John Calipari on Tre Mitchell: 'These guys rely on him'

John Calipari talks about what Tre Mitchell means to this Kentucky basketball team.

The Kentucky basketball team is currently ranked sixth in all of college hoops, thanks to a strong start to the season and some big Quad 1 wins. 

If the Cats take down Texas A&M on Saturday, they will likely move up a few spots in the AP Poll thanks to four of the top five teams losing this week. 

At the end of the day, Kentucky, of course, has a ton of freshman talent and a high-volume scorer in Antonio Reeves, but Tre Mitchell has been the engine keeping this team going. 

To start the year, the Cats were without all of their seven-footers, which meant Kentucky had Mitchell down low playing the five. He has played his behind off all season, and now, with the big men back, he has continued to be a monster down low and shooting threes. 

After the Missouri game, John Calipari was asked about Mitchell and his confidence. 

Calipari responded, "It's not his confidence, it's his motor. When his motor runs, he is a double-double. These guys rely on him. And they do Antonio too. But they rely on him. You know. He can play four and five and he can shoot the three and he can put it on the floor. What he proved today is he can rebound in traffic when there are all kinds of guys whacking at the ball and he did it and then he made free throws. He was really good today."

Not only is Mitchell a great basketball player, but he is clearly a great leader for John Calipari's squad. 

It really feels like how deep this team goes in March will all depend on how Mitchell is playing toward the tail end of the season. 

This quote from Kentucky basketball forward Tre Mitchell is a perfect example of why he is a great leader for this young team

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Watch articles and takeaways from the 90-77 win over the Missouri Tigers

Takeaways: A massive game from Tre Mitchell led the Kentucky Wildcats past Missouri 90-77

WATCH: DJ Wagner drains a three against the Missouri Tigers

WATCH: Tre Mitchell starts the Cats off with back-to-back made threes against Missouri

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