photo: Sephiroty Fiesta (flickr)