KENTUCKY 97, TRANSYLVANIA 53
Nov. 2, 2011
Rupp Arena; Lexington, Ky.
SUMMARY
It took a while for Kentucky to run away and hide, but the Cats finally pulled ahead of Transylvania and won its exhibition opener 97-53 against nearby Division III foe Transylvania.
Terrence Jones led the Cats with 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the floor. He struggled in the first half but hit six of his seven second-half shots. Doron Lamb and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist each finished with 19 points.
Anthony Davis had six points on 2-of-7 shooting from the field, but his defense was more impressive. The 6-foot-10 freshman, who appeared to tower over the Pioneers - their tallest player of significant minutes was 6-foot-5 - finished with eight blocks.
CALIPARI TALK
on Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
“You watched the game, he was the difference in what happened. He did what I knew he would do. I would say looking at it today he’s a starter. I think he solidified one spot with great intensity and fire, which is what we’re looking for.”
OPPOSING VIEW
“I coached at the Division I level for 10 years. In ’92 we played the national champion, Duke. In ’93 when I was at South Carolina we got beat by the national champion, North Carolina. In ’95 we got beat by the national champion, UCLA. I would love this year to have been beaten by a national champion.” – Transylvania coach Brian Lane
FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
“It was just the first game so we have a lot of improvement to do and we can still get better. We didn’t even run all of our sets or play Dribble Drive because they were sagging so much with the size disadvantage they had. Different teams will have different strategies. It was just different compared to practice.” – UK forward Terrence Jones
GAME BALL
Terrence Jones had the better statistical line, Anthony Davis blocked more shots and Marquis Teague dished out more assists but there was no mistaking the fact Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has his hands all over Kentucky’s victory. The freshman forward had a quiet start to the night but earned the start over Darius Miller in the second half and never looked back, finishing with 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 25 minutes. The tenacity and verve that Kidd-Gilchrist displayed keyed the Cats’ defense in the second half as a 14-point lead ballooned to 29 by the 8:00 mark of the second half. The performance left UK coach John Calipari declaring Kidd-Gilchrist a starter in the final exhibition game.
TURNING POINT
Raise your hand if you’ve seen this movie before: An overmatched opponent comes into Rupp Arena and lights the gym on fire in the early moments of the game, stunning the crowd and leaving the Cats shaking their collective heads. Transylvania forced Calipari to call a timeout just 108 seconds into the game and snatched an 11-4 lead thanks to a trio of three-pointers, before the Cats ripped off a 13-0 run. The score was 22-21 in Kentucky’s favor when the Cats finally clamped down on defense and didn’t allow a field goal over the final 9:27 of the first half, pushing out to a 14-point halftime edge.
DOING THEIR JOB
Exhibition games are often little more than a glorified practice for potential Final Four teams like Kentucky, but a lot of times they don’t always get out of the game what they would like. Transylvania coach Brian Lane was under no illusion of what his squad was in Rupp Arena to do, a nice bit of honesty about the situation: ‘There was not an intent at any time to come in and think we were going to win the game,” Lane said. “It was what I wanted out of this game, for them to be able to look at the tape and say, ‘OK, this is how we get better.’”
UNSUNG HERO
The postgame talk focused on Kidd-Gilchrist’s sterling debut and Davis’ ability to send orange souvenirs into the crowd about every other trip down the floor but it bears mentioning just how well Teague played in his collegiate debut. The freshman point guard – a position that is easily the most demanding in Calipari’s Dribble Drive system – played under control and with impressive maturity, ultimately allowing him to finish with 14 points and nine assists against just two turnovers.
KEY NUMBER
60 – It was no secret Kentucky had an overwhelming size advantage on Transylvania, which started no one over 6-foot-4, but early on it appeared the Cats forgot the scouting report and were intent on hoisting jumpers. Eventually the Cats remembered how big they were and finished the game with a predictable 60-12 edge in points in the paint. The Cats also out rebounded the Pioneers 45-27.
NO POOLE PARTY
Stacey Poole did nothing to quell the talk of his impending transfer from Kentucky after not dressing or sitting on the bench for the game. His status with the program remains unclear. Poole tweeted earlier Wednesday that he appreciated the support from fans but “it was his decision” about his future. Calipari did not shed any light on Poole’s situation afterward: “We don't have any roster changes so there is nothing to talk about right now,” Calipari said.
FINAL THOUGHT
It doesn’t take Pat Riley to see just how breathtakingly athletic Kentucky’s roster is this season. Through the mistakes, the defensive lapses, offensive errors and whatever else, the one thing that continued to shine through all evening was the agility, speed and versatility Calipari’s latest squad possesses. Don’t get caught up in trying to take too much else away from the exhibition opener, just sit back and imagine the possibilities when this group gets rolling.
NEXT
Kentucky will play its second and final exhibition game against Morehouse on Monday, Nov. 7 in Rupp Arena at 7 p.m.
