Thu Sep 02 2010
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) -- Kentucky coach John Calipari knew the hangover was coming. And he knew he couldn't stop it.
So rather than yell and scream after the third-ranked Wildcats slogged through the first 20 minutes against Long Beach State on Wednesday, less than 48 hours after celebrating the program's 2,000th win, Calipari simply challenged his players to shake it off.
"I've done this so long, there are certain things that you can expect," Calipari said. "On the game before Christmas following the 2,000th win where there is a celebration and people are going nuts, there is going to be a little bit of a letdown."
It only lasted a half.
The Wildcats took control late for a gritty if not exactly pretty 86-73 win, wearing down the 49ers in the second half to continue the program's best start in more than 30 years.
"We were able to grind it out, execute it to a T down the stretch," Calipari said.
The Wildcats (13-0) had to after the 49ers kept hanging around. Long Beach State (6-6) pulled within 58-55 with just over 11 minutes remaining before Kentucky finally asserted itself behind freshmen stars John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins.
Wall finished with 19 points while Cousins shook off early foul trouble to score 15 points and grab 10 rebounds in his sixth double-double of the season.
"He was the best player on the floor," Calipari said.
The trouble was keeping him in the game.
Cousins played just over two minutes in the first half after getting a personal foul and a technical foul after getting tangled up with Long Beach's Larry Anderson.
"He's still got a lot of growing up to do," Calipari allowed.
Cousins spent the rest of the half watching from the bench, and was soon joined by Wall and junior forward Patrick Patterson.
Their absence allowed the 49ers to scrap to a 37-all tie at the break.
Even when the trio returned to start the second half, it took time for Kentucky to assume control. Long Beach even took the lead 46-44 on a putback by T.J. Robinson before the Wildcats started to wake up.
Eric Bledsoe, playing on a sore ankle, hit a 3-pointer to put Kentucky ahead, and Wall followed with a couple of free throws. The 49ers rallied to tie it at 51 before Kentucky's defense started to wear on them. Long Beach was playing its second game in just over 36 hours, having taken the redeye on Monday night following an 85-80 overtime loss to Loyola Marymount.
"They died at the end and they should have," Calipari said.
Having a focused and energized Cousins certainly helped. The 6-foot-11 center sparked a 12-4 surge with the kind of energetic play that has gotten him into trouble at times.
He managed to keep his emotions in check enough in the second half to help Kentucky continue its best start since winning the first 14 games of the 1977-78 season, which it capped with a national championship.
"When (Cousins) sets his mind to being a beast, you see what he can do," said Kentucky forward Ramon Harris.
Cousins scored five points during the burst and provided a defensive presence around the basket, forcing Long Beach to miss a handful of easy shots and go nearly 3 minutes without a field goal.
Long Beach went to a zone in hopes of saving its legs, but Wall exploited it for a 3-pointer that put Kentucky up 73-62, and Cousins followed with a layup. Darius Miller knocked down an open 3 to make it 78-64 and the Wildcats were finally in the clear.
Patterson added 15 points and 11 rebounds while Bledsoe finished with 11 points and five assists. Anderson and Stephan Gilling led Long Beach with 15 points each while Robinson had 13 points and 15 rebounds for the 49ers.
"We didn't back down, we battled," said Long Beach State coach Dan Monson. "They have that inside presence with Patterson and Cousins, a lot of ingredients."
Top 25
No. 14 Georgetown 86, Harvard 70
WASHINGTON -- Coming off its first loss of the season, No. 14 Georgetown was stuck in a something of a struggle against Harvard, tied late in the first half Wednesday.
That's when Chris Wright, Greg Monroe and the Hoyas seized control.
Led by Wright's career-high 34 points and Monroe's 16 points and 16 rebounds, and propelled by a half-ending 11-0 run, Georgetown pulled away to beat Harvard 86-70.
"We just outworked them today," said Monroe, last season's Big East rookie of the year.
The 6-foot-11 sophomore played a significant role in the game-changing spurt, with three rebounds, two blocks, two steals, an assist and a basket. By the time he and his teammates were done, a game that was 33-all with 3 1/2 minutes left in the half was 44-33 at halftime.
"We were never able, obviously, to recover," Harvard coach Tommy Amaker said.
Western Michigan 75, Northeastern 60
HONOLULU -- Alex Wolf scored 15 points and David Kool had 13 points and seven rebounds to lead Western Michigan to a 75-60 win over Northeastern in a Diamond Head Classic consolation game Wednesday.
The Broncos (5-5) shot 48 percent (24-of-50) from the field, including 63 percent (10-of-16) from behind the arc.
The Huskies (2-7) led early in the first half, but Western Michigan used a 7-0 run to turn a 9-8 deficit into a 15-9 lead and never trailed again.
Western Michigan's biggest lead came after Donald Lawson converted a 3-point play to make the score 70-48 with 6:48 to play.
Other Colleges
Indiana St. 72, IUPUI 59
Dwayne Lathan scored 18 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds to lead Indiana State to a 72-59 win over Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis on Wednesday.
Jordan Printy finished with 12 points for the Sycamores (8-3), who won their third straight game.
The Jaguars (9-4) cut Indiana State's lead down to 49-45. But Printy hit his third 3-pointer of the game with 7 minutes to play then hit another 3 about a minute later to give the Sycamores a 55-49 lead.
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