Cincinnati plays Kentucky on Saturday afternoon. After a wild overtime game against Purdue that featured one of the greatest tournament comebacks in UC tournament history, the Bearcats go up against the monster. They face the machine. They go against the first power conference team to run through the tournament undefeated since 1976. They play the team that has been called the greatest team of all time. In fact, that’s Kentucky’s goal for the season. UC is taking on a team that has had expectations of perfection all season long. It’s a daunting task.
Every team has an Achilles heel. Anyone could have an off day. That’s why Kentucky’s accomplishment of running the slate 35-0 is so remarkable. The SEC wasn’t the greatest league in the nation, it also wasn’t the worst. Kentucky has had one game, 1 – uno – a single, that’s been decided by single digits since Valentine’s Day. UK has won by 24, 15, 24, 15, 17, 8, 17, 18, 35, 18 and 24. Two of those blowout wins were against Arkansas, a team that got a 5 seed and advanced in the NCAA tournament. This is as dominant a team that we have ever seen. The 2012 Kentucky squad with Anthony Davis lost to Indiana, but also got punked by Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament. That team couldn’t run the table undefeated in the SEC. John Wall and Boogie Cousin’s UK team didn’t run through the SEC undefeated. This Kentucky squad has dominated.
UK’s Achilles heel, what would is it? It’s not their offense, which is one of the top 5 offenses in the nation. It’s not the defense, which is the second best in the land and the best UK has had, statistically, under John Calipari. Kentucky’s weakest point are offensive rebounds. They rank 170 on Ken Pom, giving up 31% on the offensive glass. That’s pretty much the national average. The worst thing Kentucky does is average.
Kentucky’s three point shooting isn’t the best. They hit 34.9% from distance, which is actually a little above average of 34.3%. UK hit over 35% in league play. Tyler Ulis and Devin Booker each hit around 42%, Andrew Harrison is just below 40. And that’s the worst thing they do offensively. Their worst thing is above average.
The task is incredibly daunting. These are the big, bad Kentucky Wildcats. This is the team everyone is picking to win the National Title and win it kind of easily. There can’t be many people outside of Cincinnati’s locker room and fan base that think the Bearcats have a serious shot at winning this game. Hell, most fans probably don’t think Cincinnati has a serious shot at winning this game.
While not on the same level, not a lot of people thought Cincinnati had a great shot against the number 2 team in the nation back in 2012. In the Big East tournament, Cincinnati played Syracuse in Madison Square Garden. It’s not the same as playing Kentucky in Louisville, but it was not a friendly enviroment for the Bearcats. The Bearcats kicked their ass in the first half and were able to hold on for a huge upset in the Big East semifinals. That Syracuse team had lost once the entire season up to that point. That was Syracuse with Fab Melo. The Bearcats beat them.
Cincinnati hasn’t taken on the nation’s #1 squad since the 2004-’05 season when they played Illinois on New Year’s Eve. That game did not go well. To be honest, Saturday’s game will probably not go well. Kentucky has a starting lineup that’s going to get drafted. Marcus Lee would be Cincinnati’s starting center and one of the highest rated recruits in school history. He’s Kentucky’s 9th man. They have so much talented that a top 20 recruit can’t see the floor because there are pros taking up all the minutes. The guards are big and the first one off the bench is one of the fastest players in the nation. This is a roster of great talent. No doubt about it.
The thing that comforts me about the game Saturday is that we know for a fact that our guys won’t quit. They are going to bust ass for 40 minutes. The game might not be the prettiest thing in the world, but dammit if Cincinnati is not there at the end making things interesting. UC didn’t have a lot of business winning against Purdue. They wanted it. They fought for it. UC took an opportunity and seized it in a way the Boilermakers did not. The Bearcats are going to be there until the bitter end. If they are going out, they are going out on their shield. This team has to be killed like Jason to put them away because they won’t die like a human.
Our team, our Bearcats, have a chance to be the ones in 35-1. Given one game, anything can happen. Think about Octavius Ellis and Gary Clark holding their own against Kentucky’s bigs, taking down offensive boards and scoring on putbacks. Think about Troy Caupain spotting up from 3 and knocking a couple down, which allows him to set up Ellis and Clark inside. Farad Cobb is a streaky shooter. He could catch fire like he did against Memphis or SMU. The Bearcats are hanging around. Kevin Johnson comes off the bench to hit a couple of bombs. DeBerry gives big minutes like he did against Purdue, getting UK into some foul trouble. Kentucky can’t get the long shots to fall or truly establish inside. We hit that under 4 timeout with the game tied. After that, anything can happen. Anything.
Cincinnati can do this. The Bearcats can beat Kentucky. Sometimes the monster loses. Sometimes the Little Giants beat the Cowboys. Sometimes the unexpected happens and the mighty favorite goes home, tail firmly planted between legs. NC State beat Houston. Villanova beat Georgetown. The best team doesn’t always win. Miracles happen. Upsets happen. March happens.
We can do this. Beat Kentucky
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
