Coaches Calipari & Pelphry greet pre-game
When DeMarcus Cousins was taken out of the game with less than two minutes of play it wasn’t because of poor playing, nor was it because of the dreaded fouls that he seems to collect. It was because he was missing the crowns on his front two teeth from an innocent play where Courtney Fortson’s forearm struck Cousins’ face on the way back down. He wanted to walk off the floor once he realized what had happened and he had teeth fragments in his mouth. The coaches expeditiously reminded him not to leave the playing area and get a technical. Once he had deposited the fragments on the bench and was cleared to play he actually thought he was going back in and became upset at the notion he wasn’t getting back into the game. 
How tough is that? Its about as tough as a kid who scores 16 pts & 14 rebs in 17 minutes by being two-downed and three-downed each time there is even a hint the ball is coming his way. I shouldn’t have to remind you that he didn’t react whatsoever to a solid lick to the face. Sadly I do. It seems on nearly every play he is getting hacked but its rarely called. Is it because he is so big and aggressive that the refs look the other way? Is it because of his reputation as being an unstable player on the court? Notice I said reputation because through the first 20 games of the season I have seen very little actual play that supports any of the misguided reports that he is a loose cannon. Rebound machine
Eric Bledsoe seems much more of a loose cannon than Cousins as he seems to always find the controversy when he is on the court and it seems to find him too. Dare I say if it weren’t for his pre-game antics at the Louisville game the early scrum may not have happened? I am beginning to start calling him the teams “spiritual” man as he seems to really get his entire emotional self into the game. While this sounds negative it could very well be the thing that gets his teammates hyped up without having to encounter the other side on a personal level like he does.
Darnell & Miller able to learn their roles better and Millers stroke was near perfect this night with 18 big pts, player of the game honors, and being the radio show guy. It was great seeing DeAndre whip out his membership card to the hustle club. He simply stuck the D so close to the Arkansas guards that it was obviously affecting the way they were able to interact with their teammates. The super hustle and diving to the floor making every 50-50 ball his created the turnovers that allowed the cats to push over the hogs this day. It’s obvious he has now worked his way into the magic 7 that Cal likes to rotate from even though it’s really a magic 9. Who would think that Cal would embellish something to prove a point? How great is it that it’s actually 9? I don’t see another team that deep out there currently. Total team hustle was everywhere as guys are trying to prove their worth to the team including guys like Harrellson who is a constant force when he gets into the game and of course Perry who had a nice dunk on his birthday. Happy Birthday Perry or “Per-Bear” as one sign read.
John Wall seems to have about as much fun as any wildcat I have ever seen. Always smiling & welcoming the pain infliction from the contact on his and-1s. He seems fearless in taking the ball to the rim knowing the consequences of such a drive is going to be at least a two man hack job to keep the basket from happening. This is clearly a resignation by most opposing coaches that he is going to do his thing and the only way to stop him is to hack him in the pre-shot drive. Similar to the reservation they are going to have to hack Cousins to death to try and limit his output. Wall does have a few questions as good as he is. The first is that I have been still seeing him stand flat footed on the defensive end when others are around the basket. Could he be trying to avoid an injury? It seems that he knows the system better than anyone on the team but is driving it a bit to enhance his style of play. I can see this slowly going away from the level it was happening early on. That could mean only one thing, he is maturing. As he gains wisdom it appears his skill level is growing too. Good decision making when under control. 
Patrick has been labeled the leader all season. There are still moments that his silent leadership role turns into a playful game of showing his teammates he is the de-facto leader of the entire blue army. As DeMarcus was stretching at the half court line right below our seats Pat ran over and said “move freshman”, “you heard me”. That’s when Cuz reluctantly gave up his position next to the scorers table and moved further out on the court. When Pat laid down to begin his stretching routine Cuz playfully pointed his gun finger at Patterson and told him how much he loved to move over for him. Arriving at the game incredibly early allows you to see some great interaction amongst the team. During the soft shoot around Pat was lip syncing to several of the rap tunes and was feeling the flow getting his teammates mentally loose while they were physically loosening up. It was pure pleasure seeing the whole team having so much fun together prepping for a game. 
"We're #1, We're #1, We're #1"
After an Arkansas pass deflection that was missed by the ref and called as a turnover for us the replay (which is usually limited to offense) shown in Rupp happened and the crowd showed their disapproval. As the ref approached the scorers table Cal loudly barked, “you missed that one & everybody in the building saw it” retrieving a rebuttal from the ref, “coach I am a ref and I miss one every now and again”. A chagrined Cal glowingly approved of the refs admission, “well I just want you to say to me is ‘hey coach I missed that one’, that’s all”. I love how this man gets inside the refs head on occasion even when the ref knowingly falls into the trap.
Big shout out to this games MVP Mammaw Foley!
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