By Neil Schmidt
The Cincinnati Enquirer

LOUISVILLE - Cliff Hawkins was humble in victory. There would be no gloating in what's, for him, a one-game season.

"I made some mistakes I shouldn't have, and I learned from them," Kentucky's junior point guard said Saturday, referring to being academically ineligible for fall semester. "I really applied myself in school, got some A's and B's. It hurt me not playing, so I did what I had to do to get back."

Saturday, he did what he had to do to help the Wildcats combat Indiana's sticky defense. Hawkins led UK with five assists and two steals with just one turnover in 26 minutes, adding four points and five rebounds.

"Cliff's able to break people down," Wildcats coach Tubby Smith said. "You saw his penetration. And his defense was good. He gave us a big lift."

Hawkins made an immediate impact. He entered the game with 12:45 left in the first half, and 11 seconds later, he had his first assist - whipping the ball upcourt for a Keith Bogans layup.

Hawkins' biggest play came with 1:05 left in the game, when he fed Jules Camara for an alley-oop that gave UK a one-point lead.

"That was an eye-contact thing," Camara said. "We do that all the time in practice."

Hawkins came off the bench Saturday, and Smith has been non-committal about when Hawkins might regain a starting spot.

Hawkins said he's not trying to rush anything.

"I didn't try to go in and do too much today," he said. "For now, I just want to let the game come to me."

LINEUP CHANGE

Smith started Erik Daniels in place of Camara on Saturday. He gave no indication if it was a permanent move.

"I thought we needed Erik in the lineup," Smith said. "Jules had struggled the last few games, and Erik was playing pretty well."

It was just the second career start for Daniels, a junior forward from Princeton High School. Daniels had a spot start last season at Florida.

Daniels totaled four points, seven rebounds and two assists Saturday, though he had three turnovers.

Camara played sparingly, and Smith yanked him early in the second half after Camara failed to box out on a free throw. Yet the fifth-year senior rallied late, making two baskets in the final 2:15.

"I was concerned about how he'd respond (to being benched), and he didn't come out with the same intensity," Smith said of Camara. "But he made big plays late."

Said Camara: "I've got to keep working, stay positive, and work myself back into the lineup."

POSITIVE SHOWING

Smith summed this up as a statement game. "When the right team shows up, we can beat anybody in the country," he said.

QUOTE OF THE GAME

"You want the right call to be made at the end of the game. But nobody's perfect. You can't point the finger at anybody." - Hawkins, on the possibility officials missed a foul call against UK defending Bracey Wright in the closing seconds.

UP NEXT

UK returns to Freedom Hall at noon Saturday to face Louisville.