Championship Moments: Cats kick it into high gear for tournament

As I continue my series remembering UK's 2012 Championship Moments at CoachCal.com, I take a look at the Cats' NCAA tournament run beginning with Kentucky's first two games of the Big Dance. Here's an excerpt:

In Kentucky's third-round game against a tough Iowa State team, led by the gifted Royce White, it was the freshman point guard Marquis Teague and Darius Miller who stood and delivered their championship moment in UK's 87-71 third-round victory.

Teague, who scored a career-high 24 points (seven more points than his previous high of 17), and played a nearly flawless floor game, recording seven assists to only two turnovers, was able to get to the rim with relative ease, something he took advantage of all game long.

"I brought him here because when I watched him play, I absolutely loved his game," Calipari said after Teague's performance. "But today, they really left him (open). I told him, 'look, you've got to keep people honest.' "

Teague, who had a hand in 43 of UK's 87 points (24 points, plus 19 points scored off his seven assists), was a picture of versatility when it came to how he ran the Wildcat offense.

"I didn't really care about scoring points," Teague said after the contest. "I just wanted to get my teammates involved and do and do whatever I needed to do to help my team win."

For the full story, go here and Go Cats!