Kentucky @ Louisville: Post Mortem

…Turnovers cost us a game, IMO, and that has got to change…

…if you hear, please post…

UofL had homecourt,and better players.Cats played well,and Porter getting burned on the last shot is really no shocker.

… the T was for complaining about a non-call on a Patterson basket, according to Matt May at The Cats Pause

But he’s earning my heart more and more every game. This kid exemplifies what UK basketball is all about. Never quitting no matter what, and always gives 100%. What a shot he made there at the end of the game. Hell of a game Michael Porter. Tru give me a glass of that Porter Kool Aid. Go Big Blue, and let’s bring on the SEC!

It’s time to get into SEC play and it should be very exciting (on the plus side).

And I don’t mean on the last play but the majority of the game,

someone that can CONSISTENTLY be counted on to sink the three. The three point shot is crucial for so many reasons! It can close a gap in a game that may be running away. It can get a home crowd fired up or silence a rivals’ fans – both of which are HUGe momentum changers. Momentum alone NEEDS a three point shooter.

…Meeks hit 2 huge free throws with ice in his vains to tie it at 71-71…

Meeks is a stud, and I wish he would start getting his due nationally…

but the team played through them. They shot the ball great, and in the 2nd half got the ball to Patterson and he was a beast. By the time SEC tourney time rolls around, this team will be tough to beat. Porter is playing much better, but having another ball handler on the court with him like Liggins or Galloway will open up the offense even more. I hope that happens throughout SEC play. A lot of positives can be taken from this game.

Not just Pat and Jodie. I love Porter’s maturation into someone who can lead the Team when needed. Liggins and Galloway are not there yet but they are improving. Geez I am very disappointed in MyBloodRunsBlue comments here.

to turn the ball over against good defenses. We have to get ovet that. We rebound well enough to offset those. We will probably average about 15 TO a game by the end of the year. Porter not having an official turnover is large. Meeks plays very hard and he is a scorer. He drives against three defenders on the fast break very well but wants to lunge in the half court offense against the big timber. If Meeks starts kicking that ball out just a few more times with Porter and Perry getting a couple more shots a game than it will open it up more for everybody. Yes I am now convinced that Porter is the sarter at the point. He seems to be feeling more comfortable on his shot. His history says he can shoot some. He protected the ball against a very good defense and that is his job. Liggins will get plenty of minutes a game to improve but he would have to improve quite considerably to start in front of Porter now. I was a BIG critic of Porter but he seems to be getting the picture much better. I personally thought Porter had hit his ceiling and I was wrong.

Ken. This team is going to be very deep next year.

I was very encouraged by the improvement from last year to this year. I can see Liggins and Galloway improving and Miller during SEC play. Porter right now is only in the PG position because he has been put there for lack of maturation by Liggins and Galloway. I loved Porter’s 3’s today and his control of the game overall. What more can one ask from someone who is NOT a natural point? Especially against UL?

players that can get minutes on this years team and at least two that are going to get playing time next year out of the gate.

a beautiful basketball game. He is just a dream to watch. If he stays, watch out. We will be stong either way but with him here next year, we will all be in a frenzy.

We won’t be final four though.

I think we need them both to go higher.

kykat51. Meeks needs to stay another year and work on distributing the ball a little better and that will help him cut down on his turnovers. He can disapear on defense but I think that is caused from being tired. He plays very hard and that is tiring.

well in the SEC barring injury to Patterson, Meeks, Stevenson, and Porter. BG has his rotation and this team looks ready. They lost today only because U of L got hot from 3 and the free throw line. All other stats showed victory.

the turning point for our guys? That guys is the number one question and should be addressed. Now I know we have won alot of games, and easy ones at that but are we at the turning point to turn Kentucky back to promised land. Can we make a strong SEC run? Can we get a four or better seed in the tourney and make a run for the title?

dirty words while he was discussing the play with the refs. The timing was actually fine considering we just scored. A free throw and that’s it and just bad timing for U of L to score 12 staight.

Man, what a game! It sucks to lose, but I;m proud of the Cats effort and I thought they showed a lot of heart today. We still turned the ball over too much, especially early, but I was really pleased with Porter. He had 0 turnovers for the entire game. That’s a big, big improvement. I also thought Harris and Miller did a good job of bringing the ball up at times AND they didn’t make any stupid passes.

Patterson was simply unstoppable out there. I was really impressed with his effort and his play inside. He was the best player on the court. I would be shocked if returns for another season at UK. He’s just too talented and his NBA stock is on the rise.

Meeks was excellent for most of the game, but I was disappointed with his turnovers. He’s got to work hard to improve on that.

I was disappointed with Liggins. I thought he struggled when he was out there….

What did Gillispie get his technical for? Did anyone hear?

I thought Gillispie coached a great game! I was impressed with his decisions, his game plan, his adjustments and he used timeouts at the right times. It was one of the best games I’ve seen him coach at UK.

I was OK with Sosa taking that last shot. It was a long three (30-footer) and he’s a very inconsistent shooter. He’s gonna miss more then he makes. He just got lucky and hit a big time shot. Unfortunately, that happens sometimes.

GBB!!!

oldcat"69 has a new fanpost up. Where have all the “players” gone?

Is it because of the change in basketball since the Rupp era? I really want to hear your comments on that post. I am a lady as you all know, so I cannot really give an intelligent answer to his question.

From Jody Demling:

Not long after the win over Kentucky, Louisville received commitments from two of the top sophomores in the country – Ryan Taylor and Michael Chandler.

Both attend Indianapolis Lawrence North and committed after the game.

who isn’t as lazy as me take away our threes and their threes and tell me who wins this game? I would like to know what the score is.

Has changed since Rupp, Wooden, Dean Smith. .. so says 40yr over there. I cannot relate to that as I was too busy rearing kids. It’s just not the same as far as players being able to do a multitude of things. That is his question.

I’m sitting here reading everyone’s post and not really sure what to make of the anti Micheal Porter sentimate that’s being floated around. In my humble opinion when your starting point guard goes 33 minutes against what should widely be considered the toughest full court pressure we are going to see this year and has ZERO turnovers I’d say he had a pretty good game.

Just a thought but how about focusing instead on Patrick Patterson being a complete and total one man wrecking crew. That guy was simply amazing tonight and it was obvious that the cards had absolutely no answer for him.

 Or if that ‘s not focus worthy, let’s talk about Perry Stevenson really showing that he is one of the best glue guys in the SEC if not the entire country…..need a big block, Perrys your guy…..how about hitting a mid range jumper (or a three) well Perrys gets ya that too….oh, and the guy can pass as well.

Then there’s Meeks, while I admit I tend to get a little frustrated with his forced shots and would like to see him both pass a bit more and cut down on the turnovers, he is nothing short of phenomenal at times. He as much as ANYONE on the team can take over a game on the offensive end. Jody is a great shooter and defenses have to be aware of him at all times.

No, instead of praising UK for playing a top 25 team even up in their house, let’s sit back and bash one kid and just lay the blame for the loss at his feet. Good idea!

Let’s face it, UK lost a heartbreaker. I for one want to puke when we lose to anyone but especially to those guys (oh, and florida, tenn, unc, duke, anyone in the SEC, pac-10, all the bigs (10, 12 and east), or a mid major.) To make my point crystal clear I freaking HATE when we lose but knocking one kid for it when they all gave maximum effort and fell one improbable shot short of sending the game into OT and having all the momentumn just doesn’t fly.

I imagine have drastically changed the game Rupp, Wooden, and earlier Smith. That plus teh growth of AAU/year-round ball and the amount of money now involved in the game. There is bound to be big differences

but am fully encouraged. I had nightmares last night that Louisville put together a patented Pitino game of gun and run and we lost by 24 in a game that was never a game.

Instead, we played pretty good. Hit some shots against some great defense. Did not get flustered by the press. If it had not been for some absolutely silly turnovers and a guy hitting a 25 footer that he should not have even shot, we win.

So, good effort on the road to against a dangerous team that was smarting from recent losses and arguably needed this more than us.

I think that we needed this win too. More so than they did. We have to just hope that Kansas State does well and West Virginia does well in the Big East. Also hope that VMI,Miami and of course the Cards do well. Most of these SEC teams will be fighting for their lives every game. Most everyone has done poorly OOC. Arkansas probably has done the best with that big Okie win. Tennessee better win against the Zags. We need Arkansas to beat Texas on Tuesday as well. Honestly I see a more talented team then in 2003 when we went undefeated in the SEC. I know I will get raked over the coals for that statement so just bring it on. Wait let me rephrase that……..I feel that we have more potential then that team. We have the inside presence in PP that we didn’t have then. Meeks is our Bogans. Then all the rest have great potential. I honestly felt that the announcers were impressed by us today. Yall I haven’t seen that IN A LONG TIME!!!

I admitted I wasn’t a Porter fan in the beginning, but I can see us riding him to an SEC championship. I can’t wait until Liggins and Galloway are ready to step in full time, but that time is not now. Michael Porter is becoming more and more comfortable with the ball in his hands, and he played a hell of a game today. How ‘bout his clutch 3’s? This team is going to finish strong, and I see us making a run in the big dance! Go Big Blue, and I agree w/hoopchi, it was good to see Kellogg giving UK some props today!

Correct me if I am wrong, but should we not be supporting our whole team? I am a Porter supporter as well as the other guys. What good does it serve to compare turn-overs stats for 2 teammates? Or to point out what you think about Porter’s ability? These guys are our team. If you are a UK fan then you are a fan of these guys. As fans, I think we only have the right to complain about effort. In this game, everyone gave their best effort. Porter played great in a very tough game with lots of ball pressure. So did Patterson, Stevenson and Meeks. Everyone played hard. Harris great to see you back! Liggins and Miller, hang in there and keep giving the effort and you will become stars someday. Harrelson, your day is coming so keep your head up! I could not be more proud. I am certain no one wanted the win more than the players. It took UL’s best game of the year and a little luck to win at home. Watch out SEC, the CATS are on the rise! Go CATS, everyone of you!