Last night’s game was the most fun I’ve had in such a long time. Not that the rest of my life isn’t always fun, but you’d be hard-pressed to beat the experience of your lifelong favorite team, down on it’s luck, beat the Number 5-ranked team in the nation that also just happens to be a serious conference foe as of late. To do all of that at home? On ESPN prime-time? With over 23,500 fans in attendance? Many of those fans divided in their loyalties between the hometown kid they love and admire and respect and the team who’s blood flows in their veins? Maybe that sounds over-dramatic to you, but not to me. It was excellent.
I was worried all day, that the game would turn out like last year’s. Thankfully, it didn’t!
The game started out a bit rough and I worried about our chances to beat such a talented, athletic team. Tennessee was on a winning streak, Lofton always shoots lights out at Rupp Arena, and we haven’t been playing to our full potential. The hustle and the heart was there for the Kentucky players, though. There were some tough calls in that first half, but the Cats persevered, hustling and continuously working to get the ball to the open man. I was incredibly impressed with Patrick Patterson. When I watch the game on television, I tend to concentrate on the ball, not really noticing a lot of the work that goes on elsewhere on the court. At the game, it’s hard not to notice how hard Patterson has to work the lane and the low post to get position. I was really impressed.
This might be a product of the four hours of sleep, but, to me, the second half was just magical. We fought tooth and nail for a lot of loose balls (like Jasper and Meeks both still recovering from injuries, both diving on a loose ball late in the game when we were up by 8). We stood tough at the foul line to maintain our lead. Ramel Bradley did a great job of handling the pressure of that late-game situation where free throws were key, especially since Lofton started getting hot right there at the end with the three pointers.
I think what made this game so much pure fun, though, was the way the crowd really got into it during the second half. There was some definite sixth man stuff going on. Rupp crowds are normally pretty great, but last night’s was the best of any of the games I’ve attended. During one of the TV timeouts, they turned on the “Boogie Cam” or some other nonsense and the fans just started having fun and it didn’t stop. The crowd was on its feet, cheering for a team that, too often this season, has been harshly criticized. We love to win, but I think we also were loving the heart and the effort that our guys were showing.
It was just, all around, a really FUN game. With three minutes left and a little bit of a lead, I started to think we could pull it off. A big win! I started smiling and didn’t really stop until we were out in the icy traffic, headed home at 12:30 (a mere 3 hours past my bedtime!). I’m glad that Chris Lofton, the hometown (state?) kid, set a record tonight in the gym in which he’s always been so good. I’m more glad, though, that this might be the start of something beautiful for the Wildcats.
(Pictures to come tonight or tomorrow, I’m going on three-four hours of sleep, here, guys!)
