CLEVELAND – In the days leading up to Kentucky’s matchup versus West Virginia, it was often asked how Kentucky’s offense would fare against West Virginia’s No.1 turnover-inducing defense.As everyone saw, it did just fine, doubling up the Mountaineers 78-39 in front of a sold-out Quicken Loans Arena on Thursday night.Now just one game away from its fourth Final Four berth in the past six seasons, the question for Kentucky has reversed from how its offense will handle the opposition’s defense, to how the Wildcats’ defense will do against Notre Dame’s offense.”Defense is our first priority as a team and that’s what we pride ourselves in is being a defensive team,” freshman forward Trey Lyles said. “I think that tomorrow going out against a great offensive team is just going to pick it up even more for us.”That defense was on full display against West Virginia. UK scored 18 of the game’s first 20 points and held the Mountaineers to just 19.2-percent shooting in the first half. The second half wasn’t much better, as West Virginia didn’t hit a basket in the second half until 8:42 had ticked off the clock.Such numbers aren’t expected again against the Irish. Notre Dame enters Saturday’s showdown third nationally in offensive efficiency, according to KenPom.com, is the No. 1 2-point shooting team in the country, is No. 2 in effective field-goal percentage and No. 3 in offensive turnover percentage.”They’re very precise,” Lyles said. “They run their plays, they run everything they’re supposed to, to the pinpoint. We just have to go out there and try to disrupt it in any way we can.”After Notre Dame shot 75 percent in the second half against Wichita State and hit nine 3-pointers in the Sweet 16, junior forward Willie Cauley-Stein said Kentucky would have to try to hold them to about half that number.Two big cogs – literally – in doing that will be he and Lyles. While Cauley-Stein’s defensive prowess is well documented, Lyles’ defense has paired up quite nicely with the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year to form a formidable 6-foot-10 and 7-foot perimeter defense.”I think I’ve grown a lot in the defensive aspect of my game having to run around and guard guys who are 6-foot and 6-5, stuff like that,” Lyles said. “I feel like defensively my game has developed a lot more than any other area.”He and Cauley-Stein will likely have to face Notre Dame All-America guard Jerian Grant and swingman Pat Connaughton at points during the game, who combined to average 29.2 points, 10.5 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game.”It’s going to bring that competitiveness out,” Cauley-Stein said. “But then it’s also going to make you cautious. They got the reputation of being a really good offensive team. Well, we got the reputation of being a really good defensive team.”By really good defensive team, Cauley-Stein means historically good. Currently, Kentucky’s defense ranks No. 1 nationally in adjusted efficiency, effective field-goal percentage and 3-point percentage, and No. 2 in 2-point percentage and block percentage.Not to be forgotten, the Cats have the sixt- most efficient offense, averaging 115.4 points per 100 possessions. So how do you stop a team with such balance?”I don’t know if someone has to play a perfect game,” UK head coach John Calipari said. “My team knows that every team that’s left playing can beat us, we know that. Somebody talked about perfection. We’re not perfect; we’re undefeated. I mean, we should have lost five or six games. I mean, easily could have lost those games. And we were lucky enough to win, stay undefeated. We’re not perfect.”In order for UK’s record to remain perfect it will have to continue to guard the 3-point line with the same stingy effort that it has all season. The Irish average over eight made 3-pointers per game while hitting over 39 percent of its attempts. Connaughton averages 2.49 3s per game by himself, and has hit 42.6 percent of his attempts, while Demetrius Jackson is a 43.2-percent outside shooter and V.J. Beachem has hit 41.6 percent and Steve Vasturia is hitting 40.6 percent.”I think that we just have to force them to drive and take tough 2s because, really, it’s tough to take 2s against us,” sophomore guard Aaron Harrison said. “I think a team could beat us by hitting a lot of 3s, if we let them take ’em. So that’s why we’re definitely pressuring them and making them drive.”The differences between Notre Dame and West Virginia aren’t limited to each team’s offensive abilities. While West Virginia led the country in fouls per game, Notre Dame commits the sixth fewest. With all that said, Coach Cal said Kentucky will stick to what it has all year: itself, and being the best version of themselves.”You know, the thought of playing fast or pressing, playing slower, I don’t know. How do you play when you play your best?” Coach Cal said in regards to the season-long question of how a team must play in order to beat Kentucky. “But here’s the great thing, our team’s not worried about that, we just don’t want to help them. So let’s make sure we’re at our best, we’re the best version of ourselves, we know how we want to play. … this is the same kind of game, you can’t help Notre Dame. If you do, you’re going to lose because they’re that good.”