In our regular postgame feature, the Cats Illustrated staff offers its first impressions from Kentucky's 91-83 win on Saturday at Missouri. Each staff member will share his three main takeaways from the game.

JEFF DRUMMOND:

1. You don't want to see Kentucky walking into your house on Senior Day. This makes three straight years that the Wildcats have spoiled the opponent's emotional send-off after previously knocking off Arkansas and Tennessee the last two years. All three were ranked teams that seemed to elevate UK's level of play.

2. Andrew Carr was huge. This was the player that UK fans were so excited about getting when Carr transferred from Wake Forest this summer. Seemingly back to full health now after battling lower back issues earlier this season, Carr recorded 16 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two blocked shots, and a steal in 34 minutes of action. He seemed to be in the middle of the action every time UK needed something to keep Mizzou at bay in the final 4-5 minutes.

3. It may not seem that way when the opponent scores 83 points, but Kentucky's defense continues to improve. A really good Mizzou offensive team was kept from doing two of the three main things it likes to do: score in transition and feast at the free-throw line. The Cats won the transition points column 14-8 and the battle of getting to the line 33-21.

DAVID SISK:

1. There were certain things Kentucky had to do to get a win at Missouri. One was not get dominated on the foul line. Kentucky ended up shooting 12 more free throws than the Tigers. The turnovers were also even at 10, and the Cats actually got one more point off turnovers than the home team.

2. Kentucky’s first five were so balanced. They had 77 of the 91 points. Lamont Butler had eight points, but he steadies the ship so much when he is playing the point. Colin Chandler played a very solid game off the bench. Today was a perfect storm for Kentucky. It was one of the best games they have played all season.

3. This is a good momentum builder going into the postseason. A 10-8 SEC record did not look like a probability for the last couple of weeks. But they closed by winning three of four. The wins at Oklahoma and Missouri were tough ones. It looks like Mark Pope knows what the lineup looks like, and has settled on his rotations even as tough as it has been to do that.

TRAVIS GRAF:

1. What a huge win for Kentucky on the road against a team that’s been dominant at home. That’s the ultimate momentum builder heading into postseason play. Kentucky seems primed to make some type of run in Nashville.

2. Don’t want to pump my chest much, but my MVP pick of Andrew Carr was spot on. If Carr plays like this Kentucky’s going to be a tough out in March. He’s the ultimate X-Factor on this team over the next month.

3. The rotation is getting cut down, and it’s a great thing moving forward. The starters all played around 30 minutes per game and the bench rotational players played fewer minutes than they have lately. Look for Kentucky to improve their play with a shortened rotation.