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UK Basketball: Cats look ahead to North Carolina

December 02, 2009|By Keith Taylor/Sun Sports Editor

Kentucky coach John Calipari knows what awaits his Kentucky team in the next seven days and is eager to see how his team matches up with two of the top teams in the nation.

"We are not near those guys, right now. I don't think so," he said. "You know what the great news about playing them is that we are going to find out. We are going to find out. You are talking about a well-coached team with terrific players. They have McDonalds All-Americans and a bunch of them not just one or two. They are young at guard and we are young everywhere. You are talking about two teams who are trying to figure out what is what. I have watched and they play and run hard."

The Wildcats will get their first test of the season Saturday against No. 10 North Carolina at Rupp Arena. The Tar Heels posted a 89-82 win over Michigan State Tuesday night in a rematch of last year's national championship game won by North Carolina. Kentucky then travels to Madison Square Garden to take on 14th-ranked Connecticut a week from today.

Through his team's first seven games, Calipari has seen a dose of the good, bad and the ugly, but the Cats have managed to survive with an unblemished slate.

"Folks, we just have a long way to go," Calipari said following his team's win over UNC-Ashville Monday at Freedom Hall. "We are just an OK team right now. Sometimes we are not bad, not good, but just not bad and sometimes we are just plain bad."

The team's showdown with the Tar Heels will be Kentucky's first encounter against a ranked opponent this year. Kentucky has been up-and-down with a buzzer-beater win over Miami of Ohio and escaping with an overtime victory over Stanford in Cancun.

Kentucky's starting five is comprised of three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior. One of those newcomers - John Wall - was recruited by North Carolina. Wall, who had a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds in the team's last outing, is looking forward to taking on the Tar Heels.

"They have a great team this year," he said. "We need a good team who is going to challenge us and North Carolina is going to do a good job of that. They have good post players, guards and a great coach in Roy Williams. I knew when I saw it on the schedule it would be a game we would need to get prepared for and coach (Calipari) has done a good job of that."

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