CLEVELAND – The theories and strategies of how to beat Kentucky have been thrown out all year dating back to August when the Wildcats were handling pro teams in the Bahamas.You’ve got to spread them out, you need to hit a bunch of 3s, you need to score in transition, a physical team is one that can get the Wildcats out of their game, they said.”They gotta run out (of strategies) eventually,” junior forward Willie Cauley-Stein said prior to the Cats’ round of 32 game versus Cincinnati. “They try everything. You got to though. You can’t get mad at it. I would do the same thing.”Cincinnati’s physical style of ball was the latest to go toe to toe with undefeated Kentucky. Like the 35 teams before the Bearcats, it proved to not be enough, though despite UK leading by 19 points with just over one minute left in the game, some believe the Bearcats actually exposed vulnerability in Kentucky.Next up is No. 20/21 ranked and No. 5 seeded West Virginia, affectionately known as “Press Virginia” due to its full-court pressure defense applied on nearly every possession following both a made or missed basket.The Wildcats have faced multiple teams that have applied their press to them this year, namely Louisville and Arkansas, but many believe yet again that this may be the formula to finally crack the as-of-now unbreakable Kentucky will.”We know that they’re going to play hard and it’s going to be a physical game, and we have been preparing for that all weekend,” freshman guard Devin Booker said.Preparing for it and facing it are two different items, however. Against Arkansas in the SEC Tournament championship, Kentucky excelled against the Razorbacks’ press, scoring 78 points and cruising to victory in the second half. In that game, Andrew Harrison and Tyler Ulis combined for eight assists to just one turnover, and showed how effective two point guards on the floor simultaneously can be against a press.”With two point guards in most of the game it’s hard to press us,” Tyler Ulis said. “(Andrew Harrison) can get the ball, I can get the ball, Aaron and Book can also handle the pressure, and Trey (Lyles). It’s hard to press us, and then once we get in the open court it’s lobs.”Over the last five games, the two point guards have proven to be especially effective, distributing 37 assists to just 10 turnovers (3.7 assist-to-turnover ratio). Still, West Virginia, which leads the nation in turnovers forced and steals, didn’t think its press would be rendered ineffective against the Cats Thursday and that eventually it would take its toll on Kentucky physically.”I mean, everybody that we play, their guards, they can break the press – I mean at the beginning of the first half they might be making good decisions but then they don’t realize they don’t have enough depth on their bench and the second half is going to catch up,” West Virginia senior guard Gary Browne said. “Sometime during the game we can see it. We get real excited when things like that happen. I feel like the whole bench, the whole team can realize that and that’s when we know, we go harder and more aggressive.”Browne’s senior backcourt mate Juwan Staten echoed his sentiments on wearing the opponent down, saying the Mountaineers were the best conditioned team in the country, and used West Virginia’s tough, physical practices as an example.”Why wouldn’t it (work)?” Staten said. “We’ve been playing this way all year, we’ve had success against everybody no matter what style or what type of players they have. That’s the only way we play and it’s just up to us to make it work.”Similar to its bordering state to the east, Kentucky has worn teams down all season as well, typically occurring midway to late in the second half, as evidenced in gritty road wins at Florida, LSU and Georgia, as well as Saturday’s third-round NCAA Tournament victory over Cincinnati. Kentucky has also talked about the excitement of seeing the opposition begin to wither under fatigue.”It will be different because we have nine guys (Coach Cal) plays, rotating in and out, two point guards, a lot of people who can handle the ball so that’s going to be a little bit different with the rotation and stuff like that,” Ulis said.Another advantage for Kentucky in attacking West Virginia’s press will be the Wildcats’ size. Kentucky’s starting lineup stands at 6-foot-6, 6-6, 6-10, 6-11 and 7-0. The Cats also have three players coming off the bench standing at 6-6, 6-9 and 7-0. By comparison, West Virginia’s starters are 6-1, 6-1, 6-3, 6-7 and 6-9.”I don’t know what you do about that,” West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins said. “I’ve thought about that, but I haven’t really come up with an answer.””Sometimes you can’t dribble around the press, so it’s good for them to be able to pick it up and look over defenders, step through presses and stuff like that,” Ulis said. One seemingly distinct advantage of the press for Kentucky is that it speeds up the game and the Wildcats have flourished in fast-paced games. Of the seven games Kentucky has played ending in regulation that have featured 70 or more possessions, the Wildcats have outscored their opponents by 34.0 points per game. West Virginia, for its part, has played in 13 such games and has the 29th-fastest adjusted tempo in the country, according to KenPom.com.”I think we enjoy just playing, period,” Aaron Harrison said. “In fast-paced games – yeah, I do think we enjoy fast-paced games.”Now, West Virginia’s method of answering the question that no team has been able to answer will be put to the test. How do you beat Kentucky? The Mountaineers say it’s all about their press, and Coach Cal says they won’t stray away from that Thursday.”I said what (Huggins has) done with this team, incredible,” Calipari said. “And again, he’s taken kids, they’ve gotten better individually and they’ve come together and say here’s the style we can win with, and that’s how they’re playing and they won’t get away from it, that’s who they are. The players now have taken great pride in it.”