Cats make their case

Kentucky could be next No. 1 in college hoops

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Kentucky had the most first-place votes last week.

This week, the voters must decide whether the Wildcats are the nation's best team after a resounding 80-41 blowout of Indiana.

"It says we're still hungry," forward Erik Daniels said. "We've got a lot of goals."

The Wildcats (6-0) have now won 26 straight regular-season games and during Saturday's thrashing in Indianapolis demonstrated why they are one of the best teams in the country.

Daniels and Chuck Hayes dominated the middle. The Wildcats' suffocating defense never gave Indiana an opening, and they had more rebounds (54) than Indiana did points.

Kentucky, ranked No. 2 entering the game, also produced its most lopsided victory over the Hoosiers in the 47-game series, despite getting only a minor contribution from its leading scorer, Gerald Fitch. He took just six shots and finished with six points, 14 fewer than his average.

But with Connecticut winning 104-54 over Iona, there may not be an opening. Last week, Kentucky fell 67 points short of becoming the fourth No. 1 team in four weeks. They could make it five in five weeks this week, but the Wildcats aren't campaigning.

"We're not trying to compare ourselves to the previous No. 1 teams," Fitch said. "We're not worried about the hype and so forth."

Instead, this Kentucky squad has concentrated on the thing it does better than most -- winning.

On Saturday, they outscored the Hoosiers 48-16 in the paint, making their 3-point shooting days seem a thing of the past. The Wildcats took just eight shots from beyond the arc, and backup Kelenna Azybuike was the only Kentucky player to hit one.

There were no complaints.

"We were killing them down low, so there was no need for me to do anything," Fitch said.

This time it was the Wildcats' defense that proved the difference.

Kentucky held Indiana (4-4) to its fewest points since Jan. 27, 1985, a 52-41 loss at Illinois. The Hoosiers shot 16.7 percent in the second half and finished at 24.2 percent -- the lowest in coach Mike Davis' four seasons as coach.

The Hoosiers had just 15 points in the final 20 minutes, prompting Davis to endorse Kentucky's claim as the nation's best team.

"Kentucky is a very good team with very good athletes," Davis said after speaking to his team for nearly an hour after the game. "I felt we gave everything we had in the first half, and that kind of zapped us."

The Hoosiers had nothing left and Kentucky took advantage.

After leading 32-26 at halftime, the Wildcats went inside to Hayes on their first two possessions. Hayes finished with a career-high 22 points.

Ninety-seconds later, the Hoosiers were in a 41-26 hole.

Indiana got within 12, but then Kentucky went on its second 9-0 run of the half and suddenly the Hoosiers were down 54-31 with 12:30 to go and the game was over.

"Guys are looking for each other," Smith said. "When we get that balanced scoring and that balanced play, we're very tough to beat."

Kentucky never gave Indiana another chance.

Bracey Wright finished with 23 points and all six of the Hoosiers' 3-pointers, but he was 8 of 21 from the field. Sean Kline had 15 points. The Wildcats allowed the rest of the team to score three points.

It was a dominant display, one worthy of the No. 2 ranked team _ and one that is looking to move to No. 1 even if they don't talk about it openly.

"We were concerned about our exams, about staying healthy, about preparing for Indiana," Smith said. "We'll see how it all works out."