MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The catch phrase in Kentucky's camp has been of ''stepping up,'' applying extra effort in the wake of injuries and losses. The only place that doesn't apply is a ladder.
The Wildcats refused to climb one to cut The Pyramid's nets down Sunday after winning the Southeastern Conference tournament title. As they begin defense of their NCAA Tournament title, they immediately downplayed Sunday's success.
''We've got bigger goals,'' said UK senior forward Jared Prickett, who has won four SEC tourney titles. ''We didn't want to celebrate this too much. Every year we've cut down the nets before, we didn't win the NCAAs.''
UK learned its NCAA draw after it left The Pyramid, but players and coaches alike seemed satisfied with the No. 1 regional seed it had effectively locked up. UK (30-4) earned that spot in the West Regional and begins play Thursday in Salt Lake City against Montana, which earned the Big Sky's automatic berth. Game times will be announced today.
''More important (than seeding) is I saw a difference in the way we played the last few games,'' UK coach Rick Pitino said. ''This whole year has been a surprise. I didn't know we were capable of playing this well.''
UK underwent almost a complete roster turnover since its NCAA title last April, but it still earned its share of preseason hype. To hear them tell it, the players got their spark in their first game, an overtime loss to Clemson in Indianapolis.
''I think we were too big for our britches,'' Prickett said. ''Clemson woke us up, and everyone came back to earth and started playing good, solid basketball.''
UK hasn't appeared in the West Regional since 1985, and that placement surprised some experts who had the Wildcats headed to the Southeast. But it was a favorable draw.
Third-ranked Utah is the
next-highest seed in the West, but the Utes might fear a matchup with UK. The Wildcats beat Utah 101-70 in a Midwest Regional semifinal last season.
Pitino said before the draw was announced that he didn't care where UK headed.
''All you see is a basketball court and a hotel,'' he said. ''It won't matter to us.''
UK enters the tournament in relative good health and with an ever-deepening bench. Role players like Cameron Mills (30 points the past two games) and demoted starter Anthony Epps (40 points the past two games) have helped balance the scoring load.
''We know teams are going to be focused on stopping Ron (Mercer), but if four or five people are scoring, we'll be in great shape,'' Epps said. ''Nobody imagined Cameron having the past two games he's had.''
Should seedings hold, UK would play North Carolina in a national semifinal and wouldn't play
top-ranked Kansas until the title game.
''We certainly don't have the talent we did last year,'' Pitino said. ''But we've been outstanding three straight games. If we can carry this into the tournament, we should do real well.''
MONTANA SHEEP FOR SLAUGHTER March 10, 1997
UK 95, GEORGIA 68 March 10, 1997
MEN'S BRACKET
Tournament stories
UK 88, MISSISSIPPI 70 March 9, 1997
UK 92, AUBURN 50 March 8, 1997
PITINO SEEKS BETTER SHOOTING, FEWER FOULS March 7, 1997
CATS START TOURNEY AS PAPER TIGERS March 6, 1997
CATS HAVE NINE LINEUPS March 5, 1997
SEC FINAL: UK-CAROLINA? March 3, 1997
