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  • Sorry, But I Am Very Excited (Still) About This Team. We Played Very Hard Yesterday


    Aaron Harrison Kentucky's best player?

    Re-watched most of the game. UNC fans are saying this was the best they've played all year (much better than they did versus MSU or UL). Till the "tackle who gets it" scuffle at midcourt that led to the dunk by Johnston, the game was up in the air. That took it to 72-65 and UK still fought back. Very mature effort in an extremely hostile environment.

    McAdoo had THREE free throws hit the back of the rim, go up 4 feet and then drop straight through. Tokoto has been called the worst shooter UNC has ever had. He drained a 3 (his 2nd all season) and made another long 2. Things happen.

    Andrew Harrison and Aaron took over the game. Before everyone said they were not engaged enough. Now it is they are trying to do too much. Andrew had 17 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds. He hits his normal FT% and he has 21 points.

    Several other points:
    1. Aaron may be our best player right now. Just terrific yesterday. 20 points in 24 minutes. Very good defense.

    2. Young is playing better and better. 8-10 on FTs yesterday; nearly all of them clutch.

    3. Poythress had 6 points and 8 rebounds

    4. WCS played well, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks. Needs to improve his offense.

    5. Randle is at the point where he needs to overcome the scouting reports geared to stop him. Cal needs to play him inside all the time. I said at the start of the season the Patterson experiment was a mistake. It is a stupid idea. No other way to say it.

    6. Hawkins played 18 minutes and had 1 rebound for his stat line. 0-2 on FTs. Overall, that is beyond bad.

    When the rankings come out we will have lost 3 games by a total of 14 points to teams that will be ranked (probably) #5 (MSU), #10 (UNC) and #14 to #15 (Baylor). All 3 were a "last possession" type game. I think the team is much better than we were and is capable of great things. We have the team to run off 15-20 straight wins.

    Overall, if we play this hard the rest of the season I am very optimistic.

    **I really HATE UNC**

    Darryl
    Comments 25 Comments
    1. Darrell KSR's Avatar
      Darrell KSR -
      Thanks, Darryl.

      Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk
    1. UKHistory's Avatar
      UKHistory -
      Thanks for the positive statement Darryl. I can't fully share your optimism but I do think that this team played harder for longer periods of time.

      But it reminds me of last year. That team was so far below the learning curve, they could not make enough strides to win games--which is what is most important.

      Winning like losing can have a snowball effect. If we can get on a winning streak,well watch out.
    1. bigsky's Avatar
      bigsky -
      Right on Darryl. Hawkins, Poythress and Johnson are our bench. Cal's gonna cut the rotation to 8 if it means losing every game! (Just kidding-sorta) Agree on the Hawkins stats but there are two ends of the court. You get in the game playing hustle defense for Cal. Lee not playing late in first half is hard to understand.
    1. StuBleedsBlue2's Avatar
      StuBleedsBlue2 -
      I'm excited about the potential of what this team can be.

      The reality is, though, we still can't beat top teams away from home. We have only one more chance to get a win like that this season.

      We'll have to get three or four of those to win a title, maybe more. To win a title, we're going to have to do what we can't do.

      We shouldn't hang our hat on "we got their best game of the year". We're always going to get that. Also, we're going to get bad refs on the road. These are just excuses.
    1. kingcat's Avatar
      kingcat -
      Appreciate the optimism and saw many of the same positives. The down side is that we have a chore ahead of us finding our way back to the top ten..or fifteen.

      If someone had forecast this pre-season we all would have banned them from the site for being a troll.
    1. cattails's Avatar
      cattails -
      Quote Originally Posted by Darryl View Post
      Re-watched most of the game. UNC fans are saying this was the best they've played all year (much better than they
      did versus MSU or UL). Till the "tackle who gets it" scuffle at midcourt that led to the dunk by Johnston, the game was
      up in the air. That took it to 72-65 and UK still fought back. Very mature effort in an extremely hostile environment.

      McAdoo had THREE free throws hit the back of the rim, go up 4 feet and then drop straight through. Tokoto has been
      called the worst shooter UNC has ever had. He drained a 3 (his 2nd all season) and made another long 2. Things happen.

      Andrew Harrison and Aaron took over the game. Before everyone said they were not engaged enough. Now it is they are
      trying to do too much. Andrew had 17 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds. He hits his normal FT% and he has 21 points.

      Several other points:
      1. Aaron may be our best player right now. Just terrific yesterday. 20 points in 24 minutes. Very good defense.

      2. Young is playing better and better. 8-10 on FTs yesterday; nearly all of them clutch.

      3. Poythress had 6 points and 8 rebounds

      4. WCS played well, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks. Needs to improve his offense.

      5. Randle is at the point where he needs to overcome the scouting reports geared to stop him. Cal needs to play him inside
      all the time. I said at the start of the season the Patterson experiment was a mistake. It is a stupid idea. No other way to say it.

      6. Hawkins played 18 minutes and had 1 rebound for his stat line. 0-2 on FTs. Overall, that is beyond bad.

      When the rankings come out we will have lost 3 games by a total of 14 points to teams that will be ranked (probably) #5 (MSU),
      #10 (UNC) and #14 to #15 (Baylor). All 3 were a "last possession" type game. I think the team is much better than we were and
      is capable of great things. We have the team to run off 15-20 straight wins.

      Overall, if we play this hard the rest of the season I am very optimistic.

      **I really HATE UNC**

      Darryl
      Agree with most everything you said, Randle can't just play inside though, he pulls the bigs out and allows the guards and wing to drive, he needs to find the rim for rebounds, lobs and put backs when they do drive (he didn't do that against UNC, and that is where he had a bad game). Foul trouble and Hawkins is in the game, works his tail off but brings little to the table, no other player to put in, so it is Hawkins, Polson is a blank spot right now. Your quote "We have the team to run off 15-20 straight wins". Yes we do, but I don't look for it, we are getting there but there are a lot of bumps out there. I'll be Darryl right now and state we beat UL at our place, it is time to turn the corner and run the straight road.
    1. Genuine Realist's Avatar
      Genuine Realist -
      I like the post, too, except for the comments about Randle. Maybe he should move outside from time to time. He is not terribly effective as a scorer down low at the moment. His game has to be to distribute immediately to Young or the Harrisons when he senses the double team.

      I think it's going to be a Final Eight team by March. Seeding will take care of itself. The 2011 Final Four team started life as a number 4.
    1. UKFlounder's Avatar
      UKFlounder -
      So is the trouble with Randle his lack of perimeter skills or his struggles on the inside? I've seen both discussed and cannot disagree with either, but if a player cannot contribute consistently eithe on the inside or outside, what is left?
    1. TRUCKERCATFAN's Avatar
      TRUCKERCATFAN -
      I'm glad you guys are so optimistic but I just can't see it right now. Some individual play has improved, some has regressed. Team play, especially on defense is no better than it was in game one IMO.

      Some want to point to the 2011 team for hope but I just don't see it. That group showed a decent bball IQ and solid fundamentals. You could just feel that group was gonna be fine if they could get over the hump in a close game. Once they did break through late in tge year, tgey rode that all the way to the Final Four. I just don't sense that with this group.
    1. StuBleedsBlue2's Avatar
      StuBleedsBlue2 -
      Quote Originally Posted by UKFlounder View Post
      So is the trouble with Randle his lack of perimeter skills or his struggles on the inside? I've seen both discussed and cannot disagree with either, but if a player cannot contribute consistently eithe on the inside or outside, what is left?
      I think Randle needs to be a much quicker and better decision maker on what to do when the double/triple teams come.

      There's always going to be a man open, so that's an option. Even with the double teaming, he still could have the advantage to score, but he has to have the position on the floor, in that scenario.

      He's not a great passer, but his recognition is way too slow.
    1. Darrell KSR's Avatar
      Darrell KSR -
      This team has lost 3 games by 5, 5 and 4 points, all to top 15 teams (UNC will be top 15 in this poll) on the road.

      We probably "should" be winning those games by 20 points, based on our talent. But putting that aside, if/when we get mentally tough enough to push through and win that close game on the road against a top 15 team, we'll be better than good. If we combine that with playing with where our talent is, we'll be great. We're two steps away. We're good, not very good, and not great.

      # 4 seed. Will probably win the next two games at home, and some may think that alone means we're better than we are, too. Unless things change, we should win the next two at home, including Louisville, and we'll be exactly where we are today.

      We need a mental toughness game, win on the road in adverse conditions to get through this. Something the whole team pulls together on. We need to be down 10 points in the 2nd half against a screaming crowd, and decide we've had enough, and we won't take it anymore, and we do whatever it takes to win.

      When that happens we'll move to very good. After that, the foundation will be laid for great. Whether we get there or not is another question.
    1. cattails's Avatar
      cattails -
      Quote Originally Posted by UKFlounder View Post
      So is the trouble with Randle his lack of perimeter skills or his struggles on the inside? I've seen both discussed and cannot disagree with either, but if a player cannot contribute consistently eithe on the inside or outside, what is left?
      Other players have to free him up, driving the lane can do that, hitting the open 3 can do that. Against UNC there was no post up game, UNC doubles with bigs, very big bigs. Move Randle to the elbow and the lane opens up, you have to pick your poison. Good game plan by Cal.
    1. cattails's Avatar
      cattails -
      Quote Originally Posted by TRUCKERCATFAN View Post
      I'm glad you guys are so optimistic but I just can't see it right now. Some individual play has improved, some has regressed. Team play, especially on defense is no better than it was in game one IMO.

      Some want to point to the 2011 team for hope but I just don't see it. That group showed a decent bball IQ and solid fundamentals. You could just feel that group was gonna be fine if they could get over the hump in a close game. Once they did break through late in tge year, tgey rode that all the way to the Final Four. I just don't sense that with this group.
      Trucker our team defense is miles better than the beginning of the year, we are in a stance, we are fighting through screen, we are not talking (main problem). Don't know where this team is going but it is getting better, the parts are coming together.
    1. cattails's Avatar
      cattails -
      Quote Originally Posted by StuBleedsBlue2 View Post
      I think Randle needs to be a much quicker and better decision maker on what to do when the double/triple teams come.

      There's always going to be a man open, so that's an option. Even with the double teaming, he still could have the advantage to score, but he has to have the position on the floor, in that scenario.

      He's not a great passer, but his recognition is way too slow.
      How can I disagree with that.
    1. TRUCKERCATFAN's Avatar
      TRUCKERCATFAN -
      Quote Originally Posted by cattails View Post
      Trucker our team defense is miles better than the beginning of the year, we are in a stance, we are fighting through screen, we are not talking (main problem). Don't know where this team is going but it is getting better, the parts are coming together.
      As much as 2012 spoiled me, 2013 has turned me into the eternal pessimist. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough for the silver linings.
    1. StuBleedsBlue2's Avatar
      StuBleedsBlue2 -
      Quote Originally Posted by TRUCKERCATFAN View Post
      As much as 2012 spoiled me, 2013 has turned me into the eternal pessimist. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough for the silver linings.
      That's not a fun way to live life.

      Last season was a perfect storm that ended up being struck by lightning. This season, so far is partly sunny, with a spotty shower.
    1. Padukacat's Avatar
      Padukacat -
      I think everyone feels like they must find some positive or negative which will predict the season, but none of us know, the team is at the balance point and could go either way. Id say based on our will to win and talent we will get better than worse, but nobody knows.
    1. Harlow's Avatar
      Harlow -
      I still have faith but man we need alot of work,,,,, Thank god for x mas break
    1. TRUCKERCATFAN's Avatar
      TRUCKERCATFAN -
      Quote Originally Posted by Padukacat View Post
      I think everyone feels like they must find some positive or negative which will predict the season, but none of us know, the team is at the balance point and could go either way. Id say based on our will to win and talent we will get better than worse, but nobody knows.
      I just don't see a lot of positive trends at this point.
    1. Bakert's Avatar
      Bakert -
      Just a quick "nice take" Darryl. You have to look for it, but they are getting better.
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