ESPN Men's Basketball

WASHINGTON D.C. -- The Kentucky contingent went through two practice runs on the dais to make sure they got it just right. No one, after all, wants to mess up the procession into the East Room and the presentation of a jersey, ring and ball to President Barack Obama.

There was a scattering of people in the room at first, mostly security personnel and White House staffers when Kentucky first entered. But as soon as the doors opened to allow invited guests in, Kentucky fans painted the East Room blue.

They weren’t all dressed in UK colors, but they sure were boisterous -- even starting a few C-A-T-S chants.

Teams arriving for the now-annual celebrations that started under the late President Reagan are always celebratory, but not usually as euphoric as Friday.

After witnessing three of the past four NCAA men’s basketball champs to come to the White House, I can tell you that no fan base has rivaled Kentucky's.

“I didn’t know it was going to be like that,’’ UK senior Darius Miller said. “It filled up fast. It was empty and then in five seconds it was full.’’

This is a program that can easily sell out a mundane practice. So no one should be surprised that the Big Blue Nation showed up.

But there was more to Friday then the annual meet-and-greet with the President. This was the last time the Kentucky players were together as one team.

Five of them declared early for the NBA draft, and that group -- as well as Miller -- will likely get a chance to be together at the Chicago pre-draft camp next month and again at the NBA draft in June. But all of them together? This was it.

And what better way to go out than a ribbing from the Commander-in-Chief.

President Obama had picked, like many of us, Kentucky in the final as he filled out his bracket for ESPN for the fourth straight year. He originally wanted to go with the Wildcats to win it all, but changed his mind and chose North Carolina in the end.

“I had them in the championship game," he said Friday. "But in the end, I thought, they got all these freshmen. These guys are too young. And keep in mind, at this time last year, three of the Wildcats’ five starters were still in high school. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist couldn’t even vote yet.

“But let’s face it, sometimes talent trumps experience. And sometimes, a bunch of young players, even if they’re used to being big fishes in their ponds, even if they’ve never played together before, they can buy into a system, they understand the concept of team, and they do something special right away. And that’s exactly what happened in Kentucky.”

As soon as they got to the White House, the Wildcats did what they had throughout the season.

They stayed together as a pack one last time, taking pictures with their iPhones, enjoying a fast-paced tour as quick as the run Kentucky put on Baylor in the Elite Eight.

National player of the year and projected No. 1 pick Anthony Davis as well as Doron Lamb, Marquis Teague, Terrence Jones, Miller and Kidd-Gilchrist were dressed in fine-tailored suits, not Kentucky uniforms. But they were a team just the same.

They loved cruising through the White House movie theater, posed in front of a bust of Abraham Lincoln, and just enjoyed each other’s company.

“I may never coach another group like this,’’ Kentucky coach John Calipari said. “I’ve never seen a group come together for each other since I’ve been coaching.’’

Lamb said that this team truly liked being with each other on and off the court. This group was selfless from the first game to the final against Kansas in New Orleans.

Miller couldn’t get over how wild his UK career has been. He was recruited by Billy Gillispie, grew and fostered under Calipari, won a title and met two presidents. Former President Bill Clinton was in Lexington recently.

“This is just another great memory to add to the collection,’’ Miller said.

Kentucky had a traveling party of 51 (would you expect anything smaller?). And while the Wildcats played in front of 70,000-plus at the Superdome, this rivaled the anxiety of that night.

The players said they were a bit more nervous walking out on the Dome court, but there were anxious moments in meeting Obama and being on this smaller, albeit historic stage.

Calipari, who spoke after the President, was as anxious as anyone.

“I was just so nervous,’’ Calipari said. “I didn’t breath until I stepped away from the podium. I’ve given speeches to 15,000 and I was more nervous doing this.’’

But now that the celebration of the title is over, the Wildcats will go their separate ways. The semester is finished. The early-entrants will select agents and get ready for the NBA draft. Miller and Eloy Vargas, the two seniors, will prepare for their post-college life, which will include professional basketball.

Freshman Kyle Wiltjer is the lone productive returenee. He said it will be odd to lose all of these players, but he’s up for the challenge and said he can’t wait to play with the new players.

Kentucky brought in another strong class, a new crop, this time led by another star in the middle named Nerlens Noel.

But for Friday, for one last time in front of a strong, loud and proud contingent from Big Blue Nation, the 2012 champs were together.

“We had such a special group of guys and had such a successful year,’’ Jones said. “For this to be the last thing is such a great way to finish.’’

One by one they said thank you, making like Oscar or Emmy winners during the award season -- acknowledging the directors (their parents), the producers (their coaches), the co-stars (their teammates) and ticket buyers (the fans) -- before walking off the dais to meet for quick interviews with the reporters assembled in Lexington.

And then, poof! The better part of the 2012 Kentucky national championship roster and 92.3 percent of that championship-winning offense all but disappeared from college basketball.

Commence handwringing in 5 … 4 … 3 …

And then stop. Just stop it.

Stop complaining that John Calipari is a used car salesman and his players are mercenaries.

You can fret over the bastardization of academics or denounce the death of college ideals until you are as purple as Frank Martin during a 15-point loss.

It won’t change a thing. Until the NBA decides that, like skilled carpenters or master craftsmen, basketball players don’t necessarily need to go to college, we will live in the age of the flyby.

John Calipari is a businessman running a multimillion-dollar business, not a coach with a whistle in charge of a CYO team. His players are junior entrepreneurs, interning for a year before cashing in on the big gig, not plucky kids hoping to get a chance.

“I expect six first-round picks [from the same school] for the first time in the history of the world,’’ Calipari told Rivals.com recently.

It was yet another pitch-perfect hyperbolic statement from the game’s P.T. Barnum. (Yes, this could very well be a first in NBA draft history, but it’s not likely to make world almanacs in Kazakhstan.)

But the ringmaster does have a point: The history of our world, the basketball world, is being rewritten before our eyes. This isn’t 1972. Bill Walton isn’t slinging hook shots in tube socks and short shorts.

This is 2012 and this is the way the game is played, literally and figuratively.

Am I a fan? Absolutely not. I prefer my college athletes have more staying power than a fraternity party hook up. I prefer that the term upperclassmen refer to someone with a little more seniority than a sophomore.

I believe college is a privilege, not a layover. And I believe learning is a gift, not an inconvenience.

I like continuity. I like when fans can invest in a person and not just a player because they actually have time to get to know the person before the player moves on.

But I’m also a realist and I realize that conventions don’t last. The construct of the rules dictate how the game is played, and one overriding rule from 1972 still applies: He who has the best players wins.

Kentucky will continue to win because Calipari will continue to get the best players.

Two years ago, traditionalists gasped when the coach blasphemed that the NBA draft day was the greatest in Kentucky basketball history. You know what? Barnum was right about that, too. The NBA draft is now Kentucky’s biggest recruiting tool, where future championships are born. It’s like a home visit for Calipari.

So Mom and Dad. You want your boy to succeed in his field of choice, the field being basketball? Well, tune in on June 28 and watch. UK is to basketball as MIT is to engineering.

Yes, this team was unique because a bunch of could-be prima donnas played like a JV team, sharing the ball and glory without complaint. But if it can happen once, it can happen twice or three times or however many times you can count. Don’t think Calipari won’t point to the banner he’ll hang at the start of next season whenever a new player wants to go diva.

Perhaps this is not a dynasty in the making in the traditional sense, but make no mistake, it is a 21st-century version. We can no longer argue that you can’t win with a bunch of freshmen, because Kentucky just did. We can no longer argue that constantly turning over the roster will lead to disaster, because in three years, the Wildcats went from Elite Eight to Final Four to national champion.

We can no longer assume that this team, this program, will be a flash in the pan. Not when John Wall begets Brandon Knight and Anthony Davis begets Nerlens Noel.

Calipari also said that his is a players-first program. Well there he was wrong. It’s a players-first world and we’re all just happy to orbit it. Just ask Stan Van Gundy.

It may not be palatable to the traditionalists among us. It may, frankly, be downright disheartening.

But it’s reality.

So long as the rules are written to allow for a college drive-thru service, this is the way the world will work.

On April 11, Noel spun around in a chair to reveal a shaved UK insignia in the back of his head, thereby signifying his intent to attend Kentucky.

In April 2013, there’s a good chance Noel will sit at the same dais Davis, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Marquis Teague just used to announce he’s going to the NBA.

And once again, folks will fret and scream and denounce.

And in between, Kentucky will win a lot of games, maybe even the big one again.

Because this is college basketball 2012.

It’s not "The Waltons."

Kentucky is Kentucky, and UCLA is back.

Those are the two immediate takeaways from Wednesday night’s big college hoops recruiting announcements, when the No. 1 and No. 2 players in the Class of 2012 -- center Nerlens Noel and small forward Shabazz Muhammad -- announced their decisions within an hour of each other live on ESPNU.

The final result? Muhammad chose UCLA. Noel chose Kentucky. Life in Westwood immediately got brighter. Life in Lexington remained almost unfairly good. And despite all the anticipation and hype, in the end, neither of these decisions was particularly surprising.

UCLA coach Ben Howland was long the favorite to land Muhammad. The Las Vegas native never revealed his intentions, but the recruiting rumor mill -- I’m hearing UCLA, it’s definitely UCLA, that sort of thing -- always seemed to peg Muhammad as a future Bruin. Even after Howland endured the most embarrassing moment of his career this spring, thanks to Sports Illustrated writer George Dohrmann’s evisceration, Muhammad’s family didn’t discount the program or wave it off. Indeed, the Bruins’ recent downward spiral was apparently an attraction.

“Knowing how bad they were the last two years, it’s a challenge to get them back up to the top,” Muhammad said.

That’s good news for UCLA, because he is right: The Bruins and their head coach are indeed desperately in need of a massive, wholesale turnaround in production and perception in the years to come. After disappointing, disjointed seasons in two of the past three years, fans openly revolted against the program in 2012.

Now, with Muhammad and fellow top-five recruit Kyle Anderson on board, as well as the Wear twins and still-promising, still-frustrating forward Joshua Smith, the Bruins have a legitimate chance to make a run at the Pac–12 title in 2012–13. In the meantime, athletics director Dan Guerrero will unveil a newly renovated Pauley Pavilion, hoping this influx of talent can revitalize a fan base that tuned its beloved Bruins out for much of the past three seasons.

“Hopefully we can sell out Pauley Pavilion,” Muhammad said.

The kid gets it. The stink of recent Westwood frustration won’t dissipate overnight. But with his talents on board, Howland can still change his program’s dire narrative while he still has time.

John Calipari has no such problem. You saw the Wildcats in March: Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Marquis Teague were each the top players at their respective positions in the Class of 2011, and as they mixed and congealed with sophomores Doron Lamb and Terrence Jones (and senior Darius Miller), Calipari morphed them into one of the most dominant national title teams of the past 20 years -- and easily the most dominant in the one-and-done era.

That was a special talent haul, one that can’t easily be duplicated. But Calipari remains on a roll: He landed the No. 1 class in the country in 2011, the No. 1 class in the country in 2010, and the No. 1 class in the country in 2009, when John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and Eric Bledsoe paved the way.

At this point, you can write it in ink each and every spring: Calipari will have the No. 1 recruiting class in the country, or something very close to it. As such, it wasn’t even remotely surprising to see the top player in the country, Noel, commit to the Wildcats on Wednesday night. By the time Noel revealed his choice on the ESPNU set -- with the added flair of the UK logo shaved into the back of his now-famous high-top fade -- much of the social media world and those who follow such things were convinced the choice was Georgetown.

Silly people. Did you really think Coach Cal was going to go 0-for-2 tonight? Come on now.

Calipari was already off to a great start on the recruiting trail this year -- top–20 players Archie Goodwin and Alex Poythress signed on last fall -- but he was still missing the elite, top-five talent that has become a regular fixture in his classes since his days at Memphis. The search is over.

Noel’s commitment is not only crucial in a vacuum -- he is a massive and athletic center who specializes in dominant interior shot-blocking -- but it rounds out UK’s on-court balance, too. Noel will anchor the post. Goodwin and Poythress will star on the wings. Sophomore forward Kyle Wiltjer, a top–20 recruit who barely cracked the rotation in 2012 (as good an indication of the Wildcats’ talent as any), will take on a much larger role. And NC State transfer Ryan Harrow, the No. 10-ranked point guard in the Class of 2010 who left the Wolfpack after Sidney Lowe’s firing last season, will take over the all-important on-ball role.

Noel’s proclivity for swats will immediately invite comparison to the departing Davis, and Noel may well be a better shot-blocker than the Unibrowed One. But beyond that, the comparisons may be a little too eager. Davis was a physical freak who gained his physicality late in his high school career, when he sprouted 8 inches but somehow maintained his guard skills and agility. He was transcendent on both ends of the court, almost from Day 1.

By contrast, Noel is a lifelong big man, one whose offensive game remains very raw. (Though he shares at least this much with Davis: In a world full of 6-foot–10 prospects determined to play small forward, Noel is more than content to play as close to the rim as possible.) Likewise, for as promising as Poythress and Goodwin are, it’s clear there is no Kidd-Gilchrist -- whose combination of NBA talent and selflessness set the tone for UK’s special 2012 season -- to be found here, at least as far as we can tell right now.

Not that Kentucky fans will complain. Just a week after the program’s eighth national title, UK fans just watched live as the top recruit in the country committed to Big Blue Nation. A repeat of 2012’s dominance is too much to ask. But with another batch of talent arriving in Lexington this summer, Calipari’s unique ability to transform disparate freshmen into coherent, disciplined teams and a wide-open 2012–13 landscape, a repeat national title run is hardly out of the question.

At least one thing is clear: With Noel on board, the state of Big Blue Nation remains strong. And very, very talented.

It’s true: Life is good in Lexington.

In fact, it only seems to get better.

NEW ORLEANS -- It’s over.

The 2011-12 college basketball season wrapped up with a fascinating Final Four and national title game. Now, it’s time for some hardware.

Here’s my version of the 2012 All-Tourney team:

First Team

Anthony Davis (Kentucky): The Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player left his mark on college basketball by leading the Wildcats to the national title. He finished with 29 blocks in the 2012 NCAA tournament, No. 2 all time. Against Kansas, he became the first player to record 6 points, 16 rebounds, 6 blocks, 5 assists and 3 steals during an NCAA tournament game.

Jeff Withey (Kansas): The 7-footer blossomed in the NCAA tournament and really clogged the lane for the Jayhawks' defense. He was a big reason Davis finished 1-for-10 in the national championship game. Withey established a record for blocks in a tournament with 31 in this year’s installment.

Thomas Robinson (Kansas): The Wooden Award finalist didn’t go home with a ring. But he was crucial in his team’s run to the Final Four. The junior averaged 16.6 ppg and 12.5 rpg during this year’s tournament.

Doron Lamb (Kentucky): The sophomore’s 22-point performance (a game high) in the national title game was the culmination of an impressive run for the young star. He averaged 16.5 ppg during the NCAAs. Without Lamb, the Wildcats may have fallen short against the Jayhawks on Monday night.

Bradley Beal (Florida): The freshman fueled Florida’s run to the Elite Eight with a series of high-octane efforts. He had 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals during Florida’s 68-58 win over Marquette in the Sweet 16. He followed that with 14 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists in his squad’s Elite Eight loss to Louisville.

Second Team

Tyler Zeller (North Carolina): The ACC Player of the Year helped the Tar Heels stay alive when Kendall Marshall suffered a serious wrist injury that kept him out of an overtime win against Ohio in the Sweet 16 and a loss to Kansas in the Elite Eight. He had 20 points and 22 rebounds against Ohio and he finished with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks against the Jayhawks.

Draymond Green (Michigan State): The versatile forward started the tournament with a triple-double against LIU-Brooklyn. He had 16 points and 13 rebounds in a win over Saint Louis in the third round. Green also played some point guard in that game. The Spartans scored only 44 points in a Sweet 16 loss to Louisville, but Green ended his career with 13 points and 16 rebounds.

Deshaun Thomas (Ohio State): His team’s season ended when Kansas launched a furious comeback in their Final Four matchup Saturday. Prior to his nine-point effort that night, however, Thomas had scored 31, 18, 24 and 14 points, respectively, in Ohio State’s four previous NCAA tournament games. If he comes back for another year, the Buckeyes will be a top-5 preseason squad.

D.J. Cooper (Ohio): Cooper scored 21 points during his team’s upset win over Michigan in the second round. He had 19 against South Florida. And he finished with 10 points and six assists during an overtime loss to North Carolina. Now, his former head coach has a new job as a result of his performances in the NCAA tournament. He should send Cooper a check. Once he’s finished with school, of course.

Dion Waiters (Syracuse): He had 18 points in his team’s 75-59 win against Kansas State in the third round. And in a tight Sweet 16 matchup with Wisconsin, he went 5-for-11 and scored 13 points. The athletic guard is going to the NBA, but he put together a solid string of performances on his way out.

Other noteworthy performances:

Norfolk State’s Kyle O’Quinn put his program on the national map with 26 points, 14 rebounds and 2 blocks during the biggest upset of the NCAA tournament, Norfolk State’s 86-84 victory over No. 2 seed Missouri in the second round.

Royce White used the NCAA tournament as an audition for NBA execs. He had 15 points and 13 rebounds against Connecticut in the second round. And he scored 23 points and grabbed nine boards in Iowa State’s loss to Kentucky in the third round.

Aaron Craft is a thief. The sophomore had 16 steals for Ohio State throughout the NCAA tournament and solidified his slot as one of America’s greatest on-the-ball defenders.

Lehigh’s C.J. McCollum scored 30 points in his team’s 75-70 victory over No. 2 seed Duke in the second round.

Cincinnati’s Sean Kilpatrick, a 6-4 guard, scored just eight points in his team’s second-round win over Texas. But when the lights came on in the later rounds, Kilpatrick showed off his star power. He had 18 points against Florida State in the third round. And he finished with 15 against Ohio State in the Sweet 16.

NEW ORLEANS -- How did the Kentucky Wildcats just win the 2012 national title?

"We were the best team this season," coach John Calipari said.

"They were playing with pros," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "That didn't hurt, either."

Simple enough, right? Assemble the best freshman class in the country -- including a star center, Anthony Davis, that changes the game in ways both literal and metaphysical. Get Terrence Jones to decide to eschew a pre-lockout NBA draft and come back for his sophomore season. Keep senior Darius Miller around for leadership and savvy. A few months later, win the national title.

On Monday night, Kentucky made that process look remarkably easy in its 67-59 win over Kansas. It is this team's unique genius that the most difficult accomplishment in college basketball, and one of the most difficult in sports -- win six do-or-die games in a row -- can, once accomplished, seem downright rote.

Kentucky was the best team. It had the best players. Of course it won. Duh.

But that explanation is not sufficient. There's more to it than simply talent.

How did the Wildcats storm the NCAA tournament with a brand of dominance not seen since the 2009 North Carolina Tar Heels, and rarely seen before? How did they end that run by snuffing out an experienced, tough-as-nails Kansas squad, one led by a top-five pick and one of the best coaches in the country? How did Calipari's team go from "wow, these guys look talented" to "NCAA champions" in five short months? Here's how:

Dominant interior defense.

This is no surprise, of course: All season long, the college basketball world has marveled at Davis' shot-blocking and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist's defensive will, and the way this team has made the typically simple act of scoring in the paint a feat akin to a 30-foot 3-point shot. Kentucky opponents ranked last in the country in two-point field goal percentage and overall effective field goal percentage this season.

This ability was rarely more obvious than on Monday night. Davis and Co. held Kansas to 17-of-51 (just 33.3 percent) inside the arc. Robinson and frontcourt mate Jeff Withey combined to go 8-of-25 from the field, all of which were two-point attempts. Davis' six blocks (and Jones' two) had much to do with this, of course.

But it goes far beyond sheer blocks. On Monday night, it was attributable to Davis' sheer presence -- the way he obviously and subtly affects his opponents' psyche with the knowledge that he's always around, somewhere close, waiting to send their shot the other way.

It stemmed from Davis' freakish mix of length, athleticism and agility; we've never seen a player so good at challenging more than one shot on any given possession, and few who can leave their man to contest a penetrating guard or a post move, but still recover quickly enough to grab rebounds and stop second chances. Davis was always hovering near Robinson Monday night, always ready to leap over and challenge the opposite post, while still able to grab 16 rebounds, 12 of them defensive.

And Jones was great in his own right Monday night -- and all season -- too. Charged with battling Robinson for post position, he rarely allowed KU's star to catch the ball cleanly near the rim. Instead, as Kansas swung the ball around the perimeter, Jones shifted with Robinson, moving his body to either side to prevent the post entry and disallow Robinson from sealing him over the top.

It was a clinical post defense performance. Robinson felt its effects -- and Davis' presence, and the sheer combined strength and speed Kentucky has used to dominate opponents around the rim all season -- in a Nov. 15 loss in Madison Square Garden. And he felt it again in the national championship game.

Incredibly balanced, efficient offense.

For all the talk of this defense (and it has dominated the Kentucky discussion for much of the year), the Wildcats' best trait for most of the 2012 season -- particularly during its undefeated SEC regular-season blitzkrieg -- was its offense. Hello, Monday's first half; goodbye, Kansas Jayhawks.

In Monday's first half, Kentucky scored 41 points on 16-of-30 shooting, including 3-of-7 from beyond the arc. It bumrushed the Jayhawks in a variety of ways, both in slower half-court sets and fast-break opportunities. Doron Lamb took the lead in the first half as he did throughout the game, scoring 22 points on 7-for-12 from the field, 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and 5-of-6 from the free throw line. When Kansas' defense shaped up in the second half and held Kentucky to just 26 points, Lamb's 10, including two key back-to-back killer 3s to stave off an even earlier Jayhawks push, were absolutely crucial.

But the Wildcats were balanced in their early breakout, too: Jones had six points, Kidd-Gilchrist 11, Teague nine, Miller three and Davis zero. (You don't need to score when you dominate every other facet of the game like Davis did.)

All of which was emblematic of the Wildcats' offensive style this season. As Calipari was fond of touting, no UK player averaged more than 11 shots per game this season. Their usage rates, per KenPom.com, were as follows (in order of highest to lowest):

Terrence Jones: 22.6 percent
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist: 21.7 percent
Marquis Teague: 21.1 percent
Anthony Davis: 19.1 percent
Darius Miller: 18.9 percent
Doron Lamb: 18.1 percent

That is the utter definition of balance, and it's precisely what made this team so good: There was no one option opposing teams could lock in on and stop at all costs, no "if they don't do this, they'll lose" quality available to scouts and assistant coaches. If you stop Davis -- if he shoots 1-for-10 -- well, big whoop. You still had to guard Teague on ball screens, Lamb on off-ball screens (on curls and fades and every manner of creative methods to get easy open shots), Jones in the low block and on the offensive glass, Kidd-Gilchrist in penetration and on the fast break, Miller in the mid-range. There was no way you could do all of it all the time, for a full 40 minutes.

If the Wildcats played well, they would beat you. Now that I think about it, that part really is sort of simple.

The unique nature of this once-in-a-generation group.

Hard-nosed interior defense. Offensive balance between six remarkable, multifaceted talents. These are the two primary qualities the Wildcats brought to the floor for nearly all of 2011-12, and they're why Big Blue Nation got to celebrate the program's eighth national title Monday night. (And Tuesday morning. And probably Tuesday night. And Wednesday. And Thursday ...)

Getting to this point -- to get to the national title, to create this remarkable team -- wasn't merely a matter of recruiting this talent and letting it go do their thing. And voila! National title! That's not how it works. Calipari had to do his finest coaching job of all-time, too. He had to meld these players together into that all-hands-on-deck offensive attack, had to get them to defend every possession like it was their last, and he had to embark on a near-constant process of adjustment and acclimatization.

There are plenty of examples of this in the 2011-12 season, but perhaps the most noteworthy is how much Calipari changed the pace of the Wildcats' attack in SEC play. Kentucky averaged 70.7 possessions per game in nonconference play. This was vintage Cal, vintage Kentucky: Uptempo, utilizing the dribble-drive motion offense, overwhelming opponents with sheer talent until they finally were forced to relent.

But Teague struggled. He was prone to turnovers and forced shots; he was trying to do too much, to be the all-everything point guard he was in high school, when he was the No. 1-ranked player at his position in his recruiting class. So Calipari slowed the Wildcats down. In 16 SEC games, they averaged just 62.6 possessions. The slower pace made the game easier for Teague. He rushed less, controlled more. As a result, his assist-to-turnover ratio skyrocketed. Meanwhile, Kentucky's best defensive trait -- that inside rim-protecting defense -- was allowed to establish itself, as opponents found themselves stuck playing UK in a halfcourt game.

And so it was that the Wildcats were able to enter the tournament as a team capable of playing fast or slow, on the break or in the fray, with a freshman point guard that calmly and coolly worked the Wildcats away from two sets of upset-minded, turnover-forcing guard corps at Louisville and Kansas. Those teams made their late runs. The tension built. But Teague, a world away from November and December, was ready.

These Wildcats won't be easily replicated. There are few players in the world like Davis, who grew to become the nation's most dominant player years after most top prep stars have already been groomed and coddled beyond recognition. There are few top-5 picks like Kidd-Gilchrist, as acutely aware of his strengths and weaknesses -- and as willing to play within the game, to do whatever it takes to win -- as any elite star we've seen in decades. There are few players like Jones, the sophomore big enough to play power forward but skilled enough to plug holes on the perimeter as well.

These players, and their teammates, arrived at this season with both tangible and intangible qualities that primed them for success. Calipari had to find them, first and foremost. But he also had to mold them. They had to trust him, too.

And their willingness to do all of the above -- their special qualities and complementary abilities and sincere care for more than draft hype and touches, but for more lasting glory -- transcended any of the easy labels foist upon them by the outside world.

"What I wanted them to show was that we were not just a talented team," Calipari said, just minutes after cutting down the nets in honor of his first national championship. "We were a defensive team, and we were a team that shared the ball.

"I wanted that. I told them I wanted this to be one for the ages. Go out there and show everyone what kind of team you are, even though we were young. It doesn't matter how young you are. It's how you play together."

That will be the lasting lesson of the 2012 national champion Kentucky Wildcats: Youth only means so much. Talent, too. Greatness requires so much more.

This team had all of it, everything it takes on offense and defense and in the locker room and on the sideline. On Monday night, they made sure we'd remember that more than anything else. And so we will.

Or, at least, we should. Because winning a national title like this team just won a national title is never -- despite appearances to the contrary -- as simple as it looks.

NEW ORLEANS -- Doron Lamb made quite an impression on John Calipari -- in August.

“He’s our best basketball player,’’ Calipari said on Aug. 8 to ESPN.com.

“[Doron] can take the pressure off those freshmen so they don’t have to be anyone else but themselves.’’

Who knew that Lamb would be the most productive player in the national title game.

Lamb wasn’t the most dominant. That honor went to national player of the year Anthony Davis, who was able to finish off Kansas with 16 rebounds, six blocks and five assists in Kentucky’s 67-59 national championship win Monday night at the Superdome.

Lamb was the most offensive of any player wearing white Monday night.

He finished with 22 points, making three 3s and becoming the type of player who wins titles -- the one who is left open and seems to be the least discussed during all the pregame talk.

“You saw it,’’ said Calipari Monday night. “At shootaround he was unbelievable. I told him and the team that he was going to have 25, you watch. And he went about it the right way and prepared to play great and he did.’’

Kansas couldn’t find Lamb, especially in the first half.

“He played excellent,’’ Davis said. “He shot the ball well, pushed it in transition and didn’t get rattled. He didn’t get outmuscled.’’

Lamb helped extend the Wildcats’ lead into double figures fast.

“It feels great,’’ said Lamb of the title and his performance. “I told coach Cal at shootaround that I would have a great game. I had to turn out a big game and I made a ton of shots so I’m happy for my team. I’m happy for my teammates and I’m happy for myself.’’

Lamb said earlier this weekend that he spent a recruiting Midnight Madness in Lawrence but ultimately chose Kentucky over Kansas. Lamb is from Queens so he would have been a major hit for a New York-area school had he decided to stay home. But as soon as he went to Oak Hill Academy (Va.) he was national.

And, of course, by going to Kentucky he knew he gave up the chance to be a star.

He had his moments with Kentucky, scoring 32 points in a win over Winthrop last year. He had a few 26-point games earlier this season. But Lamb was never a primary option.

Davis was the focal point. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was the drive on this team, always ready to make a play. Marquis Teague was the point. Terrence Jones was a matchup slasher and Darius Miller was a glue guy who could change the tone of the game.

But Lamb was always lurking as the Wildcats’ top shooter.

He saved his best for last.

Who knows if this means he’ll go to the NBA draft. He shouldn’t bolt when he has the chance to be a front-line star next season. He deserves his turn to be the focus on the perimeter.

“When I first got here, all they talked about was [title] No. 8 and now I’m sure it’s going crazy,’’ Lamb said. “I just had to make shots and be aggressive on offense.’’

Lamb seized the opportunity. That’s all anybody could ask and now he has a lifetime memory for himself and for Kentucky.

NEW ORLEANS -- The immediate reaction to Kentucky's 67-59 national championship win over Kansas:

Overview: Kentucky fans, breathe easy. The coronation is complete.

We expected a coronation, and that's exactly how much of this game went. Kentucky jumped out to a big lead early, extended it to as many as 18 points in the first half, went to the half with a 41-27 lead, and was never truly threatened throughout the second half.

How? The Wildcats were, as they have been all tournament, comprehensively good. They shot 16-of-30 in the first half, using every manner of attack -- at the rim and from the perimeter, jump shots and isolation drives, you name it -- in ways Kansas, one of the nation's best defenses all season, couldn't hope to match.

Meanwhile, the Wildcats might have been even better on the defensive end, especially in the second half. Kansas never got anything easy, and Anthony Davis was everywhere: He blocked three shots in the first half and six for the game (and changed countless more), while skying high over Thomas Robinson and Jeff Withey to grab what felt like every rebound. Robinson shot 6-for-17, Withey just 2-of-8; both were stymied all night by Davis and the ever-active quick-handed Cats defense. The KU big men needed to have a big game -- and Kansas' defense needed to play all 40 minutes very well, as Jayhawks coach Bill Self said this weekend -- to have a real chance of upsetting this Kentucky team. Neither happened.

Turning point: But that doesn't mean Kentucky didn't have to sweat. Oh, Big Blue Nation had to sweat. Of course it did.

With 10 minutes left in the second half, Kansas looked poised to go on its traditional second-half run. Robinson converted a dunk, Tyshawn Taylor made a fast-break layup, and the lead was cut to 10 at 48-38. Jayhawks fans were rowdy. The momentum seemed to shift. And then Doron Lamb struck. Lamb's back-to-back 3-pointers moved the lead back to 16 points, Kansas still couldn't get easy shots to cut the deficit, and Kentucky maintained a double-digit lead until the five-minute mark.

That's when Taylor came alive. The Kansas senior (somehow) sank a deep 2-pointer over Davis, followed by a fast-break, one-on-two layup and the foul. That cut the lead to nine -- the closest the game had been since midway through the first half -- and by the under-four timeout, Kansas fans had regained hope that this unlikely team had another unlikely comeback left in the tank. The lead closed to seven on two Robinson free throws, then grew to 10 again on a Marquis Teague 3, then went back to 7 as Johnson hit a wide-open answer of his own. Teague took another top-of-the-key jumper, but this one missed, and Robinson nearly completed a 3-point play on a surprising pass from Withey.

Robinson knocked down both free throws, cutting the lead to five. And after Kentucky nearly turned the ball over, Jones corralled it and sent it to Davis, who made one of two free throws and kept the lead relatively safe at six, with just 1:11 left to play.

Self drew up a backcut play for Taylor out of a timeout. Taylor caught it going at the rim but was defended and blocked by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. Later, with the lead still at six, the Jayhawks found Johnson open in the corner. Johnson lifted to take a 3. But Davis flew out to challenge the shot, forcing Johnson to drop the ball, travel, and give it back to UK. Lamb sealed the game with two free throws with 17 seconds left, and UK fans were finally free to cheer. Coach John Calipari hugged his staff. The national championship was official. The coronation, which came with no small share of stress, was real.

Key player: Anthony Davis. You watched the game, so you saw him in action. When have we seen a collegiate player with the ability to thoroughly control a game without scoring a point, as he did in the first half. When have we seen a player who can shoot 1-for-10 from the field and still be the best on the floor for much of the contest? His final line: 6 points, 16 rebounds, 6 blocks, 5 assists, 3 steals.

There's a reason Davis has so dominated this season, and tournament, why he'll be the obvious No. 1 pick in a loaded 2012 draft: He is simply on another level than his competition. Never was that more obvious than on the game's biggest stage.

Key stat: Kansas shot just 17-of-51 from inside the arc. All season, the Jayhawks' interior play has been their main offensive strength, but Kentucky's defense was too much, and even a 5-of-11 night from 3-point territory wasn't enough to make up for it. The Jayhawks finished well below the one-point-per-possession mark, and their inability to finish in the low block -- thank Davis (as well as Jones and Darius Miller) for that -- was the reason why.

What's next: Kentucky will go down as one of the best teams of the past decade, and maybe longer, a dominant force comprised not only of talent, but of complementary pieces -- a real team in every sense of the word. They were unstoppable in this tournament, and Davis, who dominated this Final Four and his team's final game in every way imaginable, will be remembered as the most successful one-and-done talent since Carmelo Anthony led Syracuse to the national title. Tonight was the crowning achievement of Davis' short but wondrous collegiate career, and we'll never forget it.

This was also the crowning achievement of Calipari's much-debated coaching career, the season in which his best-in-class ability to acquire the best talent in the country, and mold that talent into quality college basketball teams, paid the ultimate dividends. He found a once-in-a-generation talent (Davis) and a fearless, selfless warrior (Kidd-Gilchrist), and put those two pieces alongside at least three or four other potential NBA players. By the end of the season, this team had no holes. It was something close to flawless.

Calipari will always be controversial, but there's nothing controversial about the season this team had or the role its coach played in guiding it.

This is the eighth time in the past 30 seasons that there has been a rematch of a regular-season meeting in the championship game. The past two times it has happened, the team that won the regular-season meeting won the national title. (Kentucky defeated Kansas by 10 points in November.)

Kansas has been a second-half team in its past four tournament games, holding the opposition to 24 points per game on 24.2 percent shooting from the field, compared to 37.5 ppg and 49.1 percent field shooting in the first half.

The Jayhawks were even stingier in the final five minutes of their past two games. Kansas outscored Ohio State 13-7 in the final five minutes of the game Saturday, holding the Buckeyes to 2-of-10 shooting during this stretch. It was the fifth straight game in which a Kansas opponent shot less than 30 percent in the final five minutes, including 0-for-7 by North Carolina in the Midwest Region final.

Overall, the Jayhawks are holding the opposition to 19.5 percent shooting (8-for-41) in the final five minutes of tournament games, the lowest percentage of any team that advanced to the round of 32. In addition, Kansas has trailed at halftime in three of its wins in the tournament (Purdue, NC State and Ohio State). In the previous eight tournaments under Bill Self, the Jayhawks were 0-5 after trailing at halftime.

Kentucky’s key in the tournament has been its transition offense. The Wildcats lead the tournament field with 112 transition points (22.4 ppg) and have scored 62.5 percent of these points off missed shots, the second-highest percentage among teams to advance to the Sweet 16.

Kentucky has outscored all five opponents in transition during the tournament. The Wildcats entered the tournament with a 7.4 per-game transition differential, 13th best in the nation.

Kentucky is shooting 8-for-11 (72.7 percent) from 3-point range in transition, including a tournament-high four makes by Doron Lamb.

NEW ORLEANS -- Iowa State and Baylor have played each of the participants in Monday night’s NCAA championship game between Kentucky and Kansas. Here is a breakdown of each team by the head coach of each program as well as a player.

IOWA STATE HEAD COACH FRED HOIBERG

You’ve got the two elite shot-blockers in the country in [Jeff] Withey and Anthony Davis. The big thing for Kansas is their transition game. They’re so good at getting out and running. Against Kentucky, if you’re setting up in the half court every time down the floor, you’re going to be grinding it out against that length and athleticism. It’s going to be very difficult to score. From Kansas’ standpoint, the more they attack, they better off they’ll be. They’ve got players capable of doing that with [Tyshawn] Taylor and [Elijah] Johnson spacing the floor. I really think they need to attack before Kentucky gets a chance to set up in that half-court defense where they’re so effective. For Kentucky, Anthony Davis can do so many things. He’s expanded his game as the season has gone on. You have to be so selective on when you try to take it at him, because when he blocks a shot, it usually leads to a layup on the other end.

When Kentucky is in their transition game, you’re not going to stop them, so the other thing Kansas has to do a good job of is taking care of the basketball. They’ve got to limit their turnovers and get up quality shots, and try to get Kentucky into a half-court game going back the other way, which is pretty tough to do. When Kentucky is hitting shots, they’re almost unbeatable. It starts with [Marquis] Teague. If he can get that thing out there and beat everyone in transition, everyone collapses in. That’s how they get all those lobs. If you can take away those highlight plays by Kentucky, that hurts their mojo a little bit. But they’re so fast and explosive, that’s very difficult to do.

With Kansas, Bill [Self] has done as good of a coaching job as anyone in the country this year. You look at what they lost, with the Morris twins and [Brady] Morningstar and [Tyrel] Reed ... Bill still found a way to build his new guys up and to get them to play with so much confidence. That’s a testament to Bill and his staff. Bill is as good as there is in this business. It’s fun to compete against him, and it’s great to have him in our league. Tyshawn is the key to their team. He’s what makes them go. He gets it up and down the floor so quickly. You’ve got to do your best to stay in front of him. They’re using a lot of pick-and-roll in their offense. Tyshawn has handled that very well and shown he can make the right decisions. They're so precise in their offense. I think they’ve got a shot. Don’t ever count out Bill Self. Every time they look like they're down and out, they find a way to come back. If Kentucky is hitting their shots, there just isn’t much you can do. But if they’re having an off night, and Kansas is hitting their shots, they have a very good chance to win.

IOWA STATE GUARD SCOTT CHRISTOPHERSON

[The Wildcats] have great length at pretty much every position. Even if they don’t call out a screen quick enough, they can just switch everything because they [have] such a great help side on their defense. They can cover up minor mistakes. When we played them, [Darius] Miller played really well. Teague played really well. He hit some outside shots. When those two and [Doron] Lamb are hitting their outside shots -- combined with their inside game -- they’re pretty much impossible to stop. On defense, they have guys that are good perimeter defenders, but more than anything, even if you are able to get by them, they have such good length, even on the help side. ... You’re just not used to playing against guys like Anthony Davis and [Michael Kidd-]Gilchrist and Jones -- guys that can just come from the weak side out of nowhere and get your shots. We shot the ball very poorly from 3 because we had never seen length like that. At times you’re actually able to get into the paint on them. I’m not saying they’re not good perimeter defenders, because they are. But it’s not like they’re impossible to get by.

The problem is that you have to expend so much energy getting by them, and then you’ve got Anthony Davis waiting for you at the rim -- it poses a lot of problems. If you’ve got a guy on the low block that can really be physical, it will certainly help. Kansas will be able to utilize Thomas Robinson, because he’s physical and very strong. I’m sure Kansas is hoping he’ll be able to get some easy baskets inside and maybe draw some fouls on Kentucky’s big guys. The biggest thing is just getting the ball moved from one side of the court to the other. If you come down and just have it sit on one side and try to break Kentucky down that way, with their length, you’re not going to be very successful. I would try to drive the ball into the paint and kick it out as many times as I could. But I’d get as many paint touches as I could and get the defense distorted as much as possible. And if you can get out in transition and get some easy buckets, that will help your confidence, too. Kansas has always been very good in transition.

With Kansas, we were able to do a good job of mixing up our post defenses on Robinson. Defensively, we played about as well as anyone did against them in both of our games. You’re going to have to rebound and be physical with them. Defensively they’re always in position. They’re very well-coached, very disciplined. You just have to be very sharp and solid. You can’t try to be a hero against them. You have to make simple plays and play very hard. I think Kentucky’s length makes them a little bit better defensively, just because they’ve got guys like Kidd-Gilchrist that can guard the 4-man or the point guard. But Kansas, year-in-and-year-out, is the best team in the Big 12 defensively. Withey has come a really long way. He does a good job of doing what he does. He blocks shots, runs the court, rebounds, finishes around the rim. To me, the difference in the game is going to be who wins between Doron Lamb and Darius Miller, and Elijah Johnson and Travis Releford. And Tyshawn Taylor has to outplay Teague. Johnson is a really good defender. And when he’s able to stretch the defense with his perimeter shot, it does a lot of things for Kansas. When you have to close out long on him, it gives Robinson so much more room to work on the inside.

BAYLOR HEAD COACH SCOTT DREW

You have to score in transition if you want to have any shot of beating Kentucky. You can’t just hope to score in the half court against them. They’re so good defensively. You have to get easy ones when you can. When you can’t, you really have to make them work on the defensive end. Kansas will do that. But you also have to get some easy ones, and Kansas has always done a great job of pushing it. If Kansas is scoring and not turning it over, that means Kentucky isn’t getting out and running. And if Kentucky isn’t getting out and running, Kansas has a chance. Sometimes people make the mistake of saying, ‘OK, we want to slow it down and play a half-court game against Kentucky.’ That means they never push it and get easy buckets. I don’t know if you can score enough to beat them if you slow it down.

Juniors and seniors don’t want to go home. Kansas is very good, but out of almost all of the good tournament teams, they’ve had the most experience. They start all juniors and seniors, and juniors like Releford and Withey are four-year guys. They’re starting three fourth-year guys and two true juniors. That’s a veteran group. The more experienced at something, the better you are at what you do. They’ve been there, done that. It may mean more to them because they’ve been there three or four years. So they have the experience, but they also have that mental toughness. Winning a national championship may mean more to them than it does a freshman.

When Withey is on, Kansas goes to another level. You know what you’re going to get night in and night out from Tyshawn and Thomas. But if you had Withey knocking down shots and rebounding and scoring, they’re on another level. In their two wins against us, he was the difference. Tyshawn Taylor is probably the main key, though. If you keep Tyshawn from getting it in the paint, and if you can keep him from creating for others ... you can guard Thomas Robinson if you don’t give him angles and just play solidly behind him. And Withey, if he doesn’t catch it deep, I don’t know how bad he’s going to hurt you. But the reason Robinson is able to get angles, and the reason Withey is able to catch it deep is because of Tyshawn’s ability to get into the paint. He’s as good with his first step and at blowing by defenders as any point guard in the country.

BAYLOR GUARD BRADY HESLIP

[Kentucky's] athleticism can be overwhelming, even to us. They’ve got five guys that can handle the ball. Their outlet passes are so impressive. One second after they rebound, the ball is at half court. They get out in transition so quick. They can all handle it. It makes things easy for them. Defensively, Anthony Davis gets a lot of attention for blocking shots, but the guys on the perimeter really pressure the ball. I was watching yesterday, and Louisville would dribble around for 15 or 20 seconds because they were having so much trouble getting it into the paint and getting Kentucky in foul trouble.

Teague can guard. He’s fast. Tyshawn Taylor is probably a little stronger than him. Lamb is strong. Kidd-Gilchrist can defend 1 through 4. Jones is so physical, and then Davis has that great length. You’ve got to do a good job of answering their runs and hope to get some easy baskets. When you try to slow it down, on defense they can really stop you. They forced us into taking bad shots, and they forced us into turnovers. Those result in the first pass of their transition offense. They run the floor and convert it, and get to the free throw line.

Kansas is an amazing team with all of their pieces. They’ve got strong guys that are athletic and physical. They play well and they defend. Kentucky, statistically, is the best defensive team. But Kansas on defense is ridiculous. They rotate like a machine. They’ve got Withey blocking shots. Releford is a great defender, and so are Taylor and Johnson. Those guys are relentless on defense, and they can get out and run, too. It should be an up-and-down game. Taylor is the key for them. At this time of year, you’ve got to have a great point guard to still be playing. He does a great job of scoring and making things happen, because he’s so athletic. Once he gets going, that’s a tough freight train to stop. He does a great job of getting into the paint. If he gets into the paint against Kentucky and guys help out, he can throw lobs to Robinson and Withey. I think it could be a good game. Kansas is too good of a team and Bill Self is too good of a coach to let it get out of hand. It’ll be a close game.

NEW ORLEANS -- Kentucky and Kansas are the two winningest programs in college basketball.

They are also two of the most similar, at least since John Calipari and Bill Self took over at the respective schools.

They have competed against each other for high-level recruits. Yes, believe it or not, Calipari isn’t the only one who seeks out players who are in college for one season. Self does it too.

“If your final schools are Kentucky and Kansas then that young man should be a very good player,’’ Calipari said.

“We’ve both had our fair share of good players and lottery picks,’’ Self said. “They’ve done the best job in recruiting in the country as far as a roster of freshmen and sophomores. They have by far the most talent, far away since he’s been there.’’

Self and Calipari recruited Thomas Robinson, Tyshawn Taylor, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb and Kyle Wiltjer.

In previous years, Marcus and Markieff Morris were wanted by both coaches. The same is true for Xavier Henry.

“They both like athletic, fast guys who can run,’’ Robinson said.

Self and Calipari competed for the national title in 2008 when Calipari was coaching Memphis. Self won.

They are both incredibly competitive. Yet they are friendly rivals.

They want the best players, regardless of whether they are going to stay for one or four seasons.

They seek out similar talent: players who are going to defend, aren’t going to wilt one bit and must be able to check the ego at the door. Both coaches have succeeded at massaging the talent into one cohesive unit.

“Bill Self looks at his team and creates roles for his players,’’ Calipari said. “He gets guys to play their roles. He uses a lot of pick-and-rolls and they defend. His teams play hard and he essentially has a totally new team."

“Everybody talks about my team being new, but he lost his freshman class,’’ said Calipari, referring to freshmen Ben McLemore and Jamari Traylor being ineligible this season. “Everybody thought they’d be an NIT team and they’re not in the NIT, he’s in the final game.’’

Self said the two coaches are similar in their philosophy of coaching. Of course, he put in that Calipari always has “guys,’’ a term used to essentially describe the immense talent Calipari has amassed.

“We want to recruit the best players in the country, and we go against Duke, Carolina and Michigan State and Texas, but at some point, you’re going to have to beat Kentucky,’’ Self said. “He’s much more animated than I am on the sidelines. But we both get after our guys.’’

They win under intense pressure and don’t mind all the attention that comes with it.

There are programs that feel pressure, some more than others. Winning at places like North Carolina, Indiana and UCLA is expected, and when it doesn’t happen, as has occurred in the past decade for all those schools, the pressure increases. Yet the scrutiny frazzles neither Self nor Calipari.

And their teams play in two of the most hallowed halls in the game: Phog Allen Fieldhouse and Rupp Arena. The fan bases travel as well as any in the country. They expect success. And both coaches have delivered.

Now they’ve got a chance to send their faithful home with a national championship, either Self’s second -- and second against Calipari -- or Calipari’s first.

NEW ORLEANS - A few quick bulleted thoughts on the first half of our first Final Four matchup:

• Louisville should be thrilled it trails by only seven. The Cardinals are, as expected, outclassed at every position. Nothing is coming easy on the offensive end -- every shot is challenged, every drive to the rim feels hopeless, every turnover feels like a death knell. Louisville shot 12-of-32 from the field, and scored just .77 points per possession, in the first half. Kentucky, on the other hand, shot 15-of-25. Yet the Cardinals closed the gap late in the second half, and remain very much in this game.
• How? Turnovers, mostly. The Wildcats have coughed the ball up eight times, several of which have led to Russ Smith-piloted run-outs and fast-break buckets, exactly the thing Louisville needs to stay in this tilted talent mismatch. But Kentucky has, with the exception of the turnovers, been pretty much peerless on the offensive end. A few more made 3s (they're 1-of-5) and fewer turnovers, and this thing isn't close. Louisville's defense is very good, but the Wildcats are mostly getting what they want on the offensive end.
[+] Enlarge
Bob Donnan/US PresswireKentucky's Terrence Jones (3) dunks over Louisville's Jared Swopshire during the first half.
• It also helped Louisville that Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Kentucky's do-it-all small forward, left the game with his second foul with just under 14 minutes to play. The charge call that landed him his second foul was slightly questionable (shocker, I know), but either way, Kentucky managed to maintain its hold on the game without MKG on the floor. That's good news, obviously.
• Gorgui Dieng finished the first half with a block and a huge dunk on a Louisville fast break, and his final counting numbers (5 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks) were solid, but he struggled for much of the half. He missed a wide-open dunk, he turned the ball over three times and he finished 2-of-7 from the field. He'll have to be more sure-handed in the paint, because Louisville's main line of attack -- rushing Peyton Siva and Smith to the rim, then dishing to a big man and hoping for the best -- requires Dieng to finish clinically on the block. He hasn't thus far.
• What John Calipari is probably telling his team at the half: Slow down, take your time on offense, but don't be casual. "Be fast, but don't hurry," is a classic John Woodenism, and it applies here. Kentucky is too much for the Cardinals to handle on both ends. As long as Kentucky controls the game, limits turnovers and gets good looks on offense, the Wildcats will win. It's really pretty simple.
• What Rick Pitino is probably telling his team at the half: Get into these guys. Louisville has to turn Marquis Teague and Doron Lamb over to stay in this thing, because Kentucky is too good defensively to allow buckets to this so-so offense in a straight half-court matchup situation. The Cardinals could use some 3s in the second half, but they also need to keep pushing for interior buckets from Chane Behanan and Dieng. Behanan, in particular, can score against Terrence Jones; he just needs the space and time to create his own look in the post. The Cardinals should be pretty happy they're not trailing by a larger deficit here, but they still have much to improve if they plan on pulling off this unlikely upset.

NEW ORLEANS -- Kentucky freshman center Anthony Davis was clearly in pain when he went crashing to the floor early in the second half against Baylor on Sunday.

The consensus national player of the year didn't have the same gait afterward, and was deemed to have a bruise. Davis went in the game, went out, and then came back again.

But he didn’t want to stop playing, and finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks in 32 minutes. He didn’t leave until a bloody lip with 33 seconds left forced him to come out of the game with Kentucky ahead by double figures.

Davis publicly said he was fine after the game, but that’s not the whole story.

“I’m not going to lie,’’ he said Thursday at the Superdome. “I felt sore. It was tight, and I really couldn’t move it. It was just all the adrenaline that kept me going during the game. It started hurting after the game.’’

Davis said that he got treatment immediately Monday, an off day for UK. He needed to make sure the knee was iced up, and that he was rested and relaxed. Davis said during Tuesday’s practice, all he could do was ride a bike.

But by Wednesday he was out on the court running and competing in a full practice.

“He’s been great, but it was funny when I walked over, he said he hit knees, and I said, 'Come on mama's boy, come on,' said Kentucky coach John Calipari. "He's the greatest."

With Davis’ health no longer an issue, Kentucky is the heavy favorite here in New Orleans. But the Wildcats, even the freshmen, are used to the attention and the pressure.

“We’ve been the favorite the whole year,’’ said sophomore guard Doron Lamb. “Everybody wants to win every game. There is really no pressure on us. We are used to this. Everybody is expecting us to win the whole thing. We have to go out there and prove to the world that we are one of the best teams in the country.’’

Sophomore Terrence Jones dismissed the notion that the Cats are under any more pressure than anyone else.

“It’s the Final Four, there is pressure enough,’’ Jones said. “With being the No. 1 team, having the target on our back that we have had all year, it just adds enough pressure as it is.’’

The players diffused any chatter that there is added significance in playing Louisville to get to the national title. They fully expect that the Wildcats will have to defend the 3-point shot, deal with UL’s ball pressure, and ensure they are fundamentally sound with the basketball.

“I know how much this means to me, and how much this means to the team,’’ said Jones of simply playing in the Final Four. “The Final Four is the most important thing.’’

Davis is from Chicago, but he has started to grasp the nature of the rivalry between the Commonwealth's fans. Miller wasn’t aware of the infamous fight at a dialysis center, but wasn’t surprised.

“Fans are crazy,’’ Davis said. “They told us last night that some Kentucky and Louisville fans got into a fight on Bourbon Street. The fans really care about their sports and will do anything to say their school is a better school. That’s where we come in. We try to downplay it.

"It’s a big game for the fans and the state of Kentucky, the whole rivalry, but we look at it as another game. That’s how you have to look at it, but you need to let the fans and the Kentucky program and Louisville program take pride in it.’’

By Saturday, John Calipari, Rick Pitino, Thad Matta and Bill Self will have had nearly a week to scout their opponents. As we type, they're breaking down film, analyzing their opponents' strengths and weaknesses and searching for ways to impart this knowledge to their players in simple, digestible form. They are ... pause for dramatic effect ... game-planning.

What will each come up with? We don't exactly know. That's why they're coaches in the Final Four, and we are, you know, not. But we can still venture a guess. In the first of a two-part series, here's a look at what they may be coming up with.

Up first: Louisville vs. Kentucky

Kentucky Wildcats

Offense: All week Calipari has told his team -- at least, according to his public appearances -- he isn't worried about the rivalry, or winning a national championship, or any of the pressure UK fans can't help but place on a team that is expected by almost everyone to bring home the program's eighth national championship this season. Instead, Calipari says, he is worried only that UK "plays its best basketball."

This is an entirely appropriate approach. Simply put: When UK plays its best basketball, particularly on the offensive end of the floor, the Wildcats are essentially impossible to stop. We've seen as much in the tournament (UK scored an insane 1.27 points per possession in its four south region wins) and before it (when Kentucky scored 1.20 points per possession in its 16-0 SEC regular-season run).

What makes UK so good? It isn't any one thing. Stylistically, the Cats don't rely on any one trait; rather, via Ken Pomeroy, they rank in the top 20 in the nation in effective field goal percentage, turnover rate and offensive rebounding percentage. They can score in the half court and on the break; according to Synergy Sports Technologies scouting data, UK ranks in the 95th percentile in efficiency in half-court situations and the 87th percent in transition. Their most frequently used play type this season was the spot-up jumper, which they used on 22.5 percent of possessions, but Calipari's offense is diverse, utilizing ball screens, handoffs, cuts, isolations and straight post-ups throughout the season.

The only slight knock on this offense (if you can even call it that)? It was slightly worse against zone defenses than man defenses this season. Kentucky scored 0.971 points per possession against man-to-man in 2012. Its points per trip dropped slightly, to 0.956, against the zone. That's hardly a major drop-off.

When you have Marquis Teague and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Anthony Davis and Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb and Darius Miller, you can penetrate the lane, work off screens, dominate the boards, get easy buckets and knock down outside shots when needed. You don't have to change what you do for anybody, including the Louisville Cardinals.

One would imagine that is the real gist of Calipari's message this week: If we do what we do well, no one can keep us from scoring.

Defense: Kentucky's defense isn't as good as its offense. The Wildcats' real strength is scoring the rock, sure, but at No. 11 in the nation in defensive efficiency, per KenPom, UK guards well enough that it could be a merely decent offensive team and still be worthy of a trip to the Final Four.

Newsflash: Kentucky is really good.

The Wildcats' primary concern on the defensive end should be the prevention of transition buckets. That stems from the offense, of course, which means Marquis Teague and the rest of the Wildcats will have to limit their turnovers, grab offensive rebounds and recover back on defense before the Cardinals can get a head of steam. But it mostly means picking up on the secondary break.

Louisville would like nothing better than to get fast-break layups, of course, but it will be just as satisfied with pushing the pace on long rebounds and odd-man situations, finding trailing shooters and open men in the corner -- namely guard Kyle Kuric. Kentucky's primary focus, then, won't be on whether it can stop Louisville in the half court. Of course, it can. This defense is great; Louisville's half-court offense isn't. The Wildcats will have to focus almost entirely on making sure Louisville doesn't get shots off from long range.

If they do, even if Louisville's defense bogs them down, it's hard to imagine the Cardinals scoring frequently enough to keep this thing close. Can you picture it? Because I can't.

TL;DR game plan: Don't get flustered by pressure, run our stuff, do what we do. On defense, run everybody off the 3-point line. (Simple enough, right?)

Louisville Cardinals

Defense: Since the start of the Big East tournament, Louisville has won eight straight games, changed its style of play more than a few times, held opponents to a combined .88 points per trip and rocketed up Pomeroy's defensive efficiency rankings, where it currently sits at No. 1 overall.

In other words: If any defense in the country can slow Kentucky's offense right now, it's this one.

How will the Cardinals go about doing it?

According to Synergy, in the NCAA tournament, Louisville has played man on 152 possessions, or 57.6 percent of the time, and it has allowed just 0.737 points per trip to opponents. Pitino has used his zone on 112 possessions, or 42.4 percent of the time, when it has ceded 0.786 points per trip. (Those numbers are slightly skewed by that Florida first half, but they're valid all the same.) The Cardinals are at their weakest defensively in transition, where they've allowed 0.963 points per trip. But those possessions (just 27 in the tournament) have been few and far between.

So it is that Pitino has a series of choices to make. The man is rarely predictable, and his stylistic approach is never cut and dry. That's why his team is here: It can spring surprises (see Michigan State), change styles on the fly (see Florida) and execute almost anything Pitino asks. No wonder he loves this team so much.

So what does he choose? How does he seek to stop this juggernaut Kentucky attack?

The first is pressure: Louisville will almost certainly pressure full-court Teague and UK's other ball handlers after every made shot. There may not be many of those, but the pressure might apply to misses, too -- the more you can make the game difficult for Kentucky before the ball crosses half court, the better chance you have of upsetting their pristine, business-like offensive rhythm. Pitino may tell Smith and Siva to pressure the ball immediately, no matter what, to speed up the game, to create havoc in the backcourt and to wear on Teague (Kentucky's lone true point guard) as much as possible.

Once the ball crosses half court, he may have to resort to the zone. Kentucky can shoot it, no question, and it has the kinds of players capable of breaking down the zone off the dribble (and that's when the Anthony Davis and Terrence Jones lobs start flying in). But on a sheer man-to-man scale, Louisville can't match up, nor should it try. A hybrid matchup zone could turn Kentucky into a passing team, one that can't work off Calipari's screen-roll-replace and handoff action, one that helps to nullify touches in the post, one that prevents simple isolations for UK's brilliant scorers.

With a typical diet of effective slapping and digging, the turnovers may come. But if not, at least Louisville won't have to shade double-teams and work back to shooters and scramble around the court just to keep up.

Offense: Which is where the offense comes in. The game can never be approached merely as a two-sided affair; offense bleeds into defense and vice-versa for every team. But that's especially true for Louisville. And even more so for this game.

Simply put, the Cardinals are not a great offensive team. Their eight-game run to the Final Four hasn't changed that fact. Their most efficient scoring in the tournament (41 points in 30 possessions) has come in transition. In the half court, they've been merely OK, scoring 0.849 points per possession in 252 possessions.

The Cardinals' most frequently used half-court play -- a high ball screen -- has yielded just 0.739 points per trip in the tournament. They've achieved similar results with post-up plays and isolations. Indeed, Louisville's best offense has come when the game is moving. Of the 11 general play types Synergy tracks, the Cardinals are most efficient when finding cutters, battling for offensive rebounds, dishing to the screener off a pick-and-roll, on spot-ups and in "miscellaneous" plays, which usually involve some type of scramble around the rim.

Unlike its opponent, Louisville has to actively generate ways to score. And in this game, that means pace.

The Cardinals will look to run at every chance, and why not? They're better in transition, and you'd much rather try to score on Kentucky before Davis has a chance to get back to fully cordon off the middle of the lane. This strategy assumes you can turn the Wildcats over, or make them miss shots and get long rebounds. That's no easy feat. But it is the best chance Louisville has of putting up points on its opponents in any meaningful way. And hey, it worked for Indiana's offense. The Hoosiers just couldn't get a stop.

Besides, the other option -- a staid half-court game -- simply isn't going to work.

With pressure, a tricky zone, up-tempo attack and a scrambling style around the rim, the Cardinals can dictate the terms of the engagement. Against a team this good, with players this talented, that is Pitino's best chance of knocking off the rival Kentucky Wildcats. Even Malcolm Gladwell would have to agree.

TL;DR game plan: Pressure Teague whenever possible, switch into a matchup zone to make the Wildcats adjust, force the tempo at every opportunity, find open shooters on the secondary break, hope for the best.

ATLANTA -- Anthony Davis finally left the game with 33 seconds remaining, and only because he had blood on his lip.

Kentucky was ahead of Baylor, 82-68, at the time.

Davis didn’t want to leave the court. And why would he? Who wouldn’t want to be a part of something that must have been as enjoyable to play as it was to watch?

Davis had suffered a left knee contusion in a collision with Baylor’s Perry Jones III with 18:28 left in the second half and the Wildcats up 44-22. Davis was treated and sent back in, left again, then went back in because he couldn’t get enough of this game.

“The knee is doing fine,’’ said Davis after the Wildcats’ South Regional-clinching 82-70 victory over Baylor on Sunday afternoon at the Georgia Dome.

“I just bumped knees with Perry Jones, and it started hurting real bad. But I knew my team needed me to play. I wasn’t going to sit out, especially with a trip to the Final Four, and all of us want to go to the Final Four. So I knew I needed to come in the game and help my team out, so I decided to come in.’’

Davis finished with 18 points, 6 blocks and 11 boards. And the consensus national player of the year was hardly alone in another stellar performance.

This effort by the Wildcats was their best this season -- and that’s quite a statement, considering they lost only one regular-season game to Indiana in December and one to Vanderbilt in the SEC tournament championship.

If you watched the way Kentucky flipped a 10-5 deficit into a 20-point lead in a matter of minutes, then you know.

Baylor coach Scott Drew had no clue the Wildcats could turn it on like that in a flash.

“I had no idea they were this good,’’ Drew said as he walked out of the postgame news conference.

“We made one substitution, called a timeout and addressed within the team and said to each other, ‘Let’s go. Let’s do it with defense, we’ve got to guard and let’s put this thing away and be the aggressor and attack. Let’s go.’ It didn’t look good to start the game, did it?’’

Well, Baylor was the aggressor for a few possessions.

Then the Bears committed turnovers on successive possessions and it was on. Boy, was it on.

“I’d say we were just aggressive,’’ said Kentucky’s Terrence Jones. “I just think we got real aggressive on offense and defense and just mentally locked down on defense. It just led to fast breaks on offense.’’

Kentucky had the UNLV look about it when it flipped toward a fast-break team. The efficiency from Marquis Teague at the point, the acrobatic nature of Davis in retrieving errant passes, even when he’s underneath the net, the way in which Michael Kidd-Gilchrist heads to the hoop without any fear of being hit, the unselfish play by Jones (6 assists) and the spot shooting from Doron Lamb and even Kyle Wiltjer off the bench makes this as complete a team as any John Calipari has had at UMass, Memphis or Kentucky.

“In that first half, we played flying up and down the court,’’ Calipari said. “If it’s not there, we run the offense. If you go zone, we’re driving that ball. We’re not settling.

“Defensively, we’re swarming and blocking shots,’’ Calipari said.

Kentucky did have some foul trouble, with Kidd-Gilchrist ultimately fouling out and Davis playing with four.

But who would quibble over officiating Sunday?

The unselfishness of this squad shouldn’t be lost on anyone. Kentucky’s two previous teams weren’t this giving with each other. And both of them reached the Elite Eight, with last season’s team losing in the national semifinal. This one should be able to take the next step.

“We’ve got seven players on this team that average 25 points a game in high school and all seven led us in scoring this year [at some point],’’ Calipari said. “Anthony Davis, would you say he’s pretty good? He’s our fifth-leading shot-taker. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is our fourth. When Kyle Wiltjer’s in the game, they love it and they throw him the ball. They’re fine with that. They’re excited when he makes it. They figured it out that as a young team they had to do it together and they would all benefit.’’

Calipari said he doesn’t make any promises in recruiting. He won’t say how many starts you’ll get or shots you’ll take.

“If you want to shoot 30 times a game, you’re not coming here,’’ Calipari said. “If you want to win a national title and the answer is, 'Yes I do,' then you can’t do it alone. There are a bunch of other guys like you on the team so you’ll have to share the ball.’’

Kentucky faces Louisville in the national semifinal Saturday in New Orleans. The Commonwealth will implode in delight.

Calipari has already toned down the rivalry with Louisville coach Rick Pitino, saying they don’t exchange cards but are friendly acquaintances. Calipari said if he had five players from Kentucky, he would be more worried about this being a big deal. He does not, so he’s not. And the players don’t seem too fazed by the Cardinals’ matchup, either.

The fans? Well, that’s another matter.

If Kentucky wasn’t the favorite to win the title before Sunday then it must be now. The Wildcats were the No. 1 overall seed and played like it Sunday. They head to face Louisville, with Kansas playing Ohio State in the other semifinal, so this is still Kentucky’s title to lose. The Wildcats can surely lose to Louisville or to KU or Ohio State. But they won’t be the overwhelming pick to do so.

“Has my team ever been the favorite? Let me think,’’ Calipari said. “At UMass, we were the No. 1 team but Kentucky had nine NBA players. And then the Memphis team, there was Kansas, North Carolina, we were a No. 1, but we weren’t the number-one No. 1. No one picked us to win. Last year, no one picked us to win.

“Yeah, it’s the first time. How about that. Are we the favorite?’’

Yes.

“Wow. That’s a good thing I guess.’’

ATLANTA -- A look at Sunday's Elite Eight matchup between No. 1 Kentucky and No. 3 Baylor for the South Regional championship:

The marquee matchup

Anthony Davis vs. Perry Jones III: The last time Davis had to face a player with similar length, North Carolina was at Rupp Arena. Perry Jones III might not be strictly on Davis, but he’ll likely take a turn. The Bears also may use the brute strength of Quincy Acy to get under Davis’ skin at times.

“I always look forward to a challenge and I think Baylor brings a challenge,’’ Davis said. “They attack the rim. They’re very athletic and they can dunk the ball and finish above the rim. I’m looking forward to the challenge and hopefully we will prevail.’’

Kentucky coach John Calipari interrupted Davis and said, “Without fouling. Just don’t foul.’’

“No fouling,’’ Davis said.

Jones didn’t take the bait when asked about an individual matchup.

“I’m looking forward to playing team basketball,’’ Jones said. “I don’t want to feed into that because we haven’t fed into that all year, and we’ve been successful. Last thing I want to do is feed into that, trying to go one-on-one the whole game and not play team basketball, because our team will lose.’’

The impressive stat

Kentucky: The Wildcats scored 102 points and had just six turnovers in their 12-point victory over Indiana in the Sweet 16. Calipari said he was extremely impressed with the Wildcats’ composure. And his trust in Marquis Teague to lead this team has increased daily.

Baylor: Kentucky made 35 of 37 free throws against Indiana. Baylor didn’t create as much contact against Xavier, but the Bears did make their free throws. Baylor was 12-of-14, and if you’re looking for an advantage for Kentucky, check elsewhere. Baylor can make the late-game free throws to win a close game.

The shooters

Brady Heslip, Baylor: Heslip made nine 3s in a win over Colorado. He made of only 1 of 3 in the win over Xavier, but he cannot be left alone. He has made 15 3s in three games so far. If he can make his NCAA tournament average of five, the Bears should be in this game throughout.

Doron Lamb, Kentucky: Lamb can be the difference-maker for the Wildcats. He made his only 3-point attempt against Indiana, but in the previous round against Iowa State, Lamb converted 5 of 7. Lamb has had the ability to break out with huge games throughout his brief career. Like Heslip, he cannot be left alone.

The heart and soul

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Kentucky: No one plays harder for Kentucky. Kidd-Gilchrist continues to show he’s a must on the floor. Calipari loves coaching him and with good reason. He never has to get on him for effort. Kidd-Gilchrist will have a hard time against Baylor's length, and Quincy Miller or Anthony Jones could be guarding him at times. Still, he can power his way to the bucket and create contact and fouls.

Quincy Acy, Baylor: The Bears have tremendous length but don’t always use it to their advantage -- except for Acy. He has no problem getting on the low post and being a force. His dunks, especially off an inbounds against Xavier, were as impressive as you’ll see this season.

The playmakers

Kentucky's Teague vs. Baylor's Pierre Jackson: Both are playing their first year of Division I basketball, but Jackson is a junior college transfer and two years older.

Each runs a steady game and has the trust of his respective coach.

This should be an even matchup. Neither will take too many chances and both can easily create points off turnovers.

The glue guys

Kentucky's Darius Miller and Baylor's Quincy Miller: Darius Miller scored 19 points off the bench against Indiana. He has the most experience of any Kentucky player. He can get to the rim and make 3s. If Kentucky wins, it's probably because Miller had a solid outing. Quincy Miller has tremendous talent as well but doesn’t maximize it often. He can disappear at times and needs to be more assertive. He has a shot in this game to match up with someone like Darius Miller or possibly Terrence Jones and draw even more attention to himself and away from Perry Jones III or Acy.

The mystery

Kentucky's Terrence Jones vs. Baylor's Anthony Jones: Both players have loads of talent but must play within themselves. Kentucky’s Jones can get to the backboard but has to make intelligent decisions on offense. And he has of late. Baylor’s Jones has so much talent, can block shots and handle the ball. But he tends to shoot too much too soon. If he uses his length to his advantage, he can be a major factor in this game.

The coaches

Calipari: He was brought to Kentucky to get to Final Fours and win a title. His teams have advanced to the Elite Eight the past three years and in six of the past seven -- an achievement matched only by Mike Krzyzewski and the late John Wooden, according to Kentucky. The pressure is on Calipari to deliver another Final Four.

Scott Drew, Baylor: Drew has done wonders to resurrect this program and is in his second Elite Eight in three seasons. That alone is remarkable. He is playing with house money here. He has a Final Four team but is not expected to knock off Kentucky. A Final Four berth would certainly elevate Drew to another level among his peers.