Anthony Davis had flirted — again — with a triple-double, and now he and head coach John Calipari were at the podium discussing Davis’ chase for it.

“Do you care about that?” Calipari asked, turning to Davis.

Davis shook his head no. Calipari cut in.

“Yes he does.”

That’s probably more accurate. Davis said his dad usually kids him whenever he falls just short, as he did against South Carolina with 22 points, eight rebounds and eight blocks.

“Unfortunately I didn’t get it,” Davis said, “but there’s always another game.”

It looked, for a while, like this would be the game. Davis was on pace at halftime, with 18 points, six rebounds and five blocks.

He kept up the pace, and late in the second half, Davis was sitting two rebounds and two blocks away from achievement. He was also on the bench. Calipari and his staff went back and forth on whether Davis should go back in, be given a few minutes to see if he could get closer.

The staff ultimately won out. Davis checked back in, a move Calipari later called “unfortunate.” He didn’t get any more blocks or rebounds, but did flip over a South Carolina player going for one.

Immediately, Calipari turned around to his staff and mouthed, “that’s why we don’t do that.”

Davis may not have reached the triple-double, but the night was still full of accomplishments. He broke Shaquille O’Neal’s SEC freshman blocks record of 115, a record that took Shaq 32 games to get.

His 22-point, eight-rebound, eight-block performance led South Carolina head coach Darrin Horn to call him “arguably the best player in the nation.”

The other coach involved in that game wasn’t arguing with him.

“I would say he’s playing that way,” Calipari said.

Davis might be. He’s at the top of the player of the year ballot for ESPN’s Jason King. He was No. 3 last week in the CBS player of the week poll.

Keep turning in games like the one Saturday, and he might climb even higher.

All the way to the top, even.

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