Cats' speed, size hard to match

Cats' speed, size hard to match

By Keith Taylor/Sun Sports Editor
February 12, 2010

Alabama coach Anthony Grant did his best to emulate Kentucky in practice before his team’s 66-55 loss to the Wildcats earlier this week at Rupp Arena. No matter how hard Grant tried, his team couldn’t duplicate the Wildcats, whose speed and size poses problems for opponents.

“The thing that is difficult when you try to prepare for Kentucky, is you can’t get a feel for the size and speed,” the first-year Alabama coach said.

Grant’s game plan against the third-ranked Wildcats was stopping Kentucky’s production in transition (speed) and “eliminate their opportunities near the basket and try to compete on the backboard (size).”

As Grant found out, preparing for the Cats and playing them are two different things.

John Wall and Eric Bledsoe are two reasons why Kentucky is hard to stop in transition, while the inside presence of DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson and Daniel Orton give team’s problems underneath the basket.

That’s why the Wildcats are 23-1 on the season and considered one of the major contenders for a national championship. There aren’t many teams that can match up with the Cats’ size and quickness.

Unselfish player

Kentucky coach John Calipai has been finding a way to get Cousins and Orton on the court at the same time. In order to do so, Patterson has sacrificed his time on the floor to accommodate Calipari’s wishes.

Following Kentucky’s win over Alabama, Patterson was fine with a move that had Cousins and Orton on the floor at the same time for most of the second half.

“I do not mind it,” said Patterson, who scored nine points and grabbed three rebounds against the Crimson Tide. “I am fine with it. Coach Calipari has been talking about that all year. He has told me I have to find ways to get the playing time together. So far whenever they have been in the game at the same time they have played well and fed off of each other’s energy. I am perfectly fine with them both getting more minutes, even if they are my minutes.”

Patterson has always been known as a team player, but his willingness to give up his own time on the floor for the benefit of the team is indicative of the kind of person Patterson is both on and off the court.

GameDay chatter

Kentucky will be in the limelight Saturday when ESPN’s “GameDay” unit makes a stop in Lexington.

The school passed out 23,000 tickets to those wishing to attend the event set for 11 a.m. until noon at Rupp Arena.

The tour is similar to a set-up used for the football version of the show, which showcases various campuses across the country.

Members of the crew will be Digger Phelps and Jay Bilas.

Dick Vitale will be calling the Kentucky-Tennessee contest set for 9 p.m. Saturday night.

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