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With a team comprised of several marquee one-and-gone players, Kentucky coach John Calipari finally got it done.
The top-ranked Wildcats flew to an 18-point lead in the first half April 2, then hung on to beat Kansas 67-59 and win the NCAA national championship before a sellout crowd of 70,913 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
It is Kentucky's eighth national title and first since 1998. But it is Calipari's first crown after failing in three previous trips to the Final Four with UMass (1996), Memphis (2008) and Kentucky last season.
"I told my wife, 'I'm glad it's done,'" said Calipari, whose first two Final Four trips were vacated by the NCAA. "I don't have to deal with the drama -- that's over with. ... I can get on to coaching now."
The Wildcats finished 38-2, setting a single-season school record.
"This team deserves all the accolades it's been getting," Calipari said.
"They did it with defense, unbelievable defense in the first half," Calipari said afterward with his team celebrating around him on the court. "In the second half, I pulled the reins back a little bit and they were all over me, 'Let us go, let us go.' We were trying get out of the gym alive."
When asked to describe what the championship meant to him, Calipari replied: "This is not about me. This is about these 13 players and this is about the Big Blue Nation. I don't know of any team that has sacrificed for each other like this team and they deserve this moment. They really do."
No one deserved the moment more than Kentucky freshman center Anthony Davis, who was named the game's Most Outstanding Player after scoring six points, collecting a team-high 16 rebounds and contributing six blocks, five assists and three steals.
Davis, the consensus player of the year, is expected to declare himself for the NBA draft in the coming weeks and likely will be the first player taken.
"I have until April 29 to decide," Davis said. "I'll talk to my coach and my family and see what the best decision is."
NOTES, QUOTES
-Senior swingman Darius Miller set a school record by appearing in his 152nd career game during the national final. He had five points and six rebounds against Kansas.
-This was the Jayhawks' ninth national championship game, and their record is 3-6.
-The title game was the third NCAA tourney meeting between Kansas and Kentucky. The Jayhawks prevailed in 1999, but the Wildcats have won the last two -- 2007 and 2012.
-The Wildcats became the first No. 1 overall seed to win the NCAA tourney since Florida repeated as national champs in 2007.
-After beating Kansas, John Calipari has 102 wins in just three years at Kentucky.
-The Wildcats made their 15th Final Four appearance. The longest they have gone without reaching the Final Four was a 13-year span from their 1998 title to last year, when they lost to Connecticut in a semifinal game.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
FUTURES WATCH: It is pretty much taken for granted that freshman Anthony Davis and sophomore Terrence Jones will enter the NBA draft this summer, and freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist could be a third. He earlier had said he was returning for 2012-13, but then there was a report he will be putting his name in by the April 10 deadline. He told the Lexington Herald-Leader he hadn't made up his mind yet, however. Another possible early draft entrant is G Doron Lamb.
REGULAR SEASON REVIEW: Kentucky pretty much sewed up a No. 1 regional seed and, in fact, got the No. 1 overall seed for the NCAA tournament after posting a 30-1 mark going into the SEC tournament. They Wildcats became the third team to go through the SEC with a 16-0 record since the league expanded to 12 teams in the 1991-92 season, winning their 45th SEC championship.
ROSTER REPORT
-Sophomore G Doron Lamb had a game-high 22 points in the NCAA final. It was his highest point total since he had 26 against Sanford on Dec. 20. He had 21 points in the Sweet 16 win over Indiana.
-Freshman F Anthony Davis was selected the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player despite a six-point performance in the final. He blocked five shots in the semifinals against Louisville, then six in the title game.
-Freshman G Marquis Teague, who averaged less than 10 points on the season, increased his productivity in the NCAA tourney. He had a season-high 24 points in the third round against Iowa State, and he averaged 13.3 points in the six NCAA Tournament wins.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"He definitely impacted the game for a stretch on the defensive end." -- Kansas F Thomas Robinson, speaking about his fellow All-American, Kentucky freshman F Anthony Davis, after the national final.
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