UK Basketball: I Second That Emotion

If you have paid close attention to everything that has gone on with the Wildcats this season, you will know that they are an eager to please group of young men. They respond well to Coach Calipari’s teachings and they do what he tells them, when he tells them as much as is humanly possible. They love playing basketball, and they especially love playing it at Rupp Arena.

That was what made the trip to Knoxville so much more important after making the Vanderbilt Commodores pay for their win over the Cats a few weeks ago in Nashville. Everyone knew the Cats were not responding well to Calipari on the road. They knew that when the emotion of being in Rupp with 23,000 plus cheering them on kicked in, the Cats were unbeatable. But in Thompson-Boling, with an angry Tennessee Vols crowd breathing down their necks, and no one to lean on but themselves, how would they respond? Well, now we know. And the Cats got their #2 seed in the SEC tournament to show for it.

So, how does this bode for the rest of the season for Kentucky and their young nucleus of talent? I believe well. This was a major hurdle for these Cats as they look into the post season. Should other teams be concerned? Yes. Because this is the next level. The Kentucky fan base travels like no other in the entire would of college basketball. They load up in cars, jets, boats, trains or anything else they can to get to follow the Cats wherever they may go. When the Cats arrive in “Catlanta” come Thursday, they will be in their second home. Much the way that Freedom Hall has served as a wonderful home away from home for the Cats in Louisville, Atlanta is the southern base of operations for the UK program.

And in as much as I love seeing the Cats in Atlanta, they will do as much or more after the fans find out where they will be placed in the NCAA Tourney. And where the fans go, the roar of the crowd goes. And when the Cats hear that roar, they respond in kind. So as the crowd goes, so go the Cats. And as they proved today, they can even manage to do some damage when the crowd is surly and working against them. And since the Cats are perfect when the crowd has their backs, the rest of college basketball should be very concerned. Make no mistake, these Cats have their limitations, but when they get the emotions going, they are unbeaten. And when you allow for the fact that another 20 points this season is all that stands between the Cats sweeping the SEC, and having an almost completely unblemished record, it stands to reason that they are going to be hard to handle when the ball goes into the air and the NCAA turns on the bright lights. So bring on the emotions, and crank up the lights, and fire up the cameras, because the show is about to start. And the Cats love it when it’s showtime.

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