LEXINGTON, Ky. _ If there has been a pivotal moment in this Kentucky season, Immanuel Quickley suggested it happened at Arkansas last Saturday. That's when UK breathed life into the concept of a player-driven team.
John Calipari's ejection in the second half essentially removed the driver from what would be a coach-driven team.
"We had to kind of look each other in the eye and see if everybody was going to give everything they had," Quickley said. "And they did."
In previewing UK's game at No. 18 Texas Tech on Saturday, Calipari spoke of a transformation being made to a player-driven team.
"When you're player-driven now, which they are, they have to handle more of this," he said, "and not count on me to step in and save the day."
Calipari said he and the coaching staff can help. "But it's their team," he said.
Texas Tech presents the dual challenges of a hostile environment and what Calipari said was a "different" approach to the game. The UK coach spoke of the Red Raiders switching on screens with every player but the center, pressing with either token or determined pressure, using zone and man-to-man defenses, trapping and being "handsy" when defending drivers.
Calipari welcomed Texas Tech's different approach, he said, because it can serve as a warm-up or rehearsal for NCAA Tournament competition. March Madness features unfamiliar opponents.
"I love this game," Calipari said.
This preview or rehearsal might be more important than usual because it comes in a season marked by parity. Opponents must be dealt with rather than overwhelmed.
"I think seeding does not matter," Calipari said of the 2020 NCAA Tournament. "This is one of those years that I'm not going to say a whole lot about seeding where in past years I would say seeding matters."
Calipari said he did not see a dominant big man that could skew the competitive balance in college basketball this year.
When asked to name the toughest defenses UK had faced this season, Quickley mentioned Michigan State and Louisville.
"But I'm sure Texas Tech will be right up there with them," he added. "Just by how hard they play. Physical. Tough. We've been preparing for it all week."
Of course, a victory over a ranked opponent in a "true" road game would enhance Kentucky's NCAA Tournament resume. Quickley downplayed such long-term implications.
Of speculation about seeding and bracketing, he said, "You see it every now and then on, like, Twitter and ESPN. We just try to stay focused on every next game. If you can have that mentality at the end of the season, you'll be where you want to be as far as seeding and things like that."
If a teammate strays from this mindset, then that's when the player-driven approach can come into play.
Quickley said such a moment of player addressing another player happened last season with PJ Washington, uh, advising Ashton Hagans.
And one of the more memorable examples of such exchanges happened a few seasons ago when Tyler Ulis gave Skal Labissiere a get-with-it cuff on the shoulder during a timeout huddle.
"We need things like that," Quickley said. "That's what's going to get us through tough games."
As for the hostile environment UK anticipates at Texas Tech, it would be hard to believe anything the Red Raiders serve up can be any more challenging than what unfolded at Arkansas.
Calipari ejected. Hagans _ who had been described as the heartbeat of this UK team _ saddled with a fourth foul at the 15-minute mark of the second half.
Then there was a crowd so loud that Quickley put a finger in each ear.
"That was probably the loudest building I've ever been in," he said of Bud Walton Arena. "... So, for us to come out with a win in an environment like that was good."
During a Big 12 teleconference earlier in the week, coaches spoke of the Texas Tech environment being challenging.
"I think we're really well-prepared," Quickley said.
Calipari seemed to agree. "I think we'll fight," he said.
