Himmelsbach | Cats' Ulis has that special 'it'

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky forward Alex Poythress referred to him as a fly that you just want to swat away. Center Willie Cauley-Stein called him an annoyance. And both players meant this in the most endearing way possible, because they were talking about their talented and valuable freshman point guard, Tyler Ulis.

If you scan the boxscore from the Wildcats' 58-38 win over Providence on Sunday, very little about Ulis' stat line will grab you. He played 20 minutes. He scored six points. He had an assist.

But as it becomes apparent that this UK team's identity will be its defense, it is also becoming apparent that Ulis could be the nerve center. And if you don't believe me, I'll let coach John Calipari take it from here.

"I've had three Chicago guys do what Tyler Ulis did today, which is change the game," Calipari said, face straight as a pencil. "I had Derrick Rose, Anthony Davis, and very rarely do you see a guy walk in and just change the game. Like, change the whole flow of it. And he did that today."

Yes, Calipari will take every opportunity to remind us that he coached a former NBA most valuable player in Rose and probably a future one in Davis. And he also likes oversized statements.

But then Providence coach Ed Cooley stepped to the dais, and his praise was just as effusive.

"The biggest key today was Ulis," Cooley said. "I thought he was very disruptive with ball pressure, and we couldn't get in an offensive flow. … He's a special player. He's got the 'it.'"

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The "it" doesn't necessarily mean assists or 3-pointers or anything. In this case, the "it" means please-someone-get-that-guy-away-from-us.

"His ball pressure," Cooley explained. "I thought his ball pressure when they made their run was the key to this entire game."

For most of the first half, Providence had succeeded in keeping the game ugly and low-tempo. With less than five minutes left, the Friars actually held a 19-15 lead, and the fans at Rupp Arena were getting antsy.

Then Ulis provided a spark in the way you'd least expect a 5-foot-9 point guard to provide a spark. After Providence guard Kyron Cartwright caught a pass deep in the right corner and lofted a 3-pointer, Ulis sprinted to the spot and blocked it.

Point guard Andrew Harrison had two fouls, and for the final minutes of the half Calipari subbed Harrison and Ulis in an out on nearly every dead ball, with Ulis coming in to play defense and Harrison to play offense. Ulis had another steal, and he was an overall nuisance, keying a 9-0 UK burst.

Then in the second half, with UK leading just 33-27, Ulis was on the floor for the Wildcats' 11-2 surge, as they grabbed a 15-point lead.

The freshman's aggressiveness is important because it disrupts opposing point guards, but it is also valuable because of its ripple effect.

"It was like, oh, my gosh, you're almost pushing off to keep this kid away from you and then it makes us more confident defenders behind him," Calipari said. "So now we're taking some chances."

Calipari said that when Ulis is playing so hard, it rubs off on Andrew and Aaron Harrison. The twins see his energy level, and they probably know that if they do not match it, their playing time could suffer.

"Now, after he came out, you saw Andrew and Aaron's energy go up," Calipari said. "And that's when you start beating teams down."

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at 502-582-4372 by email ahimmelsbach@courier-journal.com and on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach​