Which Kentucky player has the longest streak of consecutive double-figure scoring games this season?Would you believe Ryan Harrow (with eight)?And after two scoreless games last week in losses at Florida and Tennessee, Harrow says a meeting with head coach John Calipari led to a different mindset going into Wednesday’s matchup with Vanderbilt.”I was just more aggressive. He told me he needed me to take shots because when I’m aggressive, everybody else is aggressive and the flow of the game is better,” Harrow told reporters after the Vandy win.Harrow was replaced in the starting lineup at Tennessee but after urging from his teammates and others to be more assertive, he went to his coach to ask for his starting spot back.”I called my mom before and told her I was nervous. My hands were sweaty,” Harrow said of the anticipation for his one-on-one session with Cal. “He listened to what I had to say and he had the answers for me. I felt like I grew up a little bit.”Harrow says Calipari can be intimidating because “he has the final decision.”Cauley-Stein’s shooting improving with confidenceWillie Cauley-Stein has displayed a much-improved free-throw shooting stroke recently and even knocked a jumper from the high post in the Vandy game. Calipari says there’s no secret to improving a flawed skill.”They have to build their own self-esteem and their own confidence. It doesn’t matter what I say; it’s what they believe in their minds. If a guy is confident, there’s nothing anybody can say to take that away,” Calipari said on a recent UK radio network pregame show, “because it’s been built over time, with hard work. It’s hard to have confidence when you haven’t put in the time.”Former Cat Bogans a Nets favoriteDuring a pregame chat with CBS’ Ian Eagle last Saturday at Tennessee, I learned that former Wildcat Keith Bogans is a big hit with the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, because of his team-first attitude.”What really stands out about him is he’s a ‘glue guy,’ ” Eagle said on “The Leach Report” radio show Monday. “Teams like having them around. They’re good for chemistry. They can relate to the superstars and the young guys. He (Bogans) has been the bridge for this team.”’68 Cats a model for late-season surgesCoach Cal is preaching a message to his team that the Cats can still write their own story on this season – and make it a memorable one with a strong finish.And the 1968 team would be a good source of inspiration.In late January, the ’68 Cats lost by 20-plus points at Tennessee (UK’s worst loss ever to the Volunteers until last weekend). That defeat was the second in a row and third in four games for a Kentucky relying heavily on youth, with three players on their first year with the varsity serving in starting roles (Dan Issel, Mike Pratt, Mike Casey).All they did was respond to that blowout loss in Knoxville with 12 straight wins, taking them all the way to the Mideast Regional final, where they missed out on a Final Four berth because of a last-second shot by Ohio State.

Related Stories

View all