By Keith Taylor
Special to NKyTribune
Kentucky senior Derek Willis hasn’t forgotten last year’s win over South Carolina.
“It was a hard game at first,” Willis said Friday. “It was real physical. It kind of took us some time to get used to it and then, we eventually broke away from them.”
Although a close encounter in the first 10 minutes, the Wildcats ran away with an 89-62 victory over the Gamecocks last year in Columbia for their ninth win in the past 10 games against the Gamecocks. Although a blowout, fifth-ranked Kentucky (16-2, 6-0 Southeastern Conference) faced a rough patch during the first 10 minutes.
In addition to a pushing a shoving encounter against the Gamecocks last season, Kentucky coach John Calipari was ejected at the 2:26 mark and didn’t return. The Wildcats responded in a big way without their coach and routed the Gamecocks.
“It kind of got us going, I feel like,” Willis said of Calipari’s ejection. “I feel like that was actually a thing that kind of took our momentum way up there. I think Kenny Payne took over. He kept us under control and we used it kind of as motivation to play harder and get what we needed to get done.”
Based on last year’s contest between the two teams, Willis is expecting the same type of tug of war from the Gamecocks when the two teams tangle at 6 p.m. Saturday at Rupp Arena. Willis said games at Auburn and Mississippi State during the past week have prepared Kentucky for Saturday’s encounter.
“We’re just going to face teams that are going to play like that with us, just try to get in our head, get into the emotions of the game and then take us out of what we do,” Willis said. “I don’t know, just something to prepare for. We’re going to see it at the end of the season. South Carolina is a physical team. I’ve watched them play and every year since I’ve been here they’ve really been a physical team – get after you, hit the boards hard and that’s something they do well. You just have to be prepared for it.”
One of the surprise squads in the SEC, the Gamecocks (15-3, 5-0) are one of the top defensive teams in the country. South Carolina is fourth in the nation in overall teams defense and opponents are averaging just 59.4 points per game.
“They just get after you,” Willis said. “They’re a physical team. They get up in you. When they make a shot they’re sending probably three or four guys it looks like to the glass every single time. So they offensive rebound well, too. Like I said, they know what they want to do, they’re good at what they do and it makes them a really solid team.”
Calipari agreed with Willis and said a big key will be keeping Frank Martin’s squad off the glass, one of the main reasons opponents are having trouble scoring against the Gamecocks.
“The one thing they’re going to do is get offensive rebounds,” the Kentucky coach said. “We’ve had teams not send anybody to the glass. Rebounding? They do it. Giving you a tough shot? They do it. They have full rotations as well. They’ll bring four guys to the ball. If you drive, they’re bringing three to four guys at you. I have to give them credit.”
On the flip side, Kentucky is one of the top scoring teams in the nation and rank second in scoring at 93.3 ppg. Despite his team’s speed and quickness and ability to wear down opponents, Calipari is expecting a close encounter.
“They’re going to come to play and they’re not backing down,” he said. “They’re coming in with an expectation and it’s going to be a hard game for us.”
Gametracker: South Carolina at Kentucky, 6 p.m., Saturday. TV/Radio: ESPN, 98.1 FM WBUL.
Keith Taylor is a senior sports writer for KyForward, where he primarily covers University of Kentucky sports. Reach him at keith.taylor@kyforward.com or @keithtaylor21 on Twitter