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Kentucky responds to woes on defense by slowing down Rebels

There’s just something about switching on a smaller defender, usually a guard, and blocking his shot that Kentucky’s Willie Cauley-Stein really enjoys.

Willie Cauley-Stein - photo by Walter Cornett | WildcatWorld.com

Willie Cauley-Stein – photo by Walter Cornett | WildcatWorld.com

There's just something about switching on a smaller defender, usually a guard, and blocking his shot that 's Willie Cauley-Stein really enjoys. He gets a kick out of seeing the opposition look to the sideline with a sense of helplessness.

“That's what I really take pride in is guys think that because I'm so long and tall that I can't guard them,” Cauley-Stein said. “And when I do guard them it's like, you kind of peep them after a dead ball and they look at their coach like, ‘What do I do?' Like, ‘I can't get past him and I can't shoot over him so what am I supposed to do?' That kind of gets you like, ‘Good, he's probably not going to come back this way.' ”

Cauley-Stein did that on more than once occasion Tuesday night against . In fact, the entire Wildcat cast did it against the trigger-happy Rebels, taking away the Rebels' strengths of shooting and driving the ball with switching defense on pick-and-rolls and off-ball screens.

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On This Day In UK Basketball History

On March 28, 1992, in what many called the “best NCAA Tournament game ever,” Kentucky takes defending NCAA champion Duke into overtime before losing 104-103 in the East Regional finals in Philadelphia. A last-second shot by Christian Laettner sends Duke to the Final Four, and breaks the hearts of Wildcat fans everywhere. It is Cawood Ledford’s last game as the “Voice of the Wildcats.”

 

On March 28, 1998, against Stanford, Kentucky rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit, then grabbed a 5-point overtime lead, before fending off the Cardinals to advance to the title game for the third straight season. Jeff Sheppard canned three long-range three-pointers - two in the final three minutes and one in overtime - en route to a career-high 27 points.

 

On March 28, 2014, unranked Kentucky beat No. 5 Louisville 74-69, in the 2014 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.  Aaron Harrison buried a three-pointer from the left corner with 39 seconds left that put UK ahead to stay before 41,072 in Lucas Oil Stadium.

 

On March 28, 2015, No. 1 Kentucky defeated No. 8 Notre Dame, 68-66, in the 2015 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.  With its 37-0 record on the line, Kentucky trailed Notre Dame 59-53 with 6:14 left. UK rallied in front of 19,464 fans in Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena and preserved its perfect season thanks to a crucial blocked shot by Willie Cauley-Stein and two game-deciding free throws from Andrew Harrison in the final seconds.

 

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