Derek Willis' emergence has been key to Kentucky's resurgence
The most indispensable player in Kentucky's frontcourt rotation may no longer be one of the Wildcats' trio of former McDonald's All-Americans.
An in-state prospect with far less pedigree has been more valuable recently because he possesses a skill that none of the other big men have.
Kentucky's offense runs better with junior Derek Willis on the floor because the 6-foot-9 forward can stretch the floor with his lethal 41.7 percent 3-point shooting. Willis is an ideal complement to Alex Poythress and Marcus Lee, both of whom are most effective scoring in the paint.
Never has Willis' contributions been more apparent than Thursday night when he scored a career-high 25 points in Kentucky's 80-70 victory over Tennessee. Willis scorched the Vols for seven catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, forcing his defender to guard him out to the arc and opening up driving lanes for guards Tyler Ulis, Jamal Murray and Isaiah Briscoe.
The outstanding performance from Willis highlights his growing importance to 14th-ranked Kentucky's resurgence.
In the nine games since he entered the starting lineup, Willis has averaged 12 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 46.7 percent from behind the arc. Not only has Kentucky scored at least 75 points in all nine of those games, the Wildcats have also amassed a 7-2 record with one of the losses coming in overtime at Kansas and the other coming due to a blown lead on the road at Tennessee.
This Kentucky team will never be the juggernaut that last year's team was, but the Wildcats have established themselves as one of the dozen or so teams capable of cutting down the nets in Houston in April. They're all the way up to No. 9 in the latest KenPom rankings because Ulis is the nation's best point guard, Murray has emerged as a dynamic scorer and Willis has become a perfect complement to the rest of the frontcourt and the team's most consistent outside shooter.
The lone drawback to having Willis on the floor is that he's not as versatile a defender as Poythress is, nor is he a capable rim protector like Lee. With Poythress out with a knee injury Thursday night and Lee hobbled by back pain, Tennessee's Armani Moore kept his team competitive for awhile with 21 points on 8-for-15 shooting.
Willis has improved enough defensively, however, that he's no longer the liability that he once was. Besides his outside shooting is valuable enough to Kentucky's offense that John Calipari has learned to overlook Willis' shortcomings.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
