The Associated Press

LEXINGTON - Kentucky's last two wins, both on the road, have been one-point affairs in which the Wildcats admittedly were somewhat fortunate.

The basketball coach in Tubby Smith sees mistakes that can be corrected, but the optimist in Smith realizes the Wildcats must be doing something right to win at Mississippi State and Tennessee.

"I look at it as the glass being half-full instead of half-empty," Smith said Friday, as Kentucky (12-2) prepared for a game Sunday at Notre Dame (9-5). "We escaped, but we have been finding ways (to win close games), and this group has shown that to be one of their characteristics."

Entering its last nonconference game of the season, Kentucky has won 26 of its last 28 games outside Lexington, including all seven this season - a positive sign for the Wildcats, who are in the midst of a stretch during which they'll play three of four games on the road. Still, Kentucky's latest two road wins have been by razor-thin margins. First, Erik Daniels grabbed a deflected pass and scored at the buzzer for a 67-66 win at then-No. 20 Mississippi State. On Tuesday, Kentucky needed an NBA-range 3-pointer from Cliff Hawkins to force overtime against Tennessee, a game the Wildcats won 69-68 despite not scoring for the final 3:50 of overtime.

In both those games, as in most of their games this season, the Wildcats have followed a script - jump to a double-digit lead early, let the other team rally, then make critical plays at the end to win. Kentucky led Mississippi State by 18 points and Tennessee by 16 points but lost the lead in both games. In a home game in between, a 65-57 loss to Georgia, Kentucky had the lead only once, for 70 seconds.

Against Tennessee, "we played well enough to win in spurts," Smith said. "If you have a 15- or 18-point lead in the second half, you've got to find a way to push forward. We just happened to get a win."

Kentucky beat Tennessee despite a 1-for-13, five-point outing by senior guard Gerald Fitch, who leads the team in scoring at 16.6 points a game. Fitch said his recent shooting woes (he was 2-of-9 against Georgia) are behind him.

"I can't have too many games like that," Fitch said, adding his shot now is "fixed. Just like I say all the time, it's fixed in one day. You have days like that."

Kentucky has won its last nine games against Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish's last win over Kentucky came in March 1990. Last season, the Wildcats beat then-No. 10 Notre Dame 88-73 in Lexington.

The Fighting Irish started the season ranked No. 21 but have played inconsistently this season, going 0-3 against ranked teams.

"Our No. 1 focus has to be containing (point guard) Chris Thomas," Smith said.