By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
Dominique Hawkins remembers the first time he experienced the Kentucky-Louisville rivalry.
“I was so hyped about it because I never got to play against Louisville,” he said.
Three years removed from his first career collegiate outing against the Cardinals, the Kentucky junior guard no longer sees the game the same way he did as a freshman.
“Now, it’s just another game and we’re just going to go in there and be prepared to play them,” Hawkins said. “We’re just trying to play to the best of our abilities and we really only focus when we are in the SEC Tournament and March Madness. So we’re just taking it one day at a time.”
Although his mental approach toward the game has changed, Hawkins said it remains a rivalry for both schools and understands the importance of what it means to the fans.
“I know how big it is,” he said. “Some of the guys probably don’t know what it means, but we’re just going to take it one game at a time, just like any other game.”
The 12th-ranked Wildcats have won seven of the last eight games between the two rivals, including a 58-50 victory over the Cardinals last year at the KFC Yum! Center. Since he’s been at Kentucky, John Calipari has compiled a 7-1 record against Louisville, ranked No. 14 in the latest Associated Press poll.
Aside from instate players Hawkins and Derek Willis, the majority of Kentucky’s players know very little about the rivalry that exists between the two teams. Calipari said the rivalry factor won’t come into play on Saturday.
“They’re a ranked opponent, they’re playing really good and we’re going to have to play well to win,” the Kentucky coach said. “If we don’t play well, it’s going to be a really, really hard game.”
Hawkins said the Cardinals will employ the same scheme they’ve used on both ends of the court in Rick Pitino’s 15 seasons as coach.
“We know that they’re a great pressing team and I’m pretty sure that’s what we’re going to prepare for because my first two years I know that they love to pressure the ball and do that as well,” Hawkins said.
Kentucky, which enjoyed a three-day break for the Christmas holiday, returned to practice Wednesday, four days following a 74-67 loss to Ohio State that dropped the Wildcats eight spots in the latest AP poll.
Hawkins said he would have preferred to play another game after the loss to the Buckeyes, but said a break gave the Wildcats a chance to enjoy family and friends.
“When you lose you really want to play another game and make sure you win and get that confidence up,” he said. “But the days were also much-needed too. We’ve been practicing and playing a lot of games, so it’s great to get some days off.”
Calipari said his team is still searching for an identity, but Hawkins said the Wildcats are inching closer toward figuring things out on the court.
“Everybody’s gotta figure out how to play their role and once everybody gets their role and starts playing really well we’ll be all right,” Hawkins said.
Despite a scandal hovering over the program, the Cardinals are off to an 11-1 start after winning two games in the Billy Minardi Classic earlier this week.
Calipari wants no part of exploiting the issues surrounding the Louisville program and hopes Big Blue Nation shows respect in the annual encounter between the two rivals.
“Let’s just have some class,” he said. “Let me just tell you, we need to worry about how good their team is and how well they’re being coached (and) not anything that happened five years ago. Let’s just play ball.”
Game tracker: Louisville at Kentucky, noon, Saturday. TV/Radio: CBS (Channel 27), 98.1 FM WBUL.
Keith Taylor is a columnist and senior sports writer who covers University of Kentucky athletics for KyForward.com