Ok, so the three point shooting was 32%, which is a HUGE improvement from the previous four games. The Cats were 8-25 from three land tonight with Wall adding 9 points from beyond the arc, Dodson with 9 from beyond the arc, Patterson with 3, and Bledsoe with 3. You could tell that Calipari had probably stressed confidence in their shooting and encouraged them to keep firing away.
The real headlines are as follows: the Cats shot 54% from the field; the bench added huge points with 19 (11 of those from the hot handed Dodson); the Cats had 13 blocks; Patterson had a double-double; and John Wall was John Wall with 24 points and 6 assists.
For the Cats to be successful in the tournament these trends need to continue. The great shooting percentage added with the play off the bench is going to be tough for any team to beat. Patterson needs to continue asserting himself in the post and taking open baseline jumpers or threes when they are available. The defense was smothering at times and the Cats can use their size to block out the middle.
Georgia out-rebounded the Cats 32-26 and shot 40%, which makes the victory even more impressive because Georgia played pretty dog-gone well (pun intended) and the Cats still came away with a lopsided victory. Remember, the Dawgs have already defeated Vandy, Tennessee, and Florida in Athens. Or should I say Cathens? That's for all you live bloggers out there.
The Cats clenched at least a share of the SEC regular season title and can win it out right depending on the game against Florida on Saturday. The Cats have not won an SEC regular season title since 2005 and they have not won a tournament title since 2004. I think we are due.
Side Note: John Hood approached Cal earlier this week, asking the coach to give him a chance to play more. He stated that he can defend well and he can provide that shooting spark from the three that the Cats so desperately needed. Hood played about the last 40 seconds of the game and he actually got to touch the ball. Go Cats.
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