Man how times have changed.

I’m perusing the sports page this morning and see that the Wildcats were involved in an upset last night. Only they were the unranked slobs pulling off the upset against No. 24 Tennessee 92-72 at Knoxville.

Tennessee? Men’s basketball? Being upset? This is supposed to be a football school.

Coach Bruce Pearl has done a great job in turning the Volunteers (10-4) into one of the top teams in the Southeast Conference and the nation. Last season after a two-day stint at No. 1, there was even talk about a national championship.

Kentucky (13-4) on the other hand has struggled since winning the school’s last national championship under Tubby Smith in 1998. The Wildcats, with seven national titles and have been a NCAA tournament and top 25 fixture since the 1930’s, have fallen off the map in recent years.

The win against Tennessee was impressive and may be a sign of normalcy as the Wildcats try to regain its national swagger.

Junior guard Jodie Meeks scored 54 points, breaking Dan Issel’s 39-year-old school record of 53 in the win.

Man. Talk about your Bizaro World. Tennessee is now a men’s basketball power while its traditional national power football team struggles and loses to teams like UCLA.

Kentucky basketball is down and the football team is playing in bowl games every year now.

What’s next? The Arizona Cardinals going to the Super Bowl?

Post from: EveryJoe

Things sure have changed at Kentucky and Tennessee

Word is that the Wildcats may have see if six players need to regain eligibility by the NCAA before Monday’s NIT Season Tip-Off against Florida Atlantic, according ESPN.com.

According to a story on Friday by ESPN.com’s Andy Katz, sophomores Zane Johnson and Jamelle Horne and freshmen Garland Judkins, Brandon Lavender, Kyle Fogg and Alex Jacobson may have to seek reinstatement as a procedural matter, if the players were given impermissible expenses while participating in the Cactus Classic, an AAU tournament held in May on Arizona’s campus. Fogg and Horne started the Wildcats’ exhibition win over Sonoma State on Wednesday.

The newly retired Olson told ESPN.com: “I think that was my fault,” Olson said. “That wasn’t anyone else’s fault. It was my error and it was a big error. But I guess in 26 years you are allowed to make a mistake once in a while anyway and that’s not to say I haven’t made a lot of them but in terms of that, that was a big mistake on my part.”

A “big mistake” that may cost the Wildcats big time.

Post from: EveryJoe

Arizona Could Lose As Many As Six Players Because Of An Error By Olson

Allen Iverson laughs at this!

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A year ago, Kentucky’s Big Blue Madness was about showing off a new coach. This time, it was about showing off a new look.

Billy Gillispie’s Wildcats donned their new blue and white uniforms with a checkerboard pattern as the nation’s all-time winningest program kicked off its preseason preparations Friday night in front of 23,000 of their closest friends.

While fans arrived before 9 p.m., it wasn’t until 11:18 that the second-year coach finally made his appearance.

Last year, four large banners descended from the rafters, and when they finally dropped, there Gillispie stood, waving to the crowd.

This time, the banners fell while pyrotechnics filled Rupp Arena, but Gillispie was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he entered moments later, jogging through the crowd in his gray jumpsuit, dishing out high-fives along the way.

“I know they’re excited to be here,” Gillispie, already seemingly short of voice, said of his players. “They love being here at Kentucky.”

Gillispie’s entrance was far humbler than that of women’s coach Matthew Mitchell, who appeared riding on a fire truck.
The men’s team first took the court with a dunk contest that Ramon Harris clinched with an off the backboard follow that he jammed home.

Then, there was a defensive-minded scrimmage, in which both sides took more than three minutes to score. It was a troubling reminder of the team’s slow starts at times last season, which ended with a loss to Marquette in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Although the checkerboard pattern on the new uniforms is subtle, those who designed them for Nike said they were intended as a nod to jockey silks representing the state’s signature industry, horse racing. Penny Chenery, who owned 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat, received an honorary jersey from Gillispie at midcourt during the festivities.

They also feature a shoulder patch that says “Mr. Wildcat.” The reference is a tribute to longtime equipment manager Bill Keightley, who died earlier this year at 81. A lasting memorial to Keightley was painted on the Rupp Arena floor in front of his familiar spot on the bench.

His daughter, Karen, wept at that honor and as fans stood and politely applauded while a tribute video to Keightley played on the large screens.

Although the official opening practice of the college basketball season isn’t until Oct. 17, Kentucky is one of a handful of schools using a technicality in the NCAA rules to hold their bash a week earlier. The NCAA allows two hours of team workouts per week, starting in mid-September.

The early Madness events could be short-lived, though. National Association of Basketball Coaches spokesman Rick Leddy said the rule was intended to give coaches and players extra time working on their skills, not to hold a pep rally.

Gillispie said before the festivities that he planned to have fun at this year’s Madness after feeling a little too apprehensive ahead of last year’s festivities.

“I didn’t know what to expect last year,” he said. “I’ve been to a lot of Midnight Madness at different places, but Big Blue Madness is something special. I’m very excited about it.”

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

Post from: EveryJoe

Kentucky Has a Pep Rally for Practice?

Many of you will remember Davidson as the little engine that could in last season’s NCAA tournament. The tiny Charlotte, North Carolina school had a run that caused basketball brackets to be torn and shredded at jobs all over the nation.

The Wildcats came within a three-point shot of reaching the Final Four in a 59-57 loss to eventual champion Kansas.

But if anyone thinks that McKillop is actually going to stay at Davidson through 2015-16 is sadly mistaken. Well, you’re nuts!

McKillop, who has a career record of 340-225 at Davidson in 19 years is now a hot commodity. If he has another great season and another great run at the Big Dance, rest assured he will not be around for a 20th season.

He will get offers from some of the big schools. Schools that will be looking for a new start, a fresh face and someone with a solid track record of winning.

McKillop fits that profile.

McKillop said in a press conference last week that he is at peace where he is, loves the school, great fit for he and his family, blah, blah, blah.

But let someone out of the Pacific 10, ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12 or Big East come calling with an offer and see how much McKillop still thinks he’s in the best place at Davidson.

This is not a jab at McKillop or the fine folks at Davidson. I just find it hard to believe that someone of McKillop’s talent would not take advantage of some of the coaching opportunities that will no doubt come his way.

Post from: EveryJoe

We’ll See How Long This Lasts

For some of us (especially me), it was an awkward time of trying to fit in with the cool kids or any kids for that matter who share some of your interests and awkwardness among other things. Dating was starting to become a reality as well as other things like facial and chest hair, change in voice and zits.

And if you were developing athletic skills of any kind, all you wanted to do was make it to high school, and playing anywhere beyond that was a dream at best no matter how talented you were.

Not so anymore today folks.

For some insane reason, some college basketball coaches are becoming so desperate that not only are they recruiting high school underclassmen, now they are hitting up the junior high and middle schools for commitments too.

Choosing a high school with a decent basketball program is difficult enough, now college basketball coaches want you to decide where you’re going to before you attend your first high school dance or beaten up by your first high school senior.

According to the Associated Press, Michael Avery, an eighth grader from Ascension Lutheran School in Thousand Oaks, CA has already committed to the University of Kentucky. He was recruited by Wildcats Coach Billy Gillispsie, who was scouting an AAU event Avery was playing in Akron, Ohio, making him the youngest player ever to be recruited by the Wildcats.

The 6-foot-4 Avery is likely to grow more and get even bigger. But who knows where his mental attitude will be by the time he gets to his senior year? And for that matter, who knows where Kentucky will? Kentucky has had problems with the NCAA before, and if it happens again or if they happen to stink up Rupp Arena by the time Avery is ready to enroll, rest assured he and his parents will do everything they can to get him out of that commitment and into another school.

On Thursday, the National Association of Basketball Coaches (that’s NABC for all you acronym junkies) said it is opposed to eighth graders committing without completing their sophomore year of high school and wants this to stop. NCAA rules stipulate that coaches aren’t even supposed to contact players before mid-June following their sophomore season.

According to the AP, the NABC board of directors said that the decision was made in part, because younger athletes had not yet “demonstrated sufficient academic credentials” to be admitted to school.

So you mean those eighth grade sewing or print shop classes don’t count towards enrollment into schools like Florida, Connecticut, North Carolina or Kansas?

To make matters worse, this isn’t the first time college coaches have made recruiting trips to middle schools. In 2006, USC Coach Tim Floyd got Ryan Boatright and Dwayne Poole Jr., both from the Southern California area to commit before entering high school.

But I digress. Even though the idea of recruiting kids before they hit high school may be a little silly (and a little weird), if I can get Floyd, Ben Howland at UCLA or Mike Krzyzewski at Duke to come and take a look at my kid and offer him an early scholarship that would be great.

My son is four years old and over three and a half feet tall. He as wicked ball handling skills and has been dunking on his Playskool basketball hoop since he was two and a half. My wife and I already have a college fund set up for him, but if he can get a college scholarship now, we can blow his college money on that trip to Europe we’ve always wanted to take, an HD television or on gas.

We’re paying well over $4.50 a gallon out here in Southern California!

Post from: EveryJoe

College Recruiting Gone Mad!

The last game of the night between Georgia and Kentucky was postponed until Saturday morning. In order to complete all tournament games before the NCAA selection show Sunday afternoon, the winner of the Georgia/Kentucky game will play again on Saturday night in the semi-finals.

Playing two games in one day will be a herculean effort for either the Bulldogs or the Wildcats, and if either one of them manages to get through to the final game on Sunday, they will be at a severe disadvantage.

But, that’s why they call it March Madness…

Here is a video clip of the night’s events from ESPN:

Post from: EveryJoe

Severe weather gives new meaning to March Madness

Patterson, the leading freshman scorer in the SEC, was the Wildcats’ second leading scorer (16.4 points per game) and leading rebounder (7.7 rebounds per game). His loss will definitely hurt the chances of Kentucky making the NCAA tournament.

Kentucky’s next game will be against #1 Tennessee on Sunday.

Post from: EveryJoe

Injury bug hits Kentucky

March Madness is fast approaching.

Every conference game matters. One big win could secure your team a birth in the NCAA tournament. One huge loss could dash your team’s hopes to play in the post-season.

Here are some of the biggest games to watch this week:

Tonight: #15 Michigan State at #9 Wisconsin - the Badgers are tied for first place in the Big Ten with Indiana and Purdue, while the Spartans are trying to play catch-up. Wisconsin needs to win this game to put the pressure on the Boilermakers and Hoosiers.

Saturday March 1st – Kansas State at #7 Kansas – super-freshman Michael Beasley could do a lot for his Player of the Year candidacy if he leads the Wildcats to a victory over UK. The Jayhawks are one game behind Texas in the Big 12 standings, and a loss to KSU would really hurt their chances at winning the regular season conference title.

Sunday March 2nd – #4 UCLA at Arizona – Arizona lost by 22 to UCLA at Pauley Pavilion back in early February, but the Wildcats are a different team at home. Kevin Love and the Bruins should be on high upset alert.

Post from: EveryJoe

Games to watch this week – February 28th

Saturday February 16:

#7 Stanford at Arizona – the Wildcats are on a roll at home right now, as they have defeated Washington State, Washington and USC in their last three home games. Arizona played the Cardinal very tight in their last meeting on January 17th at Stanford, losing 56-52. Stanford needs to be on serious upset alert.

#9 Michigan State at #12 Indiana – the Hoosiers will be playing this game under a cloud of distractions, as head coach Kelvin Sampson and his staff are facing serious recruiting violations reported by the NCAA. It might bring the Hoosiers together, or it could tear them apart.

#6 UCLA at USC – the Bruins will be out for revenge, as the Trojans trounced them 72-63 at Pauley Pavilion back on January 19th. The Trojans played out of their heads that night – can they make it two-for-two against their cross-town rivals?

Post from: EveryJoe

Games to watch this week – February 14th

Here are the latest victims of the injury bug:

Florida State guard Isaiah Swann tore his left ACL in the Seminole’s victory over Miami on Wednesday night and will be out indefinitely. Swann was a regular starter for the Seminoles and his absence will definitely hurt the Noles in their ACC battles.

Oklahoma center Longar Longar broke a bone in his right leg and will be out indefinitely. Longar was the Sooners’ second leading scorer at 13.2 points per game.

Arizona point guard Nic Wise suffered a torn meniscus last week and underwent knee surgery on Wednesday. Doctors anticipate Wise could be out of action four to six weeks. Wise is the Wildcats’ only true point guard, and his injury will drastically change how Arizona runs its offense.

Post from: EveryJoe

Injury update – February 8th