Biggest Difference in Kentucky From Bahamas Trip to Now? 'We Were Having a Lot of Fun'

Amidst searching for energy and toughness, Kentucky basketball needs to find the feeling of having fun on the basketball court again. The Louisville win was a good start in getting that back.

Kentucky's win over Louisville served as much more than a victory over a struggling rival. It was a reminder to the Wildcats that the game of basketball can be fun. 

A loud and rambunctious Rupp Arena set the stage for UK's 86-63 win, providing an environment that starting point guard Sahvir Wheeler said was one of the "top three" of his career. 

The players fed off the crowd's energy while also feeding off of each other. That may sound like college basketball 101, but those two things have hardly been there for the Wildcats since the start of the season. 

Big Blue Nation is yet to sell out a game, and the Wildcats have appeared lifeless on the bench in the process. The trip to Columbia to take on Missouri in the first game of SEC play was an eye-opener for many. 

First-year coach Dennis Gates' fiery roster of Tigers packed a punch with everything they did on the court and on the bench, all while a sold-out Mizzou Arena augmented the environment in a major way. On the other side, Kentucky players sat fossilized on the bench, glaring lifelessly into a sea of yellow and black that sucked the soul out of the Wildcats one 3-pointer at a time. 

Momentum firmly stood with Missouri for 40 minutes, leading it to a rather easy 89-75 win, meaning an interminable trip home to Lexington for coach John Calipari and his team that now had four losses and zero identity. 

"Coaches were a little disappointed in the bench after the Missouri game," freshman forward Adou Thiero told reporters on Monday. "We weren't really getting into the game, just clapping, not really hyping the team up, while Missouri had a sold-out gym and their bench was standing the whole game. We realized we got to change that and come with energy."

Playing basketball with the UK logo on your jersey is laborious, mentally and physically. The highs are high, but the lows are much lower. Calipari labeled criticism as a "tax you pay" to be at Kentucky. 

The taxes were starting to pile up for the players. Jacob Toppin labeled it as "rock bottom" while it was clear that pressure was taking a toll on the team on the court. Wheeler broke down the importance of staying mentally sharp on Monday.

"You can't do anything in life without having your head and your mental awareness intact. You can't do your job if you're not mentally there, you can't play basketball if you're not mentally there ... a lot of it is mental," he said. "You can't go after your dreams and aspirations if you're doubting yourself."

Upon returning from Columbia, the Cats re-booted and got back to some important fundamentals that will help UK win games down the road. Not on-court fundamentals, either. 

When looking back at the preseason, Kentucky appeared to be a team that was already clicking with one-another. The pieces to the puzzle were there and already seemed to be morphing together, creating sky-high expectations. The trip to The Bahamas in August solidified that. 

So what happened between then and now? 

"I think it was just we were having a lot of fun," Thiero said. "In The Bahamas, we would just go out there and play, have fun, play hard. I think now we're just playing and not really having fun. It's not fun losing." 

At the root of most player's relationship with basketball is fun. That can be easily lost when you have to practice every day, go to class, speak with reporters and play games twice a week. It becomes especially harder when you don't win those games. 

So what's the remedy for not having fun? 

Well, winning some games sure helps. The two-win Louisville Cardinals offered up quite the opportunity for a victory, and the Wildcats took it with ease. In-turn came the energy that had been lacking over the fist third of the season. 

"I think we had great energy during the whole game, I think it even started with our bench," Wheeler said. "That's something that we've been emphasizing, just watching some other teams and how they've had energy."

"Everyone was very energetic. You could see that we were trying to make a statement and I think that's what we did," Thiero added. 

Kentucky certainly appeared to make a statement, but now the challenge will be maintaining that energy and level of play moving forward. The SEC will be a gauntlet, but one that the Cats must do well in if they wish to have a say in the NCAA Tournament come March. 

The going will get tough again, as an opponent of Louisville's caliber won't come along for the remainder of the season. However, the Wildcats can use the win over the Cardinals as a consistent reminder of what the team needs to do to keep spirits high in the Bluegrass for 2023.

"I think that's just what we're missing, having fun," Thiero said.

Kentucky will return to Rupp Arena on Tuesday, Jan. 3 to host the LSU Tigers. Tip is set for 8 p.m. EST and will air on ESPN.

Three takeaways from the win over Louisville can be found here.

Game notes from the win over Louisville can be found here.

Everything Calipari said after the game can be found here.

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