They Let The 'cats Out Of The Bag

"Doesn't that fire you up?" McKenzie inquired.

"Awwwww, nawwww."

"Don't you want to eat Robey's lunch?" McKenzie pressed on.

"Awwww, nawwww. I'm gonna do that anyway," Douglas concluded.

In comparison, the visiting Wildcats were a highly charged lot. The Kentucky seniors kept calling the game "the last hurrah," and Hall worried about rebounding. " 'Bama has torpedoes for jumpers," he said.

" Alabama isn't that good outside," Grevey demurred. "We have to be as physical as possible. So what if we foul? They'll make their normal 60% from the line, and our reserves will wear them out."

That is exactly what Kentucky did. And it did it by being especially dominant in that elusive quality known as character. Alabama showed an unwillingness to take the game in hand when it had the opportunity. In the first half 'Bama had nine one-and-one free throw chances and missed the first shot six times. Of a possible 23 points at the foul line, the Tide made only eight.

Then there was Douglas' intimidation, Grevey's benching, the 12-point lead and all that pressure on the invaders. Still, the home team could not come through.

"I felt we had it won all along," said Guyette. "We've been there before."

So, alas, has Alabama.