LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — John Calipari pulled out a timely analogy for No. 4 Kentucky on Friday, which is heading to LSU for a game that few people believe will be much of a challenge.
"Understand," Calipari told his players, "you're everyone's Super Bowl."
That's what comes with having "Kentucky" across your chest, holding a lofty ranking and lacing up with some of the most dynamic players in the college game. Every night out, Calipari understands the Wildcats are going to get an opponent's best shot.
Even if they haven't won a single conference game.
"I'm more worried about us," Calipari said. "I don't ever worry about the other teams we play. We have an idea how good they are and their talent level, but it's about us and how good we can play."
After losing their first game of the season to South Carolina and dropping the No. 1 ranking barely a week after it was bestowed on them, Kentucky (21-1, 6-1) has reshaped its priorities. Calipari said the focus against LSU (9-13, 0-8) is on the learning process — nothing more.
"There's no undefeated record we're playing," Calipari said. "It's all about seeding and getting better and playing our best basketball."
The three areas that Calipari said he's focusing on are prolonging the intensity, creating smart players and building better discipline on his young team. Even with veterans like Patrick Patterson, the Wildcats still have a lot of growing up to do.
"On our team, those three questions being answered makes us really good," Calipari said.
Senior center Perry Stevenson acknowledged that the Wildcats' talent level is sometimes trumped by inexperience, from star freshman John Wall down the line.
"The entire team is still young," Stevenson said. "We all have stuff to learn, even more."
Learning how to keep their edge for 40 minutes has been one of the most difficult lessons to learn. Kentucky has a tendency to build big leads, then quickly lose them, something that guard Darius Miller said the team is constantly working on.
"We just don't keep up our intensity," Miller said. "We have a lot of mental breakdowns and slip-ups down the stretch."
That's some pretty substantial criticism for a team that's lost one game, especially going into a matchup against a team that hasn't won since early January. LSU ranks worse than the Wildcats in every statistical category but one, holding a slim advantage in scoring defense.
"We're still expecting their best game," Miller said.
