The Kentucky Wildcats get their groove back with 86-37 win

For a night anyway, the Kentucky Wildcats basketball team redeemed themselves in the eyes of the national media with a 86-37 beat down win over the Missouri Tigers.  The Wildcats were dominant from almost the opening tip and returned to their nasty defensive ways that had been absent in 2015.  And yes, it was a Missouri Tigers team that was missing Montague Gill-Ceasar, but Missouri had already claimed a win over LSU with him out of the lineup.

I admit that it was interesting to watch the national guys downplay the Kentucky Wildcats win while offering up excuses for Duke, who were blown out on their home court.  That Kentucky /Duke battle will be decided in March or April, but for today, we can all just be glad that the swagger is back.

"“We needed to have a win where we could get our swag back a little bit,” Kentucky head coach John Calipari said. “(Missouri) got what UCLA and Kansas got. That’s what they got. That effort.” UK (16-0, 3-0 SEC) displayed a far higher energy level throughout the game, thanks in part to a change in the starting lineup. Following the Cats’ double-overtime victory at Texas A&M, Calipari said he planned on going back to a 10-man rotation, the only question was whether the 10th man would be Dominique Hawkins or Derek Willis. Based on play in practice, Calipari went with Hawkins. The 6-foot guard from Richmond, Ky., who had not played at all since Dec. 20 and hadn’t played more than 10 minutes in a game since Dec. 7, started on the Blue platoon in place of freshman forward Trey Lyles. With Hawkins, a ball hawking defensive presence who has been lauded for his work against Michigan in last season’s Elite Eight game, the Cats had a guard on each platoon who could apply ball pressure to the opposing guard. “I mean, he belonged in the game,” Coach Cal said. “His energy was great.”"

Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

The key to the return of the Kentucky Wildcats swagger was the defensive intensity they showed. It was one of the things that stood out to John Clay and it turns out that it was kind of  a historical performance against the Tigers.

"1. After Ole Miss shot 49.2 percent and Texas A&M shot 33.3, UK got back to the business of holding bad offensive teams under 30 percent from the floor. John Calipari said he wanted to get back to what the Cats do best, which is defense, and which is what the Cats did Tuesday. Missouri shot just 27.1 percent from the floor. The Tigers missed 17 of their 18 three-point attempts. Jonathan Williams, who came in as the team’s leading scorer at 13.7 points per game, missed all 10 of his first-half shots and ended up one-of-13 for the night. The 6-9 Williams scored three points and grabbed just two rebounds. “I think he tried to do too much,” said Missouri coach Kim Anderson. “I think our length bothered him,” said UK coach John Calipari. Missouri averaged just 0.599 points per possession, second-lowest against Kentucky this season. Montana State averaged 0.400. The 37 points was the fewest by Missouri since a 41-36 loss on Jan. 9, 1950 at Oklahoma. Tuesday was Missouri’s largest loss since a 111-56 loss at Kansas State on Jan. 3, 1998."

Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

Despite the mock outrage of Dick Vitale, last nights game saw the returns of the platoon system. John Calipari utilized the system as masterfully for his Kentucky Wildcats for perhaps the first time since Alex Poythress went down. The big difference was Dominique Hawkins, who got the start. Kyle Tucker tells us more.  Also, check out Coach Cal’s post game comments and the players comments below.

"* Kentucky missed Alex Poythress and platoons. Most figured the Cats were deep and talented enough to absorb the loss of their starting junior forward to a torn ACL last month, and they did promptly beat North Carolina, UCLA and Louisville in a row without him. But their defense had lately begun to suffer and the two-platoon plan was essentially scrapped in his absence. “In a physical game, it’s devastating he’s not here,” Calipari said, “and we have had some physical games.” Although it took time, Kentucky might now be figuring out how to play – and platoon – without Poythress. Calipari on Tuesday started Dominique Hawkins, who said he was so nervous the night before he could hardly sleep, and then put freshman Trey Lyles back on the second unit to give the two groups better balance. That also meant the opposing point guard faced relentless pressure, from Hawkins on the first unit and from Tyler Ulis in the second wave. “He belonged,” Calipari said of Hawkins. “His energy was great. I thought our defensive intensity, because of the platoons, was back where it was (before).” The Cats came in waves again Tuesday – nine players scored at least five points, seven recorded an assist and five grabbed at least five rebounds – which carried away the Tigers with the tide. “I think that was a part of our team concept that we really got away from, so we got back to it tonight,” guard Aaron Harrison said. “We knew we got away from something, and if that’s what it takes to get back to it and start playing defensively like we did, we’ll do whatever.”"