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By Jordan Ondrof and Josh Ellis

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UK fans came out in droves Saturday to welcome Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, Willie Cauley-Stein and Rajon Rondo back to Rupp Arena as the New Orleans Pelicans faces the Sacramento Kings.

The crowd was enthusiastic for the NBA pre-season game, rising to their feet every time one of their former Cats were called upon. All four former Cats started for their respective teams. The Kings beat the Pelicans 107-98.

Anthony Davis shined throughout the game, scoring at will and draining threes. He finished with 19 points. The three-point shot was not in Davis’ arsenal during his tenure at UK, but showed on Saturday its here to stay.

“Coaches want me to put them up. If you’re open, or even if you think you’re open, shoot it,” Davis said. “I’m just putting it up there and hopefully it goes in.”

Check out the post-game video interview with Anthony Davis in Periscope

Willie Cauley-Stein got lost in the mix in the first half, only scoring 2 points. He did however, receive the largest cheer from the Rupp Arena crowd after a dunk that earned him his first two points of the game. He came alive toward the end of the game to finish with seven points.

The newest Cat on the Kings is Rajon Rondo who played a total of 26:34 minutes but only scored 3 points.

In typical DeMarcus Cousins fashion, he found himself in a few heated moments and with a technical. Late in the 3rd quarter, Cousins limped off of the floor favoring his left ankle but returned later in the 4th quarter.

Despite the Pelicans loss, head coach Alvin Gentry had some positive takeaways about his time in Lexington, even noting that if he were a high school recruit he would without hesitation commit to the Cats.

“I saw a packed house for our practice last night – and they sold out (Big Blue Madness) in four minutes,” Gentry said. “I think what (John Calipari) has done here has been amazing, and there’s a culture here that he’s established that if I’m a high school player and they’re recruiting me, there’s no decision where I’m going.”

As for Davis’ play, the New Orleans head coach raved that Davis is all about the team (a statement UK fans can proudly agree on). Gentry said it is rare to come across a franchise player like Davis, even comparing his transition into the league similar to Scottie Pippen’s.

“I think he’ll be a guy who puts on weight and puts on muscle but it won’t have any affect on his quickness or his ability to play out on the floor,” Gentry said. “The biggest thing about him is he’s all about the team. Having a guy like that is the foundation for your franchise.”

Davis, who seemed to be the star of the show, said there was no better feeling than returning to the Bluegrass. Davis said he felt like he was in college again, and was excited to play against some former cats — especially Cousins.

“Any time me and DeMarcus (Cousins) go at it, it’s always fun. He always talks about last year, ‘Yeah I had a triple double,’ but I said, ‘But we beat y’all 3-1 so it really doesn’t matter,'” Davis said. “Out of all the Kentucky guys, I think DeMarcus definitely is the one guy who I look forward going to every time we play. We’re gonna bring the best out of each other and make each other better every night.”