PAUL DAUGHERTY

Doc: Who wants Kentucky after what it did to WVU?

Paul Daugherty
pdaugherty@enquirer.com
Kentucky head coach John Calipari, left, and West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins exchange a few words after Thursday's game in Cleveland.

CLEVELAND – For eight minutes, Kentucky loosed hell on West Virginia, and eight minutes was all it took. By the time Tyler Ulis air-mailed an alley-oop pass to Marcus Lee – who dutifully sky-slammed it home – the poor Mountaineers could only duck. Literally, lest Lee's size-18s land on their chins. It was 18-2 with 12:20 left in the first half. And the game was over.

There are routs, and there is what UK did to UHuggs Thursday night. Bob Huggins' team came into the Sweet 16 talking a fine mess. They would press and bump the Wildcats into mercy pleas. They worked harder, they worked longer, they won without pedigree. The respected Huggins' sweat ethic would make a shocking statement.

Well.

Paraphrasing Mike Tyson, "Everyone has a plan, 'til they get punched in the mouth."

After the first eight minutes, everything was irrelevant – especially West Virginia's upset notions – except UK's sheer dominance. "That's the best defensive team I've ever coached against,'' Huggins said, after 78-39. "There's nobody that's going to beat them when they make shots like that.''

Mountaineers big man and Withrow High grad Devin Williams had a more poetic explanation. "We can't stop something that's destined,'' he said.

After eight minutes – or two or five, if you're feeling less generous – this game went from a competition to an exhibition. Aaron Harrison drained a pair of threes, UK led 10-2 and it was, "Y'all come down to Pikeville and watch the 'Cats scrimmage.''

After eight minutes, Kentucky just piled on. The leads were gruesome: 30-9, 44-18, 50-19, 78-37.

The time of year made it all the more monstrous. This wasn't Oglethorpe on a Tuesday in November. This was a Sweet 16 game, against one of the best defenses in the country.

"They protected the rim, they guarded, they played with a lot of fire,'' said WVU senior guard Juwan Staten. "I watched a lot of film on them. That's the best I've seen them shoot the ball all year.''

UK's defense made the lane a black hole for West Virginia. The Mountaineers shot 19 percent in the first half. Five minutes into the second half, Kentucky had more blocks (seven) than West Virginia had field goals (six).

That led to the obvious (a huge lead) and the not so obvious: If you don't score, you can't press. The Mountaineers formidable defense was derailed by their own horrific offense. Meantime, UK's offense was just fine.

"That's what I was afraid could happen,'' Huggins said. "They're too good offensively to have back-to-back bad days shooting the ball.'' Kentucky was ineffective last weekend against UC, especially from the perimeter. Thursday night, UK shot 61 percent in the first half, and 48 percent for the game.

The Mountaineers discovered the same truths other UK opponents learned before them: Not only are the 'Cats the tallest team in the country, they're the longest. Their collective height and wingspan covers the 94 feet like shellac. "You watch all the film, nobody scores around the basket,'' Huggins said. "You have to finish around them, because you can't finish over them.''

That means making some outside shots to spread the floor. West Virginia wasn't going to be the team to do that, even on a good shooting night. Notre Dame?

The Irish are UK's opponent in Saturday night's Midwest region final. They can score all day. Notre Dame plays a brand of pass-and-shoot pretty basketball with which most quasi-amateur teams have become unfamiliar. The Irish simply buried Wichita State in the second half Thursday. They could spread Kentucky's D, shoot out of their minds, make UK nervous. . .

Or maybe not.

Maybe, with a maximum of three games to play, it's time to abandon all notions that Kentucky can be had. Not that the 'Cats can't be caught, but it's going to take Superman down low and Spiderman roaming the wings. Isn't it?

Maybe this absolutely is a team for all time, and any notions to the contrary will be squashed like West Virginia roadkill between now and a week from Monday. It sure looked that way Thursday night.