John Calipari wouldn’t go as far as to call himself a “master psychologist” with this year’s freshman-laden team, but there’s no doubt he’s had to put together one of his most interesting coaching jobs in his 21-year tenure.With the spotlight continually centered on a team full of personalities and youth, he’s had to play the role of nurturer, babysitter, disciplinarian and psychiatrist in addition to the Xs and Os of coaching.But like any proud papa, there comes a time when one has to let his kids go and fight on their own. Saturday at Vanderbilt will be that day, even if it’s only for 20 minutes. In Memorial Gymnasium, one of the quirkiest, most unique arenas in all of college basketball, the benches sit behind the baskets as opposed to the sidelines. That means for a half, when Kentucky is going the opposite way of its coach, they’ll be on an island of their own. Communication between the coach and players is basically non-existent for that half when the players’ backs are to their coach and the raucous crowd at Memorial starts to roar.”They have yet to lose in their building so we know what we’re up against,” Calipari said. “I talked to one coach in the league and he said it is really hard because in the first half you aren’t able to speak to your team, and if they turn around to look at you, they get the ball stolen. I’m telling John Wall and Eric (Bledsoe) they are going to have to run the team. They are just going to have to do it.”Saturday’s game will present the toughest road obstacle Kentucky has faced all season. The Commodores are 13-0 on their home floor this season and 59-7 over the last four years. They’ve won four straight over the Cats in Nashville, including a 93-52 shellacking two years ago.Here’s the scary part: This Vanderbilt team is better than those previous four and sits just one game back of UK atop the Southeastern Conference standings. “They’re very good,” senior forward Ramon Harris said. “You see they went into Ole Miss last night and won in a tough environment. Ole Miss, that’s a hard place to play away.”Now the Commodores are on their home floor, a place they rarely lose. The majority of the wins are a credit to head coach Kevin Stallings’ teams, but there’s no doubt the peculiar setting creates an additional advantage for the home squad. In addition to the baseline benches, the court is elevated above the first few rows of seating and the beams that attach to the support columns for the basket sit much farther back than most basketball goals.”The most different thing is how it’s set up,” sophomore guard Darius Miller said. “It’s like you’re playing on a stage.”Maybe not the biggest stage freshmen guards Wall and Bledsoe have played on this year, but certainly the most unique. Without their coach in their peripheral vision, it’ll be up to the Kentucky’s youth to direct the offense. “I told them they won’t be able to hear me in the first half and they said, ‘Really? Good,’ ” Calipari said. “They were happy.”Calipari has earned a reputation for being a hands-off coach who lets his players play at times, but he’s been more hands-on with this team than any other in his career because of the inexperience. The first-year UK coach said he’s called more timeouts this year than he ever has, which leaves to question how he’ll handle the first half when his team will be at the other end of the court.”I think it’ll be good in a way because guys can just play and go out and try to execute the game plan,” Harris said. “At the same time, if the coaches see something that’s going to work, if you can’t hear them, we can either score or we can’t.”Harris admitted that the lack of communication played a role in some of the mishaps in years past but said they won’t use hand signals this year. But if they aren’t going to use hand signals and will have trouble communicating verbally, what does Calipari have up his sleeve?”We’ve been working on mental telepathy,” Calipari joked. “I’m not sure that’s something that we can go to, but we’re trying.”The Cats will need something special to counter the “Memorial Magic” and undefeated home streak of the ‘Dores in yet another Super Bowl-like atmosphere. As Stallings alluded to Friday, it’s one of the biggest games of the year for the city of Nashville because it’s the closest Vanderbilt has been to the top of the standings this late in the season in a long time.”This is a big game every year that we play it,” Stallings said. “Everybody enjoys when Kentucky comes into town. I just wish that you were given two wins if you win instead of just one.” With all the eccentricities that Memorial Gymnasium presents, it might feel like two wins if the Cats can do something that no other team has done this season and squeeze out a victory in the opera-like setting.”I like going on the road,” Harris said. “I like playing in other people’s gym. I just think it’s fun. That’s what’s college basketball is about, going to a new town, a rough environment and coming out with a win.” However, Calipari was quick to caution the players about building up the first-place showdown too much. As coach, psychiatrist, nurturer, disciplinarian and babysitter, it’s his job to make sure the youth of Kentucky approaches every game the same.”You can’t ask these guys to charge mountains every game, and I don’t,” Calipari said. “We approach every game like it’s the same because if you want to try and win them all you will lose to a team you’re not supposed to lose to.”