NEW ORLEANS -- The last player introduced, John Wall charged right into the middle of the huddle his teammates already had formed in front of the Kentucky bench. Once there, he did all the talking.
With Kansas' surprise ouster earlier Saturday, Kentucky is now the prohibitive favorite to win the national title, and the Wildcats are going to go as far as Wall can take them. It's the kind of challenge Wall came to Kentucky to seek. He has it now.
Against a Wake Forest team brimming with confidence Saturday, Wall carried the Wildcats into the regional semifinals with a game-changing performance. Again, his statistics were quiet - 14 points, seven assists, five turnovers. Again, his influence in the 90-60 win was indisputable.
The Wildcats were dominating play in the first half but failing to press their advantage because of turnovers and missed free throws. One good run would have lifted Wake Forest into the lead. Wall stepped in and made the difference.
First, he hit a 3-pointer that turned a tenuous five-point lead into a comfortable eight-point lead. Then, two possessions later, he took on Ish Smith in the right corner, blowing past one of the fastest players in the game on the baseline for an easy lay-in.
By the time Wall found DeMarcus Cousins alone under the rim with a searing pass, Kentucky was up 42-28 and the depleted Deacons had little left to answer. Wall pointed at his teammates on the bench in exultation, a broad smile on his face.
His 3-pointer to open the second half quickly dispelled any hopes Wake Forest may have harbored of a comeback. By the time Wake coach Dino Gaudio called a timeout to stop the bleeding, Kentucky's lead was up to 24.
Kentucky fans, one supposes, are used to this by now. Surely, after watching him for a season, such command of the game starts to seem commonplace. To see it on display Saturday, against a team with the physical tools to contain him, was nothing short of stunning.
Now halfway to the Final Four, with Kansas and Villanova both out, the Wildcats have won their opening two games by a combined 291/2 points.
The path to their first round of 16 since 2005 couldn't have been easier.
Wall spent much of the second half on the bench, enjoying the blowout as much as the Kentucky fans sitting behind him.
There was a lot for Kentucky to smile about in New Orleans, but the road is going to get rougher. In Syracuse, N.Y., on Thursday, Kentucky will face either Wisconsin or Cornell, two extremely solid defensive teams, neither of whom has a guard like Wake's Smith with the speed to keep up with Wall, not that Smith really could Saturday.
The next matchup may be worse for Kentucky - the young, raw Wildcats could struggle against a more disciplined opponent - but it figures to be better for Wall, whose explosiveness will really be a weapon.
Kentucky is as young as it is talented. The Wildcats make mistakes.
Often, lots of them. Cousins is a force of nature in the lane, but at his worst he's a complete train wreck.
More opportunistic opponents will find ways to take advantage of that, but they may not have an answer for Wall, who is capable of bailing Kentucky out of almost any jam in a possession or two.
Against Wake Forest, he was the difference between what might have been a close game and a rollicking blowout. Who knows what difference he may make for Kentucky in the weeks to come?
