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How much fun was last night? The Cats finally played with a fire they haven't shown all season, and one that I had lost faith that they actually had. The game started out like so many before, LSU on a big run to start and I thought "here we go again." Then the light came on and for the first time this season they "refused to lose." They need to make that a permanent mindset, and if they do, the tournament could be a lot more interesting than it appeared to be a few days ago. Now they must focus on the next step, which is, the Georgia Bulldogs in the Georgia Dome. Georgia is the only team that may rival UK in fans (although it won't be that close) because the game is in their home state. The Cats need a repeat of their 79-54 win over Georgia earlier in the year. With that, let's get to the things to watch for:
*Stop Gaines
I do not think Georgia has enough firepower to beat UK unless they catch fire from outside. The main man to watch on the perimeter is Kenny Gaines. He is a guy who can fill it up quickly and as we know, all it takes is the main gunner to get hot and it makes the entire team believe. Gaines shoots 38% from deep on the year but against LSU two games ago he shot 6-7 from three and against Arkansas four games ago he shot 6-9. He is a guy that can get extremely hot and help push this Georgia team. Gaines and Mann led Georgia last night to the victory and they have led Georgia all year. I am a firm believer, as most of you know, that there is one guy on every team that if you stop him, you will win. Gaines is that player for Georgia.
*Consistency
UK showed a fight last night they had not shown, at least since the UL game. UK has to show that same fight every game from now until the National Championship game. Watching last night's game, the biggest thing to me was UK played on its toes, always looking to move toward the basket. In too many games they played on their heels. If a pass was in a spot where it could be deflected, they would react just too slow and miss it because they were worried about getting beat by their man. If a rebound was in a spot where they could dive to get it, they would retreat in fear they would lose their man running down court. And on offense, if they had an early shot they would move back and look for Andrew to set something up. Last night, it all changed. They were on their toes. They got the deflections, they got the tough rebound out of their position, and they attacked the basket with a purpose. They were simply not going to lose and they played moving forward instead of moving backwards. It was a big step and that simple change could be what ignites this team.
*Win
I am just going to put this at the end of every one from now on. As Al Davis said "Just Win Baby." Get #9.
That is all for today, hopefully see you back tomorrow. Let me know your things to watch for. As always, Go Big Blue.
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