Kentucky Wildcats vs Louisville Cardinals Pre-Game Quotes
By Brian True
#15, Willie Cauley-Stein, Jr., F
On what they did for Christmas …
“Practiced and we had a Christmas for some families at the Lodge, which was really cool. We all put on Santa hats and I got to dress up as Santa. It was cool to help out in the community. It was a good deal.”
On if he got to go home and enjoy Christmas with his family before that …
“Sort of. We got to go home for three days. My family wasn’t there, but most of the guys got to see their families. It was good to get away, step away from the game a little bit, go home and see people you haven’t seen in a while, and do stuff in your own community. Then come back here and go back to work on the grind and still have a chance to do some stuff in the community. It’s off and on, kind of like taking stuff off of us. Doing stuff in the community is really good for us because we can do so much stuff. Just having the name on our jersey is real powerful.”
On what he remembers about playing at Louisville …
“It’s loud. It’s a really fun environment because they hate us. It’s fun to play in those conditions.”
On if he feeds on that …
“It just makes the game that much more passionate. It’s not dull. It’s not quiet. It’s going to be loud the whole time. The energy level is going to be up, your adrenaline is going to be pumping from the gate. Those games are the best to play in.”
On how he has played against other players this year who are projected to play in the NBA someday …
“I don’t really look at it like that. I’m kind of battling against myself. That’s the way I’ve gone into every game. It doesn’t matter who it is. I just go into it with a clear mind and don’t look at the big picture like that. I look at the small things and do the little, small things that I do while I play. Everything else kind of takes care of itself.”
On what things he does to play against himself …
“Moving around. Being a rover. Sprinting the floor every time. Making sure I check out every time. Little stuff like that that could lose you a game or win you the game.”
On if he was able to see Aaron Harrison hit the shot vs. Louisville in the tournament while in the locker room …
“I don’t really remember. I was in the locker room watching for the most part.”
On Louisville fans hating Kentucky …
“They hate us.”
On if he’s surprised how much the fans hate Kentucky …
“I guess that’s just how rivalries are. It goes both ways. Our fans hate them. It’s just part of the game.”
On the freshmen playing in a difficult environment like the KFC Yum! Center …
“Oh yeah, I mean it’s our first true road game, and it’s going to be in full effect. This is going to be the craziest first road game for even us. I can only imagine what it’ll be like for the freshmen. Right when you walk in the gym, dudes are going to be yelling at you, cussing at you. You just have to smile like, ‘This is it. This is game time. This will be fun.’ ”
On if he can remember things directed at him or at his coaches or teammates …
“I don’t know. There’s so much stuff said. It’s all really funny. One time at Arkansas they got ahold of my number somehow. They were texting me and stuff. Then at the game they were like, ‘I’m the person you were texting.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, makes sense now. Oh my gosh. He’s for real. That’s him.’ ”
On how crucial it is to the team that a number of players have experienced a road game so far …
“Half of our team hasn’t experienced it, and those guys get a lot of minutes so it’ll be different.”
On how this game is different from the usual road games …
“Well, we’re playing a top five team in the country. They’re really good and they’re going to come out real physical. The way they play is unorthodox to what everybody else plays. It’s just going to be a different scene, for one, and a different style of play.”
#5, Andrew Harrison, Soph., G
On what they take from the two games last season against Louisville …
“That we know it’s going to be a tough game again. Coach (Calipari) is really putting the emphasis on just fighting. Not literally fighting, but just being tough, boxing out, stuff like that.”
On whether he expects this game to be different …
“I’m sure it’ll be a little different. There will be a little red in there, I think, and it’ll be a tough environment. There will be a lot of noise, not too many of our fans in there so we gotta come to play.”
On whether they look forward to the challenge …
“Oh yeah, we look forward to it. It’s going to be fun. We played them at our house last year and this year we gotta go down there. It’ll be a great experience for some of my teammates.”
On whether the break helped …
“Oh yeah, it helped us a lot. Just to be able to focus on our families and stuff like that, not worry about basketball or about stuff that goes on here. It’s being able to get together with your family and have a nice time.”
On what difference Willie Cauley-Stein will make after missing most of the Sweet 16 game …
“Willie’s playing great this season, the best big man in the country. So you see what he can do on both sides of the ball, defensively and offensively. So it’ll be great to have him and he’ll definitely have his effect on the game.”
On what this game means …
“People make it a lot bigger than it is knowing that it’s just a game in the middle of the season. But at the same time, they’re a great team and we want to win every game we play. We’re going to have to fight.”
On enjoying big-game atmospheres …
“The whole building’s probably going to be against us besides our families and stuff like that so it’ll be a great test for us. We know we’re not going to run away with it or blow them out or anything like that so it’ll be a hard-fought game.”
On what Cal is like this week …
“We’re just doing it as the same, usual practice schedule. Make it a little rougher, but that’s pretty much it.”
On preparing for UL’s physicality …
“We just have to be ready, prepare your body and it’s really a lot of mental things. Don’t look for the referee to bail you out. You have to be strong with the ball and box out and stuff like that.”
On how to figure out how to adjust to officiating in a physical game …
“Really you just have to play. Don’t lose your head, don’t make any obvious fouls, nothing like that. Just use your body, protect the ball and play as hard as you can. That’s all you can do.”
On whether he expects this to be a more physical game …
“Definitely. We know they’re not going to go away early. We know we’re going to have to fight as hard as we can for the full 40 minutes to stay close in their building.”
On what the atmosphere is like …
“That makes it fun. That makes it worth your while. A lot of the young kids haven’t really been in an environment like this or been in a very close game like we’re going to be in on Saturday. It’s a great test for us and we want to see where we’re at.”
On why he thinks the game will be close …
“Because they’re a great team. They’re the most physical team we’ve played so far and it’s going to be tough. It’s going to be tough.”
On how much he hears from Louisville fans on social media …
“I really don’t pay attention to that. Usually on game weeks and stuff like that I just take it off my phone. I don’t really pay attention to it. It doesn’t really matter.”
On how long it takes to appreciate the rivalry for players from outside the state …
“I still don’t understand why it’s so hated because I’m from Texas and A&M and the University of Texas, they’re rivals, but it’s not like this. People genuinely hate each other, so it’s crazy. But it makes the game even more fun.”
On what he remembers about their style of play from last season …
“They play fast. They play physical. The first time we played them at our house, we made some shots and stuff like that. The second time, we just kept fighting back. We trailed for a long part of the game and just kept fighting back.”
On whether their depth will be a factor because of UL’s style …
“Yeah, probably. Because at guard, all our guards can handle the ball and stuff real well, so we have to just stay strong with the pressure and have confidence going against it.”
#00, Marcus Lee, Soph., F
On the atmosphere of UK-UL …
“I mean, just because it’s a big rivalry between Kentucky it’s always a real big game between both teams and both cities. So you always have to be ready for it.”
On whether he has seen UL play …
“I haven’t seen much of them playing because we’re just out here on our own thing and being together.”
On whether the rivalry matters as much in Lexington as in Louisville …
“I hope so. Just both teams, they’re two really competitive teams so I kind of feel that everybody’s kind of feeling the same way.”
On how physical he expects the game to be …
“I think it’s going to be a real physical game. That’s just the way we’ve been turning out to be. As you’ve seen, we’ve become more physical and I think that’s just the way the game’s going to turn.”
On rebounding …
“I know that’s something we’ve been working on individually as bigs and as guards just to rebound. So we’ll see how that turns out.”
On how much the break has helped …
“I think it helped a lot, especially because we were able to go home and have fun with it, relax with our families and show how much we love and respect them and what they’ve done for us.”