Cats come together to rebuild Kentucky legacy

Cats come together to rebuild Kentucky legacy

By Eric Lindsey on March 26, 2010 4:48 PM

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- What is Kentucky basketball?

Kentucky basketball is shooting jump shots on a gravel driveway in the middle of winter. Kentucky basketball is emulating Dan Issel, Jamal Mashburn or one of the other hundreds of greats that have put on the blue and white uniform. Kentucky basketball is born and blossomed, from middle school leagues in the farthest corners of the state to the high school Sweet Sixteen in Lexington.

Kentucky basketball is Final Fours.

Sophomore guard Darius Miller was that kid not too long ago, lofting three-pointers at a rickety goal, doing his best impression of Tony Delk. As a Maysville, Ky., native, Miller grew up, became a hometown hero and carried his team through the Sweet Sixteen in Lexington to a high school state championship.

If there is a guy that knows about the importance of Kentucky basketball to the Commonwealth, it's Miller.

"It means a lot to the people of the state of Kentucky," Miller said. "They don't really have a pro team or anything, so they look up to us and Louisville as the two main schools. For us to have success, I think it means a lot to them and the community that we are in."

Miller knows firsthand that if there is one thing the program is missing, it's another trip to the Final Four. Stuck in the longest Final Four drought in school history, UK sits on the brink of advancing to its first national semifinals since 1998.

If a near flawless regular season didn't do the trick, getting to the Final Four, in a sense, would complete the journey of reestablishing the lifeblood of the Bluegrass State. Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y., UK will try to punch its ticket to April basketball with a win over West Virginia.

"For us to have a chance to do something special, I think it means a lot to them," Miller said of the opportunity at hand.

Admittedly, Miller said the freshmen didn't understand the importance or the significance college basketball had on the state and its people when they signed with the program.

"I really don't think you can understand it until you're a part of it," Miller said. "The fan support for UK is kind of crazy. Sometimes we went to away games and expected to be all the other team and we had a whole bunch of fans there. I don't think anybody can know what it's like until you experience it."

The freshmen have experienced it, shouldered the expectations and pressure, and flourished in arguably the most special season since the 1998 championship team.

People have always cared in the state of Kentucky about basketball, but after a long drought of tournament success, they're back to living around it, in it and with it. They're immersed in Kentucky basketball again.

Asked if he knew what they were doing, freshman guard John Wall said, "We don't want to stop here, but we know we're doing something special."

To get back on the brink of Kentucky basketball meant cohesion that some predicted wasn't possible. A new coach, new attitude and seven new players had to not only mix but jell with six veterans.

"We all had to come together," Wall said. "Our whole team was brand new, including our coaching staff. We all had to learn. The coaches did a great job of making us watch the show 'Remember the Titans' and bringing us together. We just combined together and said we want do something special. You can't do it by yourself, so we've got each other's back."

One guy that probably held the key more than any other to UK's success was junior forward and team leader Patrick Patterson. He had both the ability to push the Cats to the next level or hold them back. When a stockade of highly touted freshmen took over the reins of the team, he could have blown everything up.

"He could have come back and said, 'This is my team and I'm shooting all the balls (because) I decided to come back,' " UK head coach John Calipari said. "Well, guess what he does? He scores less points, gets less rebounds and his stock has gone through the roof."

More than that, Kentucky has become a better team because Patterson led the solidarity movement and didn't let his ego stand in the way of the team.

"Patrick is a great person, Wall said. "He's a great person to have as a teammate. He accepted a role that I had so much hype coming into (college) and all my other fellow freshmen had so much hype coming in. He didn't say, 'This is my team, give me the ball.' He just showed us a guy that could help us get through it. Even though we all had great success this season, he would rather his teammates have success.

"That's the type of person Patrick is."

Two years at UK without so much as a whiff of an NCAA Tournament playing floor was too much to handle for the third-year star, so he evolved.

He accepted.

"I appreciate this more," Patterson said. "The first two years weren't the true years that Kentucky should have as a Kentucky program and basketball team. Now that we have such a great basketball team, such a great thing going for and a successful year, I definitely appreciate everything I've gone through and definitely appreciate the type of run that we're having."

The state appreciates it, too. Thirteen players and one head coach came together for one special season. They certainly don't want it to end before the Final Four and a national championship, but even if it does, at this point, it's been one heck of a run.

"Let's finish it the right way," Patterson said. "Let's win."

The Cats will make Huggins wish he stayed at Kansas State.

BK