‘Can Kentucky Go Undefeated?’ ... Can We Pretend That Didn’t Happen?

You know, I take one day off from the sports world—one day—then I come back this morning, and headlines are dominated by Greg Oden and the ‘Cocks...

But first things first. I’m a complete moron. If you’ve read SB Nation the past few days, you may remember seeing either this or this—two separate instances in which I predicted Kentucky would go undefeated in the regular season. In the first one, I had this to say:

Now that Bledsoe and Cousins have grown up, we’re talking about four of the very best players in the entire country. Frankly, I’m just surprised Ohio State’s Evan Turner isn’t involved in this perfect storm of talented superstars.

And as far as winning close games, one of those superstars (Wall) has proven that he can single-handedly takeover games when it matters most. ... Seriously. Why can’t these guys run the table?

And to be honest, it all happened pretty perfectly. I happened to see Kentucky’s absolute best of the game season from start to finish, where they absolutely embarrassed a good Arkansas team, and that prompted some bold predictions that were admittedly completely ridiculous. Especially considering Kentucky relies heavily on three freshman, it was full-on absurd to be thinking about an undefeated season in January. And yet... Did you see that Arkansas game? Here are the highlights. And if you can’t watch, here’s all you need to know: Kentucky was up by 30 at halftime, and probably could have won by 50 if they wanted to.

After a spectacle like that, making an outlandish prediction just feels the right thing to do.

What does the loss mean for Kentucky? Not much. South Carolina’s Devan Downey was as spectacular last night as Kentucky was this weekend, and if anything, the loss will likely prove invaluable to a young team that needed to realize they’re not invincible. And Devan Downey proved that. He was a 5-foot-9, one-man hurricane last night, slicing through the defense, hitting from deep, and consistently getting to the line. He single-handedly kept the Gamecocks competitive, and down the stretch, won it. It was a team effort from South Carolina, but Downey was a revelation; the only reason any of the other players even mattered.

For Kentucky, there’s no shame in losing to someone like Devan Downey in January, so long as it’s taken as a learning experience that allows them to weather that type of storm in March. And frankly, Kentucky almost weathered it last night. Their superstar, John Wall, was nearly unstoppable in the last few minutes of the game—save for a missed free throw, and a bobbled pass on a backdoor cut—and scored 8 points in the final two minutes as Kentucky fought to close the gap. Wall’s mettle may have been futile last night, but if you’re a Kentucky fan, it’s still a good sign.

Still, no more number one ranking (probably) for Kentucky, John Calipari downplaying Kentucky’s dominance finally seems appropriate, and the team that on Monday had a playful back-and-forth with President Obama suddenly has a reality check. Also, no more undefeated season. Somewhere, the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers are sipping on champagne (right next to the ‘72 Dolphins, who are celebrating just because they’re that obnoxious).