Like It Is

Wisconsin hasn't seen the likes of Kentucky

Kentucky players, from left, Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson, Aaron Harrison, Tyler Ulis and Andrew Harrison re-enter the game during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Florida, Saturday, March 7, 2015, in Lexington, Ky. Kentucky won 67-50. (AP Photo/James Crisp)
Kentucky players, from left, Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson, Aaron Harrison, Tyler Ulis and Andrew Harrison re-enter the game during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Florida, Saturday, March 7, 2015, in Lexington, Ky. Kentucky won 67-50. (AP Photo/James Crisp)

It is not a hate crime.

It is not about freedom.

It is just basketball, and it is OK to not like the Kentucky Wildcats' one-and-done approach.

Yes, it is legal. The NCAA, with all its wisdom and power, has enabled Kentucky and others to make a mockery out of four-year colleges by giving the NBA the right to say how long a basketball player has to be in college before he can join the league.

The NCAA has empowered the NFL and Major League Baseball with the same decision-making authority, but none of the three are the same.

Kentucky, which has nine McDonald's All-Americans on its roster including the injured Alex Poythress, finally had a couple of freshman phenoms stay for an extra year and one for his third season -- none of whom were ready for the NBA -- and somehow, someway, some of the national media are starting to soften on Coach John Calipari's philosophy and one-and-done players.

There is much discussion with the NBA to change the rule, but for now there is no doubt the Wildcats are the team to beat this weekend.

There is also no doubt Indianapolis will be Lexington North as the invasion of Big Blue will fill every watering hole within 50 miles of Indy, home of the NCAA.

Wildcats fever runs fervently through Kentucky and even trickles into Arkansas.

After escaping Notre Dame 68-66 on Saturday, all of Kentucky's McDonald's All-Americans should be wide awake as they try to make college basketball history with a 39th, and most likely a 40th, victory to become the first team since Indiana in 1976 to go undefeated.

In 1976, players could leave early for the NBA, too, but they had to apply for what was called a hardship.

Notre Dame should have won Saturday but hadn't developed the habit of believing it could win, and in the last three minutes it quit attacking and tried to milk the clock.

Some of that was Kentucky's defense but not all of it.

Now the Wildcats face a different challenge. Instead of a quick, athletic team, they face Wisconsin, a big, disciplined team that got luckier than a lottery winner.

Going into the Badgers' game with Arizona, they had made 262 of 734 three-point attempts. That's 35.7 percent, which isn't bad. But against Arizona they were 12 of 18 -- which included hitting 10 of 12 in the second half -- for 67 percent, and it seemed like every one of the threes came when Arizona was making a move.

Wisconsin will need to be close to that because its normal routine is about to be disrupted unlike anything the Badgers have seen this season.

Kentucky is even bigger than Wisconsin.

The Badgers' shortest starters are two guards at 6-4. Kentucky's shortest starters are 6-6 guards.

Wisconsin rounds out the starters, who log the vast majority of the playing time, with 6-8, 6-9 and 7-0. Kentucky goes 6-10, 6-11 and 7-0.

That means when Wisconsin tries to run its base offense -- inside-out and sometimes behind the three-point arc with Frank Kaminsky touching the ball on almost every possession -- it's going to find the Leaning Towers of Lexington denying Kaminsky the ball with little room to operate or shoot.

The Badgers will have to get more than a combined 16 points out of its guards to win.

Plus, Kentucky plays great defense. The Wildcats have the No. 3 defense in the country, allowing an average of just 53.9 points per game, although Wisconsin is No. 12 while allowing just 57.8.

So expect a slow, grinding game until the Wildcats get serious. The Badgers think they can run, but they are running with the Big Dogs on Saturday, most of whom will be in the NBA next year.

So it's OK to not pull for the likely winners.

Sports on 04/01/2015

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