SB Nation - Josh Harrellson

Kentucky 64, Connecticut 61 -- Postmortem

Truzenzuzex — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:29:51 -0000

More photos » by Julie Jacobson - AP

Josh Harrellson made one good play tonight, and this is it.

What. A. Game.

We may be saying that a lot this year. I have no idea why, but at no time during this game did I ever worry about losing. Why? I can only suppose that perhaps John Wall is the reincarnation of the Buddha, and all I can think of is Zen.

Great effort by the Connecticut Huskies. They were what we knew they would be -- tough and determined. Jerome Dyson was incredible, Kemba Walker was amazing, Gavin Edwards outplayed everybody on both teams -- except one. John Wall. The Huskies were awesome, just amazing, but not amazing enough this time.

For Kentucky, well, we saw exactly what John Calipari implied we should see -- a really bad team having really good stretches because of their talent. Once again, UK had one more good stretch in this game than the opponent, a now-familiar theme for the 2009 Wildcats.

I have to confess, I really wanted Calipari to go zone. But as he has said, and perhaps I should acquiesce to (not a chance), "I am the coach, let me do my job." Okay, Coach, but forgive me if I sit in my armchair and disagree. It's what we do here in the Bluegrass State, and if you are going to kanoodle the job here at Kentucky, this is just another part of what you have so enthusiastically embraced. Deal with it.

Moving along, I was not concerned going in down six to the Huskies at the half. I want to stop right there and ask you all, ladies and gentlemen of the Big Blue Nation -- when was the last time you could have imagined that we could go into half time down six points versus the UConn Huskies in Madison Square Garden and not be concerned? It has been a very, very long time, certainly the better part of a decade at least. That, in and of itself, is a wonderful thing.

More after the jump.

Here are the things that jump out at me:

Bad Cuz, Good Cuz, all in the same game. Nothing to see here. Move along.
John Wall. Well, what can you say? He was pretty good, but then, he always is. But he had a stretch in the first half where he looked very much like the freshman he is.
Patrick Patterson -- Warrior of warriors. I have no idea how severe his ankle sprain is, but I get the impression he would have gone back in with a compound fracture -- he was going to make sure this game was won, and physical maladies be damned. And largely because of his leadership, the 'Cats did win.
Eric Bledsoe had an off night, particularly defensively. It wasn't lack of effort, really, just lack of experience. He will get a lot better, and his effort was very good.
Darius Miller just took a step back tonight. He didn't look confident, his shot was flat, and the more he missed, the worse he played. But he had a great game defensively against Stanley Robinson, who was almost never a factor.
Darnell Dodson made a couple of big shots, but he played abysmally overall, particularly on defense. He is much better than that.
Daniel Orton did what he always does -- play harder than anybody. This time, he fouled out. He will have better days, and this day was better than it looked.
Ramon Harris is such a great effort player, but he sure does need some kind of offensive game. Big free throw at the end, though. And a ton of rebounds.
Josh Harrellson made one good play and then laid down flat. C'mon, Josh, you can do this.
Perry Stevenson gave some good minutes, and did what he was in there to do.
Are the oddsmakers any good or what? They had UK +2. Scary.
That 12-0 run showed what could happen, just like the 28-2 run last week did. If the 'Cats can ever learn to sustain the effort, look out Indianapolis.
Calipari did a great job. Then again, John Wall can make an average coach look like a genius. Fortunately, he didn't have to tonight.
Where the heck did our offensive rebounding go? On vacation to Hawaii, apparently.

That's it. It's late. I'm finishing up a taste of Four Roses for a nightcap. Up next -- the Hoosiers.

Kentucky 73, Cleveland State 49 -- Postmortem

Truzenzuzex — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:14:07 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

This game aught to give Coach Cal plenty to yell about.

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The Cancun Challenge is certainly providing a challenge for the Kentucky Wildcats. Not only did the Sam Houston St. give us plenty of challenge, but the Cleveland St. Vikings also proved tough enough to challenge the 'Cats -- for a half.

Nice effort by the Vikings of Cleveland State. They out-hustled and outworked Kentucky for most of the game, and refused to be bullied or pushed around, matching UK's physicality inside and proving that hustle will offset talent most of the time. The Vikings were tough, gritty and determined. Unfortunately for them, they weren't big enough or skilled enough to handle the Wildcats.

This was an ugly game by any measure. Tons of fouls, players pushing and shoving, two intentional fouls, turnover after turnover. Ugly, ugly basketball.

Cleveland State could not throw the ball in the ocean from the beach. They were ice-cold from everywhere, but UK kept giving them the ball before they could get off a shot. I can't wait to see the stats on this game, they should prove instructive.

But in the second half, the Wildcats began to take care of the ball and force the Vikings to beat them without a bunch of extra possessions, and that wound up being too tall an order for the shorter Cleveland State team. After the first five minutes of the second half, the game was really no longer in doubt, and Kentucky improves to 5-0 and advances to the championship round of the tournament, while the Vikings move on to the consolation game.

More after the jump.

Here are my observations:

I sure hope Patrick Patterson's injury is minor. He didn't come back after he apparently tweaked an ankle. At least, I hope that's what it was.
Ramon Harris played another excellent game, and by the minutes he's getting, it's clear that Calipari is falling in love with him just like Gillispie did.
Big Cuz had another good game, but once again, he is weak with the ball when he gets trapped.
Daniel Orton played well again. Blocks galore, some points in close, lots of good stuff.
Eric Bledsoe played really poorly for most of the game. He got better very late, but he turned the ball over a lot.
John Wall was OK, but I though this wasn't really one of his best efforts. He seemed out of control a lot.
Perry Stevenson gave some good minutes.
Jon Hood hit an open shot and absolutely played his best game so far.
Darius Miller was fine, but I wish he had been a little more under control.
This was a really rough game in spite of all the fouls. Most of the fouls were absolutely good calls, and even if the officiating was uneven at times, I thought it was OK. I am not a big advocate of "letting them play." A foul is a foul and it should be called.
Nice three at the end of the first half by Josh Harrellson. It was a difference-maker.
I really wish I knew if we were ever going to hear from Liggins or Dodson again. I think they have slipped into the Calipari Triangle.

All in all, this was a most unsatisfying game. There was very little of the kind of play that I had hoped to see on offense, and the defense, although competent, was just okay. I was hoping for much more. Maybe I'll get that tomorrow.

Kentucky 102, Sam Houston 92 -- Postmortem

Truzenzuzex — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:10:43 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

Corey Allmond set a new record for 3's in Rupp Arena. Sounds like a broken record, n'est pas?

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Well, that was all kinds of fun.

Great game by the Sam Houston State Bearkats. They really came in and gave it all they had, and it was almost enough. This team can really shoot when they want to. If they could bottle tonight and dole it out in doses throughout the year, they might win their league and make the NCAA tournament easily.

I have been watching college basketball a very long time, more years than some members of this blog have been drawing breath. But I am sure that I have never seen two opposing teams back to back hit so many three point shots. For both Miami and Sam Houston, they made the three look like a layup, or a free-throw. In fact, I've seen lots of teams shoot a worse percentage from the free throw line than Sam Houston did from 20'9" -- 18-38.

I really don't know what to make of it, this amazing three-point shooting. It's as if teams come into Rupp Arena, look at the basket, decide that it looks as big around as Jared Fogle before his Subway diet, and start filling it up like it fire hydrant unleashed on a blow-up backyard pool.

Kentucky's perimeter defense was pretty weak, okay? I get that. But I don't know very many people who could stand at 25 feet and shoot 50% unopposed, let alone with other players running at them. At least half of those threes were two to four feet behind the line. Amazing.

Perhaps it's all the pre-season publicity that is driving this ridiculous opposition shooting. Perhaps they just hate Kentucky. Who knows? Whatever it its, UK needs an antidote, and that antidote is better and sharper defense. A big part of SHS' outstanding night was confusion and failure to communicate. That has to get better. But even all that does not explain the otherworldly, Hand of God shooting that UK has faced in the last two games.

But there is one really big positive -- both games were victories, and even historic three-point shooting was not enough to upset Kentucky. I think that's important, don't you? Can you imagine what would have happened last year?

More after the jump.

Here are my observations:

This is an approximate quote from John Calipari after the game: "Daniel Orton was having a great game. People ask why I didn't play him more. You know why I didn't play him more? Because the other kid [Cousins] was a beast!" Cousins was a beast.
He may have been a beast, but Cousins has got to become stronger with the ball. He was very weak with it tonight.
Darius Miller had a very nice game offensively but only one rebound. Yes, I know Cousins soaked up most of the rebounds, but Miller has got to do more on the glass.
What a 3-point shooting outburst from Bledsoe. I really don't know what to say, except, "Well done!"
John Wall and Eric Bledsoe combined for 12 of Kentucky's 23 turnovers. That's much too high a number.
John Wall played pretty well, but he seemed out of control and unfocused to me. He is much better than he played tonight. He played hard, but not smart.
Ramon Harris gave us five rebounds in 12 minutes, and a huge play that led to a Cousins dunk that stopped a run. Calipari truly loved what Harris brought tonight, and said so.
Daniel Orton payed well, with four blocks, two rebounds, an assist and a steal in 10 minutes.
UK dominated SHS on the boards, 48-33. That was a big difference.
Patrick Patterson did what he always does -- play great. 8-9 from the field, 1-2 from the arc, 9 rebs, 1 block and 2 assists. That may not seem spectacular to you, but it does to me.
Calipari is not at all happy with this team. But he will be.
SHS shot 38% overall, and UK shot 60%. And the margin was 10. The three is a great equalizer.
19-29 from the free throw line is not good.
No Darnell Dodson. No Josh Harrellson. No DeAndre Liggins.
The team was gassed after this game. But the Bearkats were almost falling down from fatigue.
DeMarcus Cousins was asked after the game if he had ever seen three-point shooting that good in high school, and he said (paraphrase) "Yes, once. John Jenkins. He plays for Vanderbilt." Fair warning from the Big Cuz.

This was yet another strange game in a series of strange games. I sure do hope we can get our minds right by the time we face Rider on Saturday afternoon. UK has terrific talent, and they are winning almost exclusively on talent and not on execution, either defensively or offensively.

If Kentucky is going to live up to their potential, they must do better.

Kentucky 75, Morehead State 59 -- After Action Report

Truzenzuzex — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 02:18:23 -0000

by Ed Reinke - AP

Do it this way, guys!

View full size photo »

First of all, I want to thank the Morehead State Eagles from coming into a hostile arena against a much more talented team and showing everyone how important experience is in college basketball. Morehead gave a fantastic account of themselves, and Kenneth Faried showed tonight why he has a chance to play basketball for money somewhere when he graduates from Morehead. Donnie Tyndall's team will likely be a force again this year in the OVC, and they gave Kentucky plenty to think about.

Okay, now to the Wildcats. There is a big difference in Kentucky with John Wall, and without. Eric Bledsoe is a remarkable talent, and he had a really good game tonight, but here is the stat that you don't want to see -- 4 assists and 7 turnovers. That is not a good line out of your point guard, no matter how many points he scores. And Bledsoe scored plenty -- 7-14 for 24 points overall, including a dipsy-doo whacko shot that will be a SportsCenter highlight tonight.

Kentucky, once again, was plagued by turnovers. But the real problem is, they were plagued by bad shots. Yes, I know, the three is open against a sagging zone like Morehead employed tonight, and the DDM is not as effective against a zone, especially one that essentially concedes the three-point shot. But Kentucky was not patient and was too frenetic in their offensive effort in the half court.

On the upside, I really liked our effort on defense, particularly all the players giving up their body for charges. UK is long and tall and will get a ton of blocks this year, but they really showed exactly how that is done tonight, managing eight blocks. When this team really runs the floor, it is hard to get back fast enough to have any hope of stopping them. It will be even tougher with Wall in the lineup.

Here are tonight's observations:

DeMarcus Cousins reminded me a lot of Randolph Morris tonight. I hope that doesn't continue.
Patrick Patterson was a true monster, with an easy double-double. That's the Patterson we need to see this year.
Darnell Dodson continues to play well offensively. He needs to be a bit more focused on defense.
Eric Bledsoe is off the charts as an athlete. He really showed his full range of athleticism tonight.
Perry Stevenson again gave good minutes in limited action. 3 rebounds in 14 minutes is not bad.
Darius Miller must become more of a factor. He totally drifted this whole game.
Daniel Orton is getting better every game. He needs to be more aggressive offensively.
Ramon Harris does what he does -- give total effort. He got 21 minutes tonight, and even though he didn't make much of an impact on the stats, he was excellent defensively and was a steadying influence on the team, as a senior should be.
Watching Calipari was really instructive tonight. Gone is Dr. Feel Good, who has been replacedy by Judge Dread.
I loved the crowd. They were big and bad, just like they should be.
Did Jimmy Dykes defend Calipari eloquently, or what?
No DeAndre Liggins at all tonight, and very little Josh Harrellson. I think I know what Harrellson means, but Liggins?

Overall, it was a good game for the 'Cats, and an imprvement over every game so far. Just imagine John Wall and Eric Bledsoe together. Just imagine that. Chills run up my spine just thinking about it.

1-0. Go Cats!

Kentucky 74, Campbellsville 38 -- Postmortem

Truzenzuzex — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:52:35 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

We saw far too little of this from Patrick Patterson tonight.

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First of all, thanks to Campbellsville University for coming into Rupp Arena and fearlessly taking on the much bigger and more athletic Wildcats. The Tigers were full of hustle, effort, and teamwork, and they helped contribute to forcing the Wildcats into 23 turnovers and making them look quite a bit less impressive than their press clippings have been.

Well, John Calipari said it would look ugly early, and he was not kidding. This was as ugly as the north end of a south-bound camel, and take it from a guy who has seen that far closer than anyone would want to, that's ugly. No ice cream there, and no ice cream here tonight.

But.

This is a big, big "but." This is a euphoric "but" rather than a damning one. This team was more fun to watch at its worst than last year's team was at it's best, excepting Meeks' lights-out performance at Tennessee. This was an ugly game, but it was incredibly beautiful in that this was clearly the kind of team that can crush people into the dust when they finally figure it out. It is a thing of beauty to see a team that clearly has no clue still recognize that they are so superior to the other team that it really doesn't matter what the other team does.

Ugly, yes, but like a nasty, hairy caterpillar that you know will turn into a beautiful butterfly. More thoughts after the jump.

Kentucky only managed a 10-rebound advantage against a much shorter team. That's a real problem that needs attention.
UK really looked out of shape at times to compete in this style. No surprise, at this point.
3-14 from three. Well, we knew this was going to be a problem.
50% from the field against this team is not satisfactory.
Eric Bledsoe is a lot better than I expected. He is not far behind Wall. I do hope is ankle is okay.
Patrick Patterson was very quiet, and I have no idea why. This is a guard-oriented offense, but 4 points and 5 rebounds? What the heck?
Maybe it was because he came in late, but Perry Stevenson just went nuts. 11 points and 2 rebounds in six minutes? That's off-the-charts efficiency.
Darnell Dodson took a few too many shots for my taste. He's good, but I thought he put up some pretty questionable shots. But I did love his energy on defense.
Darius Miller was great on defense, but he must involve himself more in the offense.
Seven rebounds for Daniel Orton. I liked his game, I wish he had gotten in better offensive position.
Jon Hood did okay, but I expected a bit more.
No DeAndre Liggins. Could he be in the doghouse already?
You would have thought that Josh Harrellson would have been more of a factor against such a small team.
Ramon Harris? What can I say, he did what he always does -- maximum effort and doing the little things.
DeMarcus Cousins can be so much better than he is, and he is already pretty good.
Turnovers are going to plague us in the early season. I just hope we get them under control before they start costing us games.

Bottom line, as ugly and ungainly as this game was, the display of raw talent was amazing, and the speed of the game, when it wasn't weirdly frenetic, was a sight for sore eyes. This team will have a lot of film to study in this game, but I loved they way they stood in and took charges, and played defense in the first half. In the second half, the defense kind of stank, but I think that was more due to conditioning issues that will quickly get corrected.

Kentucky vs. Campbellsville -- Pre-game Analysis & Open Game Thread

Truzenzuzex — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:56:07 -0000

More photos » by Garry Jones - AP

Pre-season All-American, Patrick Patterson. That sounds really sweet to me.

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Forgive me for running a little behind today. Monday's can be like that.

So tonight, we begin basketball in earnest with an exhibition game against Campbellsville in Rupp Arena at 7:00 PM. The game will be carried on Fox Sports South, so check your local listings for availability. This post will also serve as the official Open Game Thread for the game.

Tonight, the Kentucky Wildcats take on the NAIA Campbellsville Tigers in exhibition basketball action at Rupp Arena. This will be the first time the Tigers have played the University of Kentucky. Campbellsville was in a rebuilding year last year in the Mid-South conference, winning only 2 conference games and having an overall record of 10-19.

Tonight will mark John Calipari's debut as coach in a game where they play by the rules and keep score, so that's significant. We will be able to see how he will comport himself on the sidelines, how he will coach the kids, and how the young players will respond to him. That will be very much worth watching.

Another thing we will see is the UK team without John Wall, likely for one of the very few times this season. There has been some talk about who will play and who will not, but Chris Diggs gives us more detail:

Here's the announced starting line-up as of now.

Eric Bledsoe - Fr.
Darius Miller - So.
Darnell Dodson - So.
Patrick Patterson - Jr.
Demarcus Cousins - Fr.

Back-ups (First f0ur in no particular order)

Jon Hood - Fr.
Josh Harrellson - So.
Daniel Orton - Fr.
Ramon Harris - Sr.

Who we don't see in this is interesting -- no Perry Stevenson and no DeAndre Liggins. Oh, I'm sure they will both play, but not being on his announced list kind of says something to me, even though I may be reading tea leaves that say nothing.

And, in an interesting John Wall development, apparently addressing questions about Wall missing one exhibition and one regular season game, we have this:

Calipari said that "they" told him what games Wall would miss. The UK coach did not identify who "they" were.

Were "they" the NCAA staff? UK's athletic administration? A fan poll on CoachCal.com?

Apparently, Calipari doesn't even know who "they" are, or if he does, he's not telling. Maybe it's "the Visitors." I blame Jerry Tipton -- I think he knows "them" and is just having a bit of sport with us for ragging on him so hard lately.

Unfortunately, there is not much in the way of statistics available for Campbellsville, so I can't tell you much about their players, who leads the team, or anything else. But I can give you their roster from the school website, which you can find after the jump.

2009-10 Men's Basketball Roster for Cambpellsville

#	Name	Cl.	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown
	Demetric Ray*	SO	G	5-10	180	Bowling Green, KY
1	T.J. Bishop	SR	G	5-10	175	Boynton Beach, FL
2	Caleb Harris	JR	G	5-11	175	Chicago, IL
3	Shawn Savage	JR	G	5-10	170	Bowling Green, KY
4	Adrian Whelan	JR	G	5-10	170	Brandenburg, KY
13	Jermaine Carter	JR	G	5-11	185	Seaside, CA
15	Jordan Benock	SR	F	6-2	185	Battletown, KY
21	Justin Vitatoe	SO	F	6-4	190	Albany, KY
22	Joe Robinson	JR	F	6-4	200	Little Rock, AR
23	Leon Hart	JR	F	6-5	215	Hayward, CA
24	Sasha Mirosavljev*	JR	F	6-5	205	Sivac, Serbia
30	Brett Crittenden	JR	F	6-4	190	Tribune, KS
31	David Mann*	FR	F	6-4	175	Cincinnati, OH
32	Jake Gill	JR	F	6-4	245	Louisville, KY
33	Paulius Grikenas*	JR	C	6-8	225	Kaunas, Lithuania
40	Jonas Bohm	SO	C	6-9	235	Berlin, Germany
44	Nestor Colmenares	SR	F	6-8	235	Caracas, Venezuela
Keith Adkins - Head Coach
Bryan Milburn - Assistant Coach
Jeremy Monceaux - Assistant Coach
Justin Watson - Assistant Coach

To be honest, that's about all I know. But it should be good fun.

Blue/White Game -- After Action Report

Truzenzuzex — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:35:08 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

Darius Miller shows off his extra 2 inches in height by bringing the thunder!

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Well, as you might expect from a public scrimmage, there was a lot of fun had tonight in the Big Blue Nation. The Blue/White Scrimmage is now a historical fact.

Some questions were answered. Others remain. But overall, there was a lot positive from this intra-squad tussle. Here are the main things I noticed:

Wall and Bledsoe together are scary as heck in this offense. Nobody could stop them.
John Wall is as advertised, but he really needs to work on his perimeter game, it is a significant weakness.
Eric Bledsoe's perimeter game is better than it was. Early progress is a good thing.
Patrick Patterson is showing signs of having small forward skills. That's really great to see.
DeMarcus Cousins is a big, big boy. And he plays like one. But he is quite a bit more athletic than he looks.
Darius Miller was invisible in the first half, and awesome in the second. I don't know what that means.

Darnell Dodson can shoot, but he's no Jodie Meeks.
The athleticism on this team is absolutely remarkable. Perhaps the most athletic college team, top to bottom, ever assembled.
Jon Hood really looks like a contributor this year. He was fearless.
Perry Stevenson was completely invisible the whole game. Ramon Harris was not.
I think we can pretty well figure out who the stars are going to be.
Josh Harrellson can still shoot, and he makes good decisions more often than not. But he has to go to the basket a lot more strongly against the likes of this team.
Speed, speed, speed. This team is going to wear folks down in a hurry.
This team has the ability to be great defensively. Will they?
Did I mention Patrick Patterson was the man?
Mark Krebs can shoot a little.
DeAndre Liggins has a chance to be pretty good in this system.

Overall, I thought the practice was sloppy but fun, and I expect this team to get a lot better. Our athleticism and talent will carry us until we run up against the big boys, but hopefully by then, these guys will have some kind of clue. Even though they tried to execute Calipari's system, most of the time they didn't do a great job. We saw flashes of what makes the DDM so great, but it wasn't a consistent theme.

I do like the way that the team played with respect to effort and pace. I thought overall the team really played hard, and did good work. I expect Cal to get them to the point of competence, if not a well-oiled machine, pretty quickly. This was all good fun, and way more interesting than Big Blue Madness from a basketball standpoint.

I can't wait to see us play our first real game. Go Cats!

Blue and White Game -- Open Game Thread

Truzenzuzex — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:45:11 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

John Wall -- Will he play, or will he watch?

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Here are the particulars, courtesy of UKAthletics.com:

GameTracker | Live Video (Extreme Access) | Live Blog

Station	Coverage	Live/Delayed
Fox Sports South	Footprint includes states of Kentucky , Georgia , and South Carolina	Live
WBKO-CW	Bowling Green	Live
WYMT-TV	Hazard	Live
WKAG-TV	Hopkinsville	Live
WSAZ-DT (My Z)	Huntington	Live
WKYT-TV	Lexington	Live
WMYO-TV	Louisville	Live
WDKA-TV	Paducah, KY / Cape Girardeau, MO	Live

So what should we be looking for tonight? My thoughts after the jump.

I don't know about you, but here is what I'll be looking for:

Good shots. I like to see good shots, and I know Calipari wants them quickly. That will be an interesting dynamic.
Ballhandling -- I will be curious to see how our ballhandling is this year.
John Wall -- Will he play, or won't he?
The Big Cuz -- Will it be DeMarcus, or the Cuz?
Patterson vs. Cousins -- I hope. I want to see that.
Perimeter shooting -- can anyone but Josh Harrellson make a three?
Defensive pressure -- this is a Calipari trademark. Will we see any?
The DDM -- Are we going to see any of that, or is it just too soon?
Darnell Dodson -- I didn't get to see any of him the other night.
Getting to the rack -- will players concentrate on doing that?
Tough inside play -- I wanna see some of the big boys bang.
The fast break -- I expect this to be great sometime this year. Will it be early, or have to wait until later?

Add your comments, thoughts, and what you will be looking for below.

It's BASKETBAAAALLL TIME in the Big Blue Nation! Go 'Cats!!

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Blue/White Game Edition

Truzenzuzex — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:03:59 -0000

More photos » by Ed Reinke - AP

The man. Patrick Patterson.

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Okay, 'Cat fans, here we go. The Blue/White game is tonight, and we will learn a lot more about this team than we learned at Big Blue Madness, which essentially amounted to, "Josh Harrellson can shoot the ball and nobody else can do anything but dunk." Hopefully, we will see something more meaningful tonight.

I am really anxious to see this team in a more formal game setting where there is something at stake. As ~~good~~ talented as these guys are supposed to be, I want to see some of that talent express itself tonight. I want some reason to believe that this team can be molded into a national contender. I want to see what all the fuss is about.

It should be exciting, and of course, A Sea of Blue will have an open game thread for this game just like every other, so come one, come all, and join us tonight as we begin to experience the 2009-2010 season in earnest.

Now, for the news:

UK Basketball News

Crop of recruits help Patterson, boost UK's shot at national title - USATODAY.com
One of those things is to unchain himself from the post. He does not want to have to feel for the rim as a back-to-the basket scorer but actually see the rim facing the basket. NBA scouts, who stand under the basket to get a more accurate measure of a player, consider Patterson closer to 6-8 than 6-9, and they want to see him face up with what they consider small forward length.

It will be interesting to see if Patterson can bring this kind of game to the team. He hasn't shown much of it so far. Hat tip: Bluegrass State Basketball
Basketball Preview: Degree, NCAA tournament keep Patterson from NBA | The Kentucky Kernel
This season's subtext is all about Patrick Patterson.
Cats' Big Cuz has big potential to be force in post | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
DeMarcus is the fun one.

Big Cuz? He is, in Cousins' own words, "pretty mean."

He elaborated, but it's unfit for print.

Okay, but just keep it clean on the court.
Basketball Preview: New coach gives sophomore a second chance at UK | The Kentucky Kernel
Faced with a decision of whether or not to come back, Liggins sought his family’s advice.

Go back, they told him. Do everything right this time.

Good call.
Dodson likes team’s chemistry, talent | Vaught's Views
I like the chemistry, to. So far, that is. The Blue/White game will tell us much more.

UK Football News

UK Football: SEC honors Gonzalez: AMNews.com
We can't honor members of the o-line enough this year.
State-Journal.com - Don't expect runaway win when Kentucky, Mississippi State meet
This will be a close game between two very well-matched teams. Don't believe me? Just look at the stats.
Cats gear up for Miss. State ground game | KentuckySports.com
Sure, UK is giving up 174.1 yards a game on the ground. But that number is somewhat deceiving. Take away Florida's 362-yard rushing performance in a 41-7 loss on Sept. 26, and the Cats' average is a more respectable 142.8.

I think opponents fail to account for cases like Florida, where a team throws in a clunker. You have to watch those, it can give you a deceiving sense of security.
No blackout on field for Cats | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
Rich Brooks made one thing clear on Tuesday: Saturday's University of Kentucky "blackout" game against Mississippi State is strictly for the fans. Before he fielded a question or updated injuries, the UK coach told the media after practice that the Wildcats will be wearing their traditional look for Saturday's game.

Good for you, Coach. Good for us, too. We don't need distractions, we need a victory.
Seasons hinge on UK-MSU rivalry | KentuckySports.com
"I think, when you're in the lower half of the league historically, to get to the upper half, you not only have to knock off some of those big boys up there, you have to knock off the guys that are like you," Brooks said. "And Mississippi State and Kentucky have been like each other for quite a while, and the team that has won has had the edge up on being able to climb that ladder a little bit."

It's hard to really overstate how big this game is. UK wins this one, and it looks like the fourth straight bowl is a done deal. Lose, and UK has serious work to do.
Anything but Gatorade: BLACKOUTS ARE FOR FUN, NOT FOOTBALL
What he says.

Other UK Sports News

None today

NCAA Sports News

Rush The Court " Adam Zagoria on Kyrie Irving, Recruiting, and Social Networking
Interesting interview. Lots of hot-button issues hit with respect to recruiting and reporting of commitments.
Pat Forde: Chance to bash the SEC has likely passed - ESPN
"This is a tough league for freshmen, I can tell [Calipari] that from experience," Stallings said. "Not that he needs me to tell him anything.

"We started three freshmen a year ago. If he can win the league starting three freshmen, then he's as good a coach as I think he is and those freshmen are as good as advertised."

Fair enough.

Other News of Interest

Prince's role with Pistons might change | KentuckySports.com

The Daily Schadenfreude

Duke basketball's Goodfellas poster - The Dagger - NCAAB - Yahoo! Sports
1. Both Duke basketball players and the guys from Goodfellas get special treatment from authority figures, whether they wear badges or stripes.

2. Fortunes of the movie's characters and basketball team peak in the middle and then collapse down the stretch.

3. Main characters will be anonymous in a few years (Henry Hill went into witness protection, Jon Scheyer will go into NBDL).

Heh. Hat tip: Truth About Duke
Pitino not just blowing smoke; Cards playing with fire against Tigers | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
"We know it's going to be a very close game; we'll probably be trailing most of the game," Pitino said. "The fans are going to say, ‘Oh, here he goes again,' but … Georgetown has given us fits every time we played them."

Is it even possible for Pitino to get any weirder?
Memo to Duke: Salvage Your Dignity - Casual Hoya
Duke Blue Devils debut the worst promo ever.

Heh.

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Monday Catch Up

Truzenzuzex — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:52:47 -0000

More photos » by Butch Dill - AP

Randall Cobb, football player -- doing what he does.

Browse more photos »

I was out of pocket yesterday, so I thought we would play catch-up this morning in the Big Blue Daily Mail.

Of course, the big topic will be reviews of the UK victory over Auburn, 21-14, at Jordan-Hare Stadium. UK managed to pull off a big upset there of a 4 5-1 football team [oops, stole a win from Auburn there. -- ed.] that has the rest of the SEC talking. We'll have more about what they are saying in the news.

Also, in case you have been living in a cave in Afghanistan somewhere for the last few days, Big Blue Madness came and went with much fanfare on Friday, and we will of course catch up with the basketball team.

Now, for the news.

UK Basketball News

Wildcat Blue In a Sea of Orange: Kyrie Irving, Tobias Harris talking about attending UK together?
Kentucky/Duke virtually even for Irving : This as a story that is gaining momentum more and more. Remember, Irving was widely expected to have committed on 9/27 and not to take any more visits after his Duke visit. That commit never happened and each day that Irving does not commit is better for all the other schools.

Interesting.
As If There Wasn
JOHN WALL. JOHN WALL. JOHN WALL. I'm kind of elated to see the marriage of John Wall and John Calipari begin in Lexington. Who isn't excited about this? (Well, who isn't outside of the SEC, I should say.)
John Calipari officially started his reign as Kentucky basketball coach - ESPN
Like saviors dropped from heaven -- and let's face it, that's what they are here -- the players, including the ballyhooed freshman class, were introduced on curtain-covered lifts suspended a good 25 feet above the stage. Eric Bledsoe came first, earning a decent ovation; John Wall garnered a crazed reaction; and Patrick Patterson was last, greeted with riotous excitement.

Almost a great piece by Dana O'Neil ... almost. A couple of stumbles turned a really excellent article into just a good one, but it is definitely worth a read.
Calipari: Make UK the gold standard in college athletics | KentuckySports.com
One hopes the possible secondary NCAA rules violations committed by the crowd when it chanted prospects' names were a misstep to be written off to runaway zeal. That happened four times, each an apparent violation of NCAA rule 13.11.4 which forbids the chanting of prospects' names at an event open to the public.

Oh, my God. If that's a violation, report it with a smile. The very idea that the NCAA can control a crowd's chant of a prospect's name is a laughably absurd concept.

Sometimes, reality simply must intrude.
Krebs family aims to stay strong together | KentuckySports.com
Kentucky basketball means a lot of things to a lot of people. For senior guard Mark Krebs, it is an escape.

It's a respite from thinking about his mother's ongoing battle with cancer.

Our prayers go out to Mark's mother, and their family.
Rupp Arena becomes a Big Blue Mad house | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
It was a night for spectacle, a night when the University of Kentucky men’s basketball program took center stage — quite literally — with a show surely as splashy as any in the history of Big Blue Madness.
Kentucky, Calipari Raise Stakes With Over-the-Top Midnight Madness - Andy Hutchins - The Sporting Blog - Sporting News
It's those other off-court problems that might derail this renaissance. The Big Blue faithful should only hope that Coach Cal makes good on his promises before everything comes crashing down. Again.

Well, here it is. You knew it would be here. You knew that they couldn't get past BBM without suggesting that UK is headed straight into the NCAA crapper under Calipari. Embrace the hate.
UK Notebook: Cal says this is Patterson's last year | KentuckySports.com
Speaking to the Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches, Calipari said his first UK team's experience consisted of "three seniors and Patrick Patterson, who will leave this year. Hopefully he'll be a top-10 pick."

That Patterson might leave after his junior season comes as no surprise. But it was interesting that Calipari gave himself no wiggle room.

I think we make too much of this. Later in the season, Calipari will likely say something different, and cause a media stir. Patterson should move to the NBA but nobody, probably not even him at this point, knows if he will for certain.
ZAGSBLOG " Tobias and Kyrie, Together in College?; Vander Blue to Marquette
If so, it would be at UK, at least right now. But there is a long way to go.
Kentucky Sports Radio " Blog Archive " Torrel Harris Talks With Us About His Son’s Visit to UK’s Big Blue Madness
DR: Anything else that just really stood out to guys during the visit?

Torrel Harris: The fans stood out. I mean, they were just UN-BE-LIEVE-ABLE. And then just the teaching techniques of the staff, of Coach Cal and of just his whole staff. For me, that stood out. That stood out for Tobias too. You can tell the fans are unbelievable. I videotaped the whole thing and you can tell man, they LOVE their UK basketball. 24,000 fans up there for Madness, man that is unbelievable. So, I mean, it was great man, it was great.

Good stuff from Dustin Rumbaugh on Tobias Harris' visit to UK over Big Blue Madness.

UK Football News

Where’s the respect for Brooks’ Cats? | Vaught's Views
Well, to be fair, UK must do more. If we win three more SEC games, it will come, make no mistake. But when you are 1-3 in the SEC, I would submit that is not the best time to demand respect.
courier-journal.com | Eric Crawford | The Courier-Journal
You can say that Auburn wasn't ranked, that it has been slowed by injury, that it is losing steam. You can say, and some are, that the SEC is down (for folks who do, I'll take Florida and Alabama and give you any two teams from one league in the country, and we'll see who winds up on top.)

Indeed, it probably was. Isn't it interesting that we can beat good teams in the West, but cant seem to beat any of the good ones in the East? You can say all that, but it doesn't matter. When UK came from behind to beat Auburn 21-14 Saturday night, it was the second-biggest win in Rich Brooks' tenure.
Brooks happy with both quarterbacks | Vaught's Views
Sanders impresses in marquee matchup - ESPN
DECATUR, Ga. -- Kentucky running back commit Raymond Sanders (Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson) showed why he could be one of the more underrated recruits heading to the Southeastern Conference next season.

Looks like Brooks & Co. have found another hidden jewel.
UK scores two late TDs to shock Auburn | KentuckySports.com
"I just get more hungry in the fourth quarter, and I want to do whatever I have to do to get us in the lead or keep the lead," Cobb said. "I just love playing the game, and the fourth quarter is when you've got to dig deep."

The legend of Randall Cobb continues to grow, and he is only in his second year as a Wildcat.
What we learned in the SEC: Week 7 - SEC - ESPN
5. Kentucky follows its leader: The Rich Brooks legacy at Kentucky will be closely tied to the Wildcats’ three straight bowl victories the last three seasons and how he’s elevated the program to respectability at a school where basketball is king. But Brooks’ legacy goes even deeper than that. He’s brought a sense of toughness to Kentucky football, a sense of class to Kentucky football and a no-excuses resolve that should serve this program well long after he’s retired and back home fishing in Oregon.

Read the rest. It's short, but worth it.
SEC helmet stickers: Week 7 - SEC - ESPN
Kentucky coach Rich Brooks: Boy, did he deserve this one. His Kentucky team deserved this one. This is a program that would have faded into oblivion in the past after losing three straight games and having so many key players go down with injuries. But Brooks kept his guys focused and kept them believing, and the Wildcats went to the Plains and took out Auburn 21-14 on Saturday. It’s a win that very much keeps alive the Wildcats’ bowl chances, as they evened their record at 3-3.

This has already been linked, but if you didn't read it, you should.
" Video: Rich Brooks after win over Auburn John Clay’s Sidelines
So. Papa Brooks did not tell the whole tale after all. Like Mr. Spock, he didn't lie, he exaggerated. :-)
UK’s football season looks a lot better now | Vaught's Views
At 3-3 going into a relatively easier stretch, UK is well-positioned for more than six wins this season.
Eyes on Auburn: 14-21 Loss to Kentucky (as I vomit in my mouth) Review
-Offensive pass interference is no longer in the rule book (I guess). UK's first scoring drive was kept alive by a third down conversion in which Kentucky's receiver obviously pushed off on Demond Washington creating the separation necessary to make the catch. It was a pitiful no call and would have been flagged 100% of the time if roles were reversed. Maybe I'm sensitive to this as a former defensive back. And while we're on the topic of penalties, how Kentucky played an entire SEC game on the road without a single penalty called against them is comical as well.

I thought there were two or three obvious penalties that UK got away with -- Offsides on the first kickoff, the push of mentioned above, and a hold I saw on one of the pass plays. Plus, we have been flagged for not having enough men on the line of scrimmage all year, and I thought that could have been called at least once.

Other UK Sports News

UK snags commitment
Jennifer O'Neill, a 5-foot-6 point guard from St. Michael Academy in New York, is ranked No. 30 nationally by Hoopgurlz.com and picked UK over Georgia and California.

Congrats to coach Mitchell! Great job.

NCAA Sports News

UK's Brooks: SEC runner-up may belong in BCS title game - al.com
"It's going to be a great SEC championship game," said Kentucky coach Rich Brooks, whose team has played both the Crimson Tide and Gators this season. "I'm assuming - and I think I'll be correct in this, unless somebody gets upset here along the way - that they're probably both going to go undefeated into the SEC Championship game.

"And I'm not so sure the loser of that game shouldn't play in the national championship game, too."

I think I just heard the heads of a million Pac-10 and Big Televen fans explode at the same time.
Pilgrim-age could improve Pokes | NewsOK.com
"Matt brings us something we didn’t necessarily have," Ford said. "He’s the strongest player on our team. He’s the most athletic player on our team.

Matt Pilgrim is making a splash at Oklahoma State.
Kansas eager to leave off-court events behind - CBK News - FOX Sports on MSN
"This group had a hall pass, but they've lost that right," he said. "We've put a lot harsher rules in place.

"I think we've got really good kids. But we made a series of poor decisions, and it's shed a negative light on us."

We'll see. We'll see.

Other News of Interest

AFP: Hurricane Rick weakens as it nears Mexico coast
This is a a really scary hurricane.
UConn Football Player Jasper Howard Stabbed To Death On Campus -- Courant.com
About nine hours after his Huskies walked off Rentschler Field with a victory over Louisville, after a press conference filled with smiles and platitudes, UConn football coach Randy Edsall 's phone rang. When the phone rings at that hour, Edsall said, it's never good.

Our prayers go out to the family. What a horrible thing to happen.
Greg Page Foundation honors a child champion - WAVE 3 TV Louisville, KY |
Does anybody besides me remember Greg Page? Glad to see his legacy is doing good work.

The Daily Schadenfreude

Duke Basketball Report - The unofficial home of Duke basketball fans and the Cameron Crazies
If you live inside the borders of the state of Kentucky, odds are you think the sun rises and sets on Kentucky basketball. If you don’t, you likely have a more jaundiced view of the program. Like us, for example.

Aww, isn't that just precious? The Dookies feel like they have to take shots at us again.

That's a cute little program you guys have there, Dookies. Too bad it's about to become rather less prominent. I have a feeling it is Calipari we will be seeing on the TV much more than Coach K in the coming years, and I will enjoy that very much, as well as subjecting the Indigo Diablos to the depredations of some serious schadenfruede.

Maybe somebody should start a website dedicated to exposing the truth about Duke's empire of condescending little Kentucky wanna-bes. Oh, wait ...
Low key, high hopes for Pitino and U of L | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
The Cardinals have been ranked in the top 20 by most preseason publications, and they're being picked in various spots in the upper half of the Big East Conference. Perhaps because of the splash made by John Calipari at the University of Kentucky, perhaps because of the loss of Williams and Clark, this is an under-the-radar group at the moment.

Does anyone else see the unseriousness in claiming a Rick Pitino team is "under the radar?"
A Wise move: Relieving pressure on point guard | "Tell them … tell the team to bear down"
Did anybody else think Kentucky’s introduction of John Calipari was over the top? Spotlight in a darkened arena. Confetti everywhere. We will take Miller’s low-key style in such an event over Calipari’s approach any day, especially considering the young team Miller has toHigh-profile recruit Adreian Payne of Dayton (Ohio) Jefferson attended West Virginia’s Midnight Madness and one report indicated that Payne has narrowed his choices to West Virginia and Kentucky. Payne visited the UA campus last weekend. The report by Bob Hertzel of the Times West Virginian does not cite any sources.

More love from jealous rivals.

SB Nation - Josh Harrellson

Kentucky 64, Connecticut 61 -- Postmortem

Kentucky 73, Cleveland State 49 -- Postmortem

Kentucky 102, Sam Houston 92 -- Postmortem

Kentucky 75, Morehead State 59 -- After Action Report

Kentucky 74, Campbellsville 38 -- Postmortem

Kentucky vs. Campbellsville -- Pre-game Analysis & Open Game Thread

2009-10 Men's Basketball Roster for Cambpellsville

Blue/White Game -- After Action Report

Blue and White Game -- Open Game Thread

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Blue/White Game Edition

Top Stories

UK Basketball News

UK Football News

Other UK Sports News

NCAA Sports News

Other News of Interest

The Daily Schadenfreude

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Monday Catch Up

Top Stories

UK Basketball News

UK Football News

Other UK Sports News

NCAA Sports News

Other News of Interest

The Daily Schadenfreude