The only races Matthew Mitchell, Victoria Dunlap and A’dia Mathies are campaigning for this year is a Southeastern Conference championship and an invitation to the NCAA Tournament.But in the process of getting there, the coach and his dynamic duo are making a pretty strong case for themselves. They may not want to brag about it, but allow me to be the one to campaign for them. Consider this my party nominations for UK Hoops: On my midseason ballot I’m putting Matthew Mitchell for SEC Coach of the Year, Victoria Dunlap for SEC Player of the Year and A’dia Mathies for SEC Freshman of the Year. That’s quite a potential sweep right there. Sure, it’s pretty lofty expectations, but for a team that was picked in the preseason to finish 11th in the conference, a lot has to go right,  both for the team and individually, to sit in sole possession of second place midway through the conference slate.”That is the thing that has impressed me about our players up to this point is that they have not grown weary of doing the little things that we need to do in order to be successful,” Mitchell said Friday. “As a coach you get concerned about that because it is a pretty simple formula for us. As a coach, part of your job is to be concerned about those things and make certain that you keep them focused.”Mitchell and his players don’t have the time to be focused about end-of-the-year awards. The only thing the Cats want them for is icing for the cake. But in making the batter and fixing this program, those three Cats have earned the right to be mentioned in the annual award races as we gear up for the second half of the season.Dunlap, for all intents and purposes, has been the most dominating player in the SEC this season. She’s third in scoring (17.6 ppg), third in rebounding (8.8) and amazingly for a low-post player, first in the league – and second in the nation – in steals (3.4).What’s been the most encouraging attribute from Dunlap this season has been her consistency. On a team with a relative lack of size and depth in the paint, she’s been unstoppable against double and sometimes triple teams. In years past, where she showed flashes of potential, now she puts on a consistent 40 minutes of domination. Even when she plays bad, she still goes for a double-double.”She never stops,” Mitchell said. “I was watching the Arkansas game today and she just had a miserable first 25 minutes and then turned it on. A lot of players would get down and would get discouraged.”The Dunlap of old might have. The Dunlap of new, the one in the mix for Player of the Year honors, finished the game with 22 points and eight rebounds.”She has a lot of character,” Mitchell said.What’s helped her maybe more than anything is that she no longer has to be the main focus of the offense. If Dunlap didn’t score last season, Kentucky was left for dead. Now Dunlap doesn’t have to go off for 25 for the Cats to win.She has a shoulder to lean on in Mathies, a freshman sensation.”It takes pressure off of me to not have to score and make every basket,” Dunlap said. “I can give it to my teammates and they will make baskets now, too.” Mathies came in and scored right away for the Cats, notching four straight games in double figures to start her UK career.”A’dia is the definition of a difference maker,” Mitchell said. “She’s made a tremendous impact on our team.”While she’s propelled herself to second among SEC freshmen in scoring at 12.1 points per game after a career-high 21 points against Ole Miss on Thursday night, it’s been her ability to do the little things of late that has led to the Cats’ longest winning streak in SEC play in school annals.”It is remarkable to see a freshman function at that level,” Mitchell said of Mathies, who is first among SEC freshman in steals (2.2 spg). “She has been a lot of fun to coach. She pulled the biggest defensive assignment last night in the top scorer in the league (Bianca Thomas) and we didn’t hesitate to put her on her. We didn’t know what she would do exactly but we knew she would give a good effort. She is doing a really good job.”But maybe nobody in the league – player, coach or towel girl – is doing their job better than Mitchell. In just a year’s span, he’s taken a team that could hardly field five starters and raised them from the depths of the SEC to a game behind first-place Tennessee.
The fact that he’s taken the second-worst team in the SEC, according to a poll conducted in the preseason by the coaches (laughable in its own sense considering the talent on this team), and not only made it respectable but put it in contention for a league title, makes him the early favorite to win Coach of the Year honors.Heck, if I were given a ballot at the end of the year, it isn’t even close. He’s a shoo-in. Mitchell’s greatest achievement to date has been keeping his kids humble and hungry. With a roster that includes two Miss Kentucky Basketball stars Rebecca Gray and Mathies, veterans Amani Franklin, Amber Smith and Dunlap, and impact transfers Crystal Riley and Keyla Snowden, Mitchell could conceivably have too many stars. Yet somehow he’s found a way to weave 12 players together while keeping everyone happy with the minutes and the shots they’re given. He’s fostered an attitude of unselfishness from the players to buy in the greater belief of the team.In this “me! me! me!” society, it’s refreshing to watch players put their team and teammates before themselves. It’s one of the reasons UK has been so successful this year. Credit Mitchell with spreading that belief and keeping the Cats focused despite a wave of attention and success.With how well UK has played to this point, the trio of Mitchell, Dunlap and Mathies deserve to be in the consideration for the year-ending awards, which is an amazing feat for this Kentucky team. If the SEC were the U.S. government, it’d be like one of 12 parties – we’re not just talking about Republicans and Democrats now – sweeping the executive office, Senate and House of Representatives.They’ve been that good.If the Cats had to choose between an SEC championship and individual achievements, it isn’t even close – they’re taking the team honors. But the individual play and coaching of some is what’s fueled the greater good of the team.Now that the team is finally getting the respect that it deserves, isn’t it time the people that got them there get the recognition that they deserve?”I don’t even know yet,” Dunlap said. “We have good nights, but we also miss small things like layups and turning the ball over. It is mind-blowing to know how great we have played but that we can still get even better.”Spoken like someone who’s in it for the greater good. That, to me, sounds like a winner.