DAVID SISK:

1. Tonight’s game proved there was more than one way to skin a cat. With the exception of Duke, the competition has consisted of pushovers. The Cats needed somebody to fight back. Western Kentucky had a good gameplan against Zoom and handoff action. They also had the perimeter athleticism to defend. Kentucky countered by going through the post quite a bit more. It wasn’t a thing of beauty, but there are going to be those kind of nights when shots don’t fall. It was important for the Cats to win a game with a methodical style.

2. Andrew Carr was effective tonight in a game in which the playing style needed him to come up big. He had 18 points and 10 rebounds. He showed toughness by demanding the ball and then going through the post defender with strong finishes. He also played a part in fouling out Babacar Faye.

3. Western Kentucky was athletic, but not overly skilled. Defensively, UK’s numbers were solid although the offense gets the attention. 68 points on 32% shooting will win lots of games. The Cats still haven’t given up over 72 points in a game this year. They are also quietly only allowing 36.47% shooting this year which currently puts them 23rd in the country.

JEFF DRUMMOND:

1. I thought that may have been as sloppy a first half as Kentucky can play under Mark Pope, and the Cats still put 45 points on the board. That shows you how strong the system is. Bad halves in the recent past used to be 20-something scores at the break.

2. In the Cats' two most competitive games this season, Andrew Carr seems to be the "glue guy" making plays when UK needs them most. He finished with an impressive double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, and also chipped in with three assists.

3. Not a great night for Kentucky's bigs, who didn't seem to adjust to the Hilltoppers' smaller, scrappy lineups. WKU had Amari Williams scouted really well and made it difficult for him to do his typical playmaker work at the 5. He had an atypical six turnovers that overshadowed what wound up being a decent line of eight points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, and three assists.

TRAVIS GRAF:

1. Before this game, I thought that Kentucky would finally not cover the spread for the first time this season. Coming into tonight, they were 5-0 against the spread, but I thought the 24.5 points they were laying was a bit much against a well-coached, mature, in-state team.

2. Western Kentucky did a great job of defending certain components of Kentucky’s offense but the Wildcats did a good job of changing up their plans to attack the defense. Shots weren’t falling, there were turnovers and sloppy segments, but Kentucky adjusted and still scored 87 points against a solid team.

3. It’s nice to have some big men on the roster who can pass and initiate from the top of the key, but a lot of the team’s turnovers came from the bigs trying to create up top. That’s something the team will have to live with from time to time as it’s a huge component of the offense. However, I can see passing from the top of the key being a problem against SEC length.

JUSTIN ROWLAND:

1. UK looked less otherworldly on offense tonight. But nobody is going to look incredible every night. They were sloppier than we've been them for most of this year and you also have to credit WKU for pressuring them into some mistakes. The bar for what constitutes an "ugly" game has certainly been raised, but this was that.

2. Andrew Carr was effective on a night when not many others were efficient. Carr is a great piece to have because he can do so many things. Defend multiple positions. Crash the boards. Step out and knock down shots. Post up mismatches. It's not always sexy but he can do a lot.

3. Otega Oweh is a little like Carr in that he can do a lot of things for the team, and Kentucky relied on him heavily in the second half to keep the Hilltoppers at bay. Most of Oweh's teammates were cold coming out of the locker room but he gave the Cats needed offensive punch to keep this one comfortable.