Adam Himmelsbach

ahimmelsbach@courier-journal.com

INDIANAPOLIS—Here's what we learned in the Kentucky basketball team's 72-40 win against Kansas at Banker's Life Fieldhouse on Tuesday night.

UK'S LENGTH IS GOING TO BE A PROBLEM…FOR OPPONENTS: By the first television timeout with 14:55 left in the first half, the Wildcats had already swatted three Kansas shots and been a factor on several others. This team is long, and open opportunities won't stay that way for long. In all, the Cats had 11 blocks. Marcus Lee and Karl Towns had four apiece.

THE PLATOON SPLIT: The platoon system seemed to provide a little more clarity on this night. The starting group, consisting of Alex Poythress, Karl Towns, Willie Cauley-Stein, Andrew Harrison and Aaron Harrison played 12 minutes in the opening half, or 50 percent longer than the second group. This would seem to be a more logical split when the top group is established. Of course, then the second platoon did start the second half, putting together a 6-0 burst before being replaced after three and a half minutes.

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WILLIE CAULEY-STEIN IS GLAD TO BE BACK: You had to feel for the center after he injured his ankle last season and missed the Wildcats' wild NCAA tournament run. He returned to school partly because he wouldn't have been able to workout for NBA teams, and partly because he did not want that to be how his Wildcats career ended. On Tuesday, Cauley-Stein was spry and springy and looked like his old self.

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THE WILDCATS CAN TAKE CARE OF THE BALL: UK had just six turnovers in this game. Six.

JAHLIL OKAFOR IS THE REAL DEAL: While UK came to Indy with the most start-studded team, Duke might have brought the biggest star. Freshman center Jahlil Okafor is projected by many to be the No. 1 overall pick of next June's NBA draft. On Tuesday night, Okafor tallied 17 points, five rebounds and two blocks in the Blue Devils' impressive 81-71 win over Michigan State.

AND THIS CAME ON AN AVERAGE SHOOTING NIGHT: UK soared to this 32-point win despite shooting 43 percent from the floor. That's a fine figure, but usually to crush a team this thoroughly, you need to shoot a higher percentage than that.

BILL SELF HAS A THOUGHT ON WHETHER UK COULD WIN THEM ALL: The Kansas head coach was asked, as so many coaches will be asked if UK starts winning a bunch of games before it loses one, whether the Wildcats could possibly go undefeated this year. "I don't think it's crazy to think that," he said.

BUFFALO MIGHT BE THE REAL DEAL, TOO? OK, probably not the real deal. But watching Kentucky run roughshod over a talented team like Kansas made Buffalo's gritty effort at Rupp Arena on Sunday all the more unbelievable. The fact that the Bulls held a five-point halftime lead over the Wildcats is even more stunning than it was a few days ago.

FOUL TROUBLE IS HARDLY EVER GOING TO BE AN ISSUE: UK committed 10 fouls in the first half, which would usually mean at least a player or two would be in serious foul trouble. But in this case, eight Wildcats had one foul, and Cauley-Stein had two. And even if several had collected two fouls, it's rarely going to matter all that much.

FOR UK, THIS WAS NOT THE 2013 CHAMPIONS CLASSIC: In that game, you may remember, the Wildcats went to Chicago with lots of hype and then Michigan State bullied them from the opening tip, taking a 10-0 lead and stretching it to 15 points before holding on for the win at the end. This Wildcats team—as was expected, given its experience—was clearly not fazed by the spotlight or the big-name opponent.

INDIANAPOLIS WAS TURNED BLUE FOR A NIGHT: Of course, this was partly due to the fact that Kansas and Duke were here, too. But once the second game started it became pretty clear UK had the largest and loudest cheering section. I did spy a few Blue Devils fans cheering for the Jayhawks, however. The overall atmosphere was fantastic. It reminded me very much of the UofL/UK NCAA tournament regional that took place down the street.

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