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Calipari thrilled with Kentucky's hustle plays in close win

John Calipari has sometimes said that his team might learn more from a loss than a win, but after surviving Georgia in a hostile road environment he seemed happy to be on the right side of the ledger.


Brett Davis/USA Today Sports
Brett Davis/USA Today Sports

One of Georgia's stars and leaders, Yante Maten, left the game early in the first half with an injury. While Calipari is surely hoping for the best for Maten, in his mind the absence of the prolific scorer didn't diminish his Cats' accomplishment in Athens.

“And we go on the road and win a road game in our league," Calipari said. "I’m ecstatic. I’d rather learn from a close win than a loss."

He didn't even seem preoccupied with Isaiah Briscoe's struggles and, ultimately, his fifth foul.

"Yeah, and we won without him," Calipari said, joking that he told Briscoe that he was glad he fouled out so Kentucky could win the game, before acknowledging that he didn't really say that.

No, Calipari wasn't about to qualify this victory. In spite of relapsing in that category called second half defense, allowing Georgia to shoot 54.8-percent after halftime, Calipari just seemed happy, mostly, that his team found a way to win for a fourth straight time. Two of those wins, Alabama and now Georgia, have come on the road.

“I loved it. I loved it. We made free throws. We attacked. We didn’t look for easy plays," Calipari said.

This game had a street fight element to it. Never did it get completely out of hand, but Isaiah Briscoe had to be pulled back after getting tangled with a Bulldog and falling to the floor, and at some other moments the action got chippy.

There were times, Calipari said, when his players started to settle for fadeaways and the easier route of jump shots early in the shot clock.

"But I like the fact that De’Aaron missed two free throws and then came back and made eight in a row," he said. "I love the fact that Dom got his hands on a ball that Bam ran down and we called a timeout and score a basket. Those scramble plays, hustle plays."

Fox's clutch plays and scoring down the stretch was a major reason for Kentucky's win. So was Dominique Hawkins' characteristic hustle, not to mention his scoring, as Calipari mentioned. Then there was Mychal Mulder giving Kentucky the best minutes he ever has, Calipari said after the game.

As for Derek Willis? Another key contributor in the win.

“He did some good stuff today," Calipari said. "I mean, he’s getting more minutes now which gives him more opportunities to rebound. We also got a couple guys that I gotta sit down with and talk to and figure out."

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