There’s something about the fast break that captures the imagination of Kentucky fans. They appreciate good basketball no matter the style, but the roar in Rupp Arena sounds just a little bit different for an open-floor slam dunk than a well-executed half-court score. With John Calipari’s team this year, the Big Blue Nation may have met its match.With dynamic athletes at every position, UK has gotten transition buckets off steals, blocks and rebounds in racing to a perfect 5-0 to start the 2011 season. Try as their opponents might to force them into slow-paced games, the Wildcats have no intention of cutting down on the pace with freshman point guard Marquis Teague leading the way.”I’m comfortable in both, but I prefer up-tempo,” Teague said. “I’m pretty fast and I like to get up and down the floor. My teammates are long and athletic and can finish in the open court and I think that’s the way we’d rather play.”The numbers bear out Teague’s sentiment so far this season. The Cats have played an average of 71.8 total possessions per game in five games this season, over five possessions up from the 66.6 the half-court oriented 2010-11 did and a possession more per game than the John Wall-led UK team in 2009-10.In its last outing, UK used a quick strike attack to overcome an at times disjointed offensive performance against Radford, scoring 88 points in spite of appearing out of sync most of the game. Eighteen of those points came directly off fast breaks.”We’re getting more comfortable with everything so it’s a lot easier for us to push the ball up and down the floor,” Teague said. “Everything is a lot smoother for us than it was for our first game. We still have a lot to work on but we’re getting better every day.”The next team set to try to cope with Teague and his running mates is Portland (2-3) as the Pilots visit Rupp for a matchup at 7 p.m. Saturday. UK faced Portland a year ago in Portland, winning 79-48 in a game played primarily in the half-court.Like most of UK’s past opponents, Portland will almost certainly look to slow things down again, but it’s not going to be an easy proposition this time around. What makes the Cats so dangerous is the fact that nearly everyone of Calipari’s regulars can run, jump and score, so much so that Teague can’t even pick a favorite teammate to run alongside him on the break.”Any of them,” Teague said. “I know any one of them can do a great finish at the rim so it really doesn’t matter when you’re on a team like this.”The main challenge for Teague in orchestrating UK’s attack is understanding when it’s time to attack and when he’s better served backing off in pursuit of a better shot. He has progressed significantly already, evidenced by a five-assist, zero-turnover performance in the 48-point win over Radford, but his game and the way he runs the team are still works in progress.”It’s a learning experience for him,” freshman forward Kyle Wiltjer said. “There are a lot of responsibilities at point guard and Coach Cal is doing a great job of coaching him through it. Every day in practice is a learning opportunity for us and especially at the point guard position.”Wiltjer isn’t the first player that comes to mind on Kentucky’s roster as a player who would seem poised to thrive in the full court, but he has already shown himself more than capable of doing just that. He can both finish at the rim and has also served as a trailer on the break with his dead-eye shooting ability. He credits his pre-UK background and the willingness of his teammates to create for each other as the reason why he fits in.”My AAU team played very similar, got up and down so I really like it,” Wiltjer said. “We have such unselfish players, that’s the reason why I’m able to thrive in it. When you have a bunch of good players who are willing to pass the ball, the sky’s the limit.”All the athleticism is great for an up-tempo style, but it doesn’t mean much unless the Cats can’t get the ball in positions to start the break. What will really make UK a dangerous open-floor team is the defense.Behind freshman forward Anthony Davis (22 blocks) and sophomore forward Terrence Jones (11 blocks), UK leads the nation in blocks per game by two full swats. Those blocks turn into instant offense if they land in the hands of the right Wildcat and the same goes for the 7.6 steals UK has tallied per game. Perhaps most importantly, UK leads the nation in defensive rebounds per game with 32.6 and the Cats have been very dangerous off those boards.”Our defense should be key for us just because it gets us a lot of easy opportunities on offense,” Wiltjer said.