This team is playing their ass off.. let’s jump on this bandwagon !!

[anderwt]

When all healthy, final four bound

[LakeCat]

I am onboard.

[Krank]

I've felt this way all year...

because if ya watch the rest of the college basketball landscape...

you can see that there are NO teams that are great...

Not. A. Single. One.

That means talent with a higher ceiling has a better chance.

Cue the UK Theme Song...

[Darrell KSR]

I'm not sure they're Final Four bound, but I said in the Game Chat thread (where I am notoriously irritated at bad plays, and irrationally giddy for good ones) that Kentucky would look vastly different when Quade returns and Vanderbilt surfaces for the first time. They just have to be a lot better.

[bigsky]

The basketball is so damn ugly. I’m pullin for my team, but sheesh.

[Krank]

I'm not sure they're Final Four bound, but I said in the Game Chat thread (where I am notoriously irritated at bad plays, and irrationally giddy for good ones) that Kentucky would look vastly different when Quade returns and Vanderbilt surfaces for the first time. They just have to be a lot better.

Darrell, there is a LOT of potential upside for this team...

No way Knox doesn't get better and more consistent. Same for Diallo IMO.

SGA is holding it all together. Kid has Kong sacs hangin'.

Green smoothes out a lot of scoring question marks and his natural scoring chops open things up for other guards, wings, even inside.

Vanderbilt is the perfect gravy, hypothetically... we need help with D, rebounding, and passing. Check.

I see Sacha getting better... how much better depends on the quandary of Nick.

For Nick, there's nowhere to go but up, but he's the least predictable IMO. We have seen plenty of bigs over the years go through first year growing pains. He needs to get into the flow and let his play evolve from there.

And the dude I am least worried about is PJ. I predict a terrific postseason for him. I can feel it, just watching how he keeps letting his game come to him and it reaping sure dividends.

If we can hold court at home, sprinkle in a big road win at W.Va., hello high seed.

[KeithKSR]

You wouldn't' know the Cats shot 54% from the field today. One of Cal's highest FG% teams at UK.

[DanISSELisdaman]

Darrell, there is a LOT of potential upside for this team...

No way Knox doesn't get better and more consistent. Same for Diallo IMO.

SGA is holding it all together. Kid has Kong sacs hangin'.

Green smoothes out a lot of scoring question marks and his natural scoring chops open things up for other guards, wings, even inside.

Vanderbilt is the perfect gravy, hypothetically... we need help with D, rebounding, and passing. Check.

I see Sacha getting better... how much better depends on the quandary of Nick.

For Nick, there's nowhere to go but up, but he's the least predictable IMO. We have seen plenty of bigs over the years go through first year growing pains. He needs to get into the flow and let his play evolve from there.

And the dude I am least worried about is PJ. I predict a terrific postseason for him. I can feel it, just watching how he keeps letting his game come to him and it reaping sure dividends.

If we can hold court at home, sprinkle in a big road win at W.Va., hello high seed.

I watched WV get beat today and wasn't really impressed with their defense. Of course it was only one game, so they may be much better than they showed today.

The Cats are going to give me a heart attack if they keep playing these close games. They're winning though, so at least they are learning to be tough.

[kybobcat]

I will say this team seems to run the delay/isolation sets efficiently.

SGA may be the perfect player to run it.

[Padukacat]

The potential is there but not sure they have time to make the kind of progress it would take to be a final four team because were not close and only getting consistent performance from one guy. Need vanderbilt back pronto and Quade as well so we can get in a groove. Need skj to step up and Richards to sit down.

[CitizenBBN]

2014 had perhaps more talent but also looked worse at this point, and this team has more balance. You never know if or when that switch will flip.

[Bakert]

2014 had perhaps more talent but also looked worse at this point, and this team has more balance. You never know if or when that switch will flip.

I agree. We have to be careful not to assume a linear, or better, improvement. A few weeks ago Knox looked like a surefire lottery pick. SGA is playing well, but not at the level he did for 3 or 4 games. Both will play great again, but both are likely to have off games.

The reason last year was so disappointing was that you could see that team, after Fox got back, getting better every game. We were about a week away from being the best team in the country. Hopefully it will click for these guys and we can see that sort of improvement vs what we saw in 2014 which was inexplicable.

[jazyd]

When all healthy, final four bound

Ander, you and I have liked this bunch all year

Gabriel played a very good game.

Played tough down the stretch, they are getting it

[MickintheHam]

They showed a lot of character after Vanderbilt took the lead in the second half. They did not fold as they did Saturday before. Cal, Robis, and Kenny seem to be getting through to these guys.

[Padukacat]

They showed a lot of character after Vanderbilt took the lead in the second half. They did not fold as they did Saturday before. Cal, Robis, and Kenny seem to be getting through to these guys.

Is robic still around I was thinking he retired? I’ll give it to them they don’t wanna lose and have some fight. My fav play of the game was diallo ripping nicks butt for the missed reb on the ft.

[KeithKSR]

Ander, you and I have liked this bunch all year

Gabriel played a very good game.

Played tough down the stretch, they are getting it

Down the stretch Gabriel came up with that tough rebound between two Vandy players, who tried to rip the ball away. Last season Gabriel gets the ball ripped away, or turns the ball over while trying to get the ball to a guard.

[KeithKSR]

Is robic still around I was thinking he retired? I’ll give it to them they don’t wanna lose and have some fight. My fav play of the game was diallo ripping nicks butt for the missed reb on the ft.

When you see players ripping each other you see progress, they are beginning to hold each other accountable.

[catmanjack]

Had a huge block on a fast break and threw it off the vandy player.

Down the stretch Gabriel came up with that tough rebound between two Vandy players, who tried to rip the ball away. Last season Gabriel gets the ball ripped away, or turns the ball over while trying to get the ball to a guard.

[catmanjack]

Robic is on the bench

[kingcat]

Had a huge block on a fast break and threw it off the vandy player.

Best back to back plays of the game. Gabriel was fantastic yesterday

[catmanjack]

That was one of the better plays I remember in a long time.

[CitizenBBN]

Down the stretch Gabriel came up with that tough rebound between two Vandy players, who tried to rip the ball away. Last season Gabriel gets the ball ripped away, or turns the ball over while trying to get the ball to a guard.

He made a half dozen big plays, momentum plays. Put backs, blocks, rebounds. Good hustle plays.

I was super pleased and impressed with his game yesterday. He may be making the corner between thinking about it and just playing.

[suncat05]

This team still gives up way too many easy baskets on defense, by not playing very good defense. And especially in the zone defense.
These guys still are not figuring this stuff out.
We're okay on the offensive end of the floor. But these guys will just not play anything but half-hearted defense. And I realize that Coach Calipari really does like these guys because we're not hearing any of this "I can't coach you" crap that we heard ad nauseum with the 2013 team and Archie Goodwin, but watching them just let other teams drive the middle for uncontested lay-ups during the game is getting old. Really, really old.
I'm fighting the urge to not watch too much the rest of the season, but I just am not feeling it with this team. They kind of remind me of the group that Tubby had toward the end that had a boatload of talent but just would not pull together like a real team does. JMHO.

[KeithKSR]

Had a huge block on a fast break and threw it off the vandy player.

I thought he was hit on the arm when releasing the shot on the drive down the lane, should have been an and one play. Last year he doesn't make that basket.

[CitizenBBN]

This team still gives up way too many easy baskets on defense, by not playing very good defense. And especially in the zone defense.
These guys still are not figuring this stuff out.
We're okay on the offensive end of the floor. But these guys will just not play anything but half-hearted defense. And I realize that Coach Calipari really does like these guys because we're not hearing any of this "I can't coach you" crap that we heard ad nauseum with the 2013 team and Archie Goodwin, but watching them just let other teams drive the middle for uncontested lay-ups during the game is getting old. Really, really old.
I'm fighting the urge to not watch too much the rest of the season, but I just am not feeling it with this team. They kind of remind me of the group that Tubby had toward the end that had a boatload of talent but just would not pull together like a real team does. JMHO.

You aren't hearing Cal's complaints b/c they are TRYING to get there. They are working hard, and we see them really interacting well out there, showing energy and desire.

They are just ALL basically freshmen, and defense is a lot more about team level movement and what you do relative to those other guys than anything else. It's the thing they'll pick up the slowest in the whole game.

They'll get there. They WANT to get there. They just need time, and there's no way to know if they get there this season or not. Staff is trying, they are trying, and they are all good (players and staff). Just hope it clicks in time.

[Darrell KSR]

Was yesterday an anomaly, or are we back to this version of the Cats?

[UKFlounder]

A fluke until we see it again (and then perhaps again.)

I hope yesterday was the start, but I hoped the WVU game was too

[KeithKSR]

Unlike the WVU game where the Cats came back against a team that had been giving up huge leads and snatching defeat from victory this win came against a very hot Alabama squad that had been playing very well at home and on the road.

The biggest difference in this game and the WVU game is that our guys defended and rebounded much better.

[Darrell KSR]

Unlike the WVU game where the Cats came back against a team that had been giving up huge leads and snatching defeat from victory this win came against a very hot Alabama squad that had been playing very well at home and on the road.

The biggest difference in this game and the WVU game is that our guys defended and rebounded much better.

Plus the game yesterday was more team-contributed, versus Knox scoring 34 and putting the team on his back against WVU.

[Bakert]

Unlike the WVU game where the Cats came back against a team that had been giving up huge leads and snatching defeat from victory this win came against a very hot Alabama squad that had been playing very well at home and on the road.

The biggest difference in this game and the WVU game is that our guys defended and rebounded much better.

I didn't see yesterday's game but reading here and listening to the first half this seems to be the thing that makes me optimistic, too.

I think we also have to factor in that we are moving further away from Quade's back issues which is allowing him to play better and every minute Vanderbilt gets on the court moves him closer to being the guy he would have been from game one had he not been injured. We've yet to see this team be what they *can* be.

I, like others, believe last year's team was improving every minute they played as Fox moved further from his injury and we were *so* close to being the best we could have been. Maybe this team is finally on that path? The question is going to be whether we run out of runway, if I may steal a Calism.