By Boyd Hayes | @KernelHayes

bhayes@kykernel.com

No. 6 UK Hoops take on defending national champion No. 1 Baylor in Waco, Texas in the first of two big games across the UK basketball program on Tuesday.

The 6 p.m. fixture is part of this season’s State Farm Tip-Off Classic, which also includes UK men’s basketball taking on Duke two hours after tip-off in Waco.

The 1-0 Cats enter their first meeting with Baylor in school history after beating Delaware State 90-50 on Saturday in Lexington.

Both Baylor and UK tout players that have received national praise in the past 12 months. Baylor’s Brittney Griner and Oddysey Sims were both 2012 AP All-Americans, as Griner won almost all national and Big 12 player of the year awards. UK senior guard A’dia Mathies was named in the 2012 AP All-American third team, as well as the 2012 SEC Player of the Year. All three players are on this season’s Wooden Award Watch List and Wade Watch list for the top players in the country.

UK head coach Matthew Mitchell recognizes the context of the game against Baylor and what it could mean for his team.

“Being able to go on the road and play Baylor, (which is) such a good team, is something that will do nothing but help us,” he said. “We want to be the best women’s basketball team in the country, and I think you have to play in games like this to get there.”

Mitchell also notes the difficulty of playing a powerhouse like Baylor.

“I’m so impressed with what kind of team they have and how well coached they are. Coach Mulkey is a Hall of Fame coach, and (Baylor is) just a really great team. So that’s difficult.”

The Cats’ frontcourt runs a deep rotation, including preseason All-SEC second-team selection, junior Samarie Walker, junior DeNesha Stallworth, and sophomore Azia Bishop, who combined for 29 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocks against Delaware State.

Despite UK’s depth, matching up with the 6-foot-8 Griner poses an arduous task. She averaged 23.4 points per game last season, shooting 61.1 percent from the field.

“Griner presents unique challenges just with her size, but she is a great player. She’s not just a big, imposing figure in there, she can really, really play. Her game is developed,” Mitchell said.

UK’s frontcourt is not the only part of Mitchell’s team that will play a part in defending Griner.

“It’s not so much the person guarding Griner,” Mitchell said. “It’s more the other people who you’re trying to pressure and take away opportunities to have her get the ball.”

“We’ve always tried to take away people’s post play by pressuring the basketball, and we talk about playing post defense really far away from the basket. If they can’t see (Griner), she’s not open.”

Defending Griner alone will not suffice for UK, Mitchell said. He acknowledged Sims and her importance to the game as well.

“Odyssey Sims is unbelievable,” he said. “She’s so fast to the basketball, so aggressive, so decisive in her movements that she’s a big challenge. She is really, really important to try to do a good job on. I would say (she is) as important as Griner.”

Stopping Griner, Sims and the rest of the Bears’ offense, however daunting a task, is only one half of the equation for UK, as the Cats will need to put points on the board to compete.

Scoring has not been a problem for the Cats recently, though, as they put up 90 against Delaware State and 113 in an exhibition against Bellarmine.

“It will definitely be a game, I think, that will require scoring,” Mitchell said. I don’t think you’re going to really shut them down. You’re going to have to do a good job on defense, but I think this is a real important game to score in.”

As early in the season as the game is, Mitchell’s game plan is not as solid as it would be in a few months, as his team still has many moving parts. Stallworth, who now starts, transferred from California and hence did not play last season.

Redshirt sophomore Jennifer O’Neill missed last season due to a foot injury, and she now returns to give the Cats a boost off the bench. 2012 McDonald’s

All-American freshman, Janee Thompson has shared time at the point with juniors Maegan Conwright (who started vs. Delaware State) and Kastine Evans, as well as Mathies.

“I think at this stage of the season, what (we’re) trying to do with your team is we’re trying to build our identity and build on things that will help us be successful over the long haul, and in this kind of game I think you just have to turn it loose and go play really hard and try to stick as close to our identity as we can,” Mitchell said.

With both teams looking to succeed early in the season, the matchup will undoubtedly excite fans and shed more national spotlight on UK Hoops, especially as the game will be televised live on ESPN2.