SBNation.com User Blog: Thomas Mario Adams III

10 reasons THE VILLE wins this year’s Final Four | Sagaciously...Pugnaciously

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 01:46:25 -0000

10 reasons THE VILLE wins this year’s Final Four | Sagaciously...Pugnaciously

...for dem Birdlovers, and doze Cathaters

March 20, 2013? How is John Calipari Doing Today?

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 00:43:57 -0000

I know this should be a FanShot but I thought it relevant (and I can't figure out the FanShot stuff): You may have to cut and paste in your browser...

Question: How is John Calipari doing after one of the most stressful seasons he has ever been involved in as a coach? Click on the following link for a little hint...

via i1283.photobucket.com

Click on the image to see the animation.

Not mine... except for the caption. I wish I could give the by-line.

I know this should be a FanShot but I thought it relevant (and I can't figure out the FanShot stuff): You may have to cut and paste in your browser...

Question: How is John Calipari doing after one of the most stressful seasons he has ever been involved in as a coach? Click on the following link for a little hint...

via i1283.photobucket.com

Click on the image to see the animation.

Not mine... except for the caption. I wish I could give the by-line.

(ANDY) KATZ: What's the biggest misconception about you? CALIPARI: I don't know, nor do I care.

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 00:47:51 -0000

(ANDY) KATZ: What's the biggest misconception about you?

CALIPARI: I don't know, nor do I care.

ESPN Nations Blog

Unrelated :Fun with really Bad Golf

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 22:39:23 -0000

Unrelated :Fun with really Bad Golf

Duffers, scruffers, hackers, and whackers... gimme some love, huh?

Ode to Kansas

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sat, 17 Nov 2012 09:37:33 -0000

Ode to Kansas

Sorry! Here's another try. Good luck to Kansas fans one and all...

rewind:Pacino vs Deniro

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 23:01:12 -0000

Catbird Fan asks the "Toxic" Kentucky Question: Rick Pitino

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 21:38:07 -0000

FYI- this as posted earlier today on Kentucky’s SeaofBlue.com site

I’ll start by saying that I am easily capable of respecting each person’s views on this controversial subject, as I would expect them to respect mine in kind. Disagree with me, OK. Point out another viewpoint or other considerations and I will attempt to "stand in your shoes" if only but for a moment. But, attempt to belittle my ideas and you will find that my lexicon extends farther into "poison penmanship" than one dare imagine. I’m not trying to start a fight, but simply to understand what it is I have been missing...

I sometimes read with horror the insults hurled at one particular Rick Pitino, whom I feel every Kentuckian like myself ought admire for what he accomplished while leading UK’s program from near irrelevance back to the top of the heap. Of course, one can say that Cal did it faster, and to this I would agree.

Though the circumstances being quite different, I certainly have extreme admiration for John Calipari and his relentless pursuit of excellence. Yet, I am loath to denigrate Rick Pitino for much the same reasons I admire John Calipari. Number one is, they both revived UK’s vaunted tradition into pre-eminence in record fashion after we had stumbled mightily.

What we have here are two intensely driven individuals seeking perfection tempered by their intuitive knowledge that they are all-too-human, and that they will never be perfect or content (but still, they can be happy).

Though Pitino left us in a hurry, he certainly didn’t leave our cupboard bare. I mean, the intrinsic nature of "opportunity" is that it can strike at any time, and not likely at some pre-determined moment of our choosing. Just ask any Memphis fan.

Rick Pitino grew up while playing Boston Celtic games over and over in his head, much like I expect you or I have done with past Kentucky moments in our childhood. He was in effect, going home; an all-to-appealing circumstance that many of us can understand well, with its considerable personal and unique magnetism.

I went to Boston once to watch Rick’s Celtics get thrashed by some other lower placed division squad. He looked miserable and out of place among the hungry and angry Celtic fans, who jeered every missed shot or opponent rebound. Neither of them were used to losing like that, but I sensed that Pitino was also not used to inattentive players. In fact he was infuriated. Barking his simple instructions, they all looked at him like he was some alien from another planet. And, as he eventually realized, he was.

What landed him at Louisville were two simple things aside from a desire to return to the college game; Love of friends and family, and love of a place/state which he had once been lucky enough to have encountered in a past life. Our beautiful Kentucky home.

The Louisville job held one other simple allure besides it being in Kentucky, that place which he admittedly had grown to love along with his family and friends; It’s undying commitment to its basketball program. His pocketbook was already full, so it would be a hard sell to argue that he did it for the money.

The folks at Louisville had long known that its campus was less than ideal for recruiting great high school players. But, they also knew that a monetary commitment to the program had once brought them prestige and exposure to potential players and other students far and wide. Basketball was even more of an identity factor on a local and national level for them as any of their considerably strong academic programs like Law and Medicine.

Not to mention, Louisville had long become a hotbed of fandom, likely considering its two National Championships, and being located in the state where college basketball is considered more a religion than a sport.

And of course, ever since the Bird-Magic days of March Madness, great basketball more than paid its own way. But, only a celebrated name like Rick Pitino would likely be able to rev up their slouching program without any other obvious draw. A program that had slipped into idle during Denny Crum’s twilight days after he refused to consider the implications of the 3-point shot, or even to change his high/low offense to meet the evolving nature of the game. Denny, it seemed had "gone fishing" a few years before he left the program.

If you think you understand the complex nature of the one-and-done situation as it relates to Kentucky players, you will be hard pressed to argue Pitino’s leaving for the NBA’s Celtics, considering the considerable monetary and control offer he was made at the time. (think: a deal you can't refuse).

I mean c’mon, let a man choose his own desitiny!

John Calipari espouses much the same philosophy with his "players first" ideas. He knows that opportunity can be an elusive proposition, and one should honor themselves and their family by "jumping" when the timing appears right, despite what anyone who is less personally invested thinks. And, I agree wholeheartedly with this thinking.

Sure, I think Rick knew that he would be jeered at Rupp when he showed up for the UK-UL matchup, but I doubt that he or anyone could have imagined the vitriolic nastiness that spewed forth from Cats fans from day one of his taking the Louisville job.

Its my opinion that if you can’t appreciate Pitino for his achievements at Kentucky, then you’re just not able to understand the simple idea that each individual must stay true to him/herself and those he loves dearly. And if you can’t understand that, then we disagree on way more than the game of basketball.

To be sure, there will be someone out there moralizing about the Karen Sypher affair, and how wretched a man that makes Rick Pitino, but I can say with absolute certainty that, "Mistakes do not a bad man make". Perhaps you do live in a glass house, and for that I offer congratulations. But if so, you are the exception, and not the rule. Better to consider yourself fortunate and remain quiet, for you’ll have another chance to fail, and who knows?

I’m certainly willing to entertain dissenting opinions, since I understand that some folks whom I seem to like very much have a hard time accepting Rick Pitino as one of the "good guys".

Or, perhaps it’s me that’s supporting some untenable "obtuse" point? Please, do edify me. I have been apt to change course mid-stream after learning some previously unknown fact, or hearing some simple logic based reasoning of which I dare not disagree. I’m all ears.

Until then, I’ll only say that I love Kentucky basketball (and UL basketball), and I love having two of the best coaches in the modern game at their respective helms. I say give the guy a break. I mean, in the end its only basketball. And it’s Kentucky basketball.

At the end of the day, I suppose I’m a Catbird born, and a Catbird bred, and I guess I’ll be a Catbird dead.

(comments/responses to be posted here later)

-30-

FYI- this as posted earlier today on Kentucky’s SeaofBlue.com site

I mean c’mon, let a man choose his own desitiny!

I’m certainly willing to entertain dissenting opinions, since I understand that some folks whom I seem to like very much have a hard time accepting Rick Pitino as one of the "good guys".

At the end of the day, I suppose I’m a Catbird born, and a Catbird bred, and I guess I’ll be a Catbird dead.

(comments/responses to be posted here later)

-30-

Warning! Highly Toxic Opinion Ahead...the Rick Pitino Question

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 16:33:22 -0000

[Paragraph unrelated to content deleted by the editor.]

I sometimes read with horror the insults hurled at one particular Rick Pitino, one whom I feel every Kentuckian like myself ought admire for what he accomplished while leading UK’s program from near irrelevance back to the top of the heap. Of course, one can always say that Cal did it faster, and to this I would agree.

Though Pitino left us in a hurry, one cannot argue that he left our cupboard bare. I mean, the intrinsic nature of "opportunity" is that it can strike at any time, and not likely at some pre-determined moment of our choosing. Just ask any Memphis fan.

Rick Pitino grew up while playing Boston Celtic games over and over in his head, much like I expect you or I have done with past Kentucky moments in our childhoods. He was in effect, going home; an all-to-appealing circumstance that many of us can well understand, with its considerable personal and unique magnetism.

I went to Boston once to watch Rick’s Celtics get thrashed by some other lower placed division squad. He looked miserable and out of place among the hungry and angry Celtic fans, who jeered every missed shot or opponent rebound. Neither of them were used to losing like that, but I sensed that Pitino was also not used to inattentive players. In fact he was infuriated. Barking his simple instructions, they all looked at him as though he were some alien from another planet. And, as he eventually realized, he was.

What landed him at Louisville were two simple things aside from a burning desire to return to the college game; Love of friends and family, and love of a place/state which he had once been lucky enough to have encountered in a past life. Our beautiful Kentucky home.

The folks at Louisville had long known that its campus was less than ideal for recruiting great high school players. But, they also knew that a monetary commitment to the program had brought them prestige and exposure to potential players and other students far and wide. Basketball was even more of an identity factor on a local and national level for them as any of their considerably strong academic programs, like Law and Medicine.

And of course, ever since the Bird-Magic days of March Madness, great college basketball more than paid its own way. But, only a celebrated name like Rick Pitino would likely be able to rev up their slouching program without any other obvious draw. A program that had slipped into idle during Denny Crum’s twilight days, after he refused to consider the implications of the 3-point shot, or even to change his high/low offense to meet the evolving nature of the game. Denny had "gone fishing" long before he retired from UL.

I mean c’mon, let a man choose his own destiny!

I’m certainly willing to entertain dissenting opinions, since I understand that some folks whom I seem to like very much have a hard time accepting Rick Pitino as one of the "good guys".

At the end of the day, I suppose I’m a Catbird born, and a Catbird bred, and I guess I’ll be a Catbird dead.

-30-

[Paragraph unrelated to content deleted by the editor.]

I went to Boston once to watch Rick’s Celtics get thrashed by some other lower placed division squad. He looked miserable and out of place among the hungry and angry Celtic fans, who jeered every missed shot or opponent rebound. Neither of them were used to losing like that, but I sensed that Pitino was also not used to inattentive players. In fact he was infuriated. Barking his simple instructions, they all looked at him as though he were some alien from another planet. And, as he eventually realized, he was.

The folks at Louisville had long known that its campus was less than ideal for recruiting great high school players. But, they also knew that a monetary commitment to the program had brought them prestige and exposure to potential players and other students far and wide. Basketball was even more of an identity factor on a local and national level for them as any of their considerably strong academic programs, like Law and Medicine.

I mean c’mon, let a man choose his own destiny!

I’m certainly willing to entertain dissenting opinions, since I understand that some folks whom I seem to like very much have a hard time accepting Rick Pitino as one of the "good guys".

At the end of the day, I suppose I’m a Catbird born, and a Catbird bred, and I guess I’ll be a Catbird dead.

-30-

Defense pays...

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 02:22:03 -0000

Defense pays...

Congratulations to Deandre Liggins!

Indiana Highly Unlikely to Reach 2013 Final Four

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 23:34:33 -0000

Indiana cannot win the NCAA basketball tournament this year.

And, it’s highly improbable that they will make the Final Four, despite the lofty predictions and expectations by the experts and their fans. I say this from the historical statistical standpoint, in a recent study of the last ten Final Fours, and not because I do not like IU basketball.

For the record, I do NOT like IU basketball.

Of course, no one can argue that the NCAA Basketball tournament is played on the court, and not on paper.

To be sure, in some years strange anomalies have occurred; like 2011’s Final Four which included two Cinderella teams in Virginia Commonwealth and Butler University, not to mention University of Kentucky and U Conn teams, who only a few had expected to make it to the Final Four.

The reasons for what happened in 2011 are as varied as there are reasons for today’s milder weather; why certain teams "survived and advanced" and others were thwarted in that lofty pursuit. Occasionally a team elevates its play offensively, or otherwise it just can’t "buy a basket" when it normally shoots the ball at a high percentage.

Rarely, if ever though, has a team suddenly begun to play defense when it hadn’t done so before.

Pairings were vital in 2011, and a stronger Kentucky team drew a much higher (worse) seed than it deserved, while its rival Florida undeservedly benefited from the selection committees mistake. That drama played itself out later when Kentucky, a much better team and closer match than should have been expected, beat the number one seed Ohio State, thereby penalizing the Buckeyes for the selection committee’s faulty judgment. And then, adding further insult to their blunder, Florida was taken out by Butler University, sending that unlikely team to its second straight Final Four.

The other Cinderella, Virginia Commonwealth, benefited from perhaps tournament history’s most horrifying "gag" job, when it beat number another one seed in Kansas, after all of the other one seeds had been eliminated. Kansas appeared to have the tourney "by the balls", but not for one pesky bit of unfinished business; nobody had told Shaka Smart that he was "supposed" to lose. Kansas fell flat as a homemade prarie jam cake, while Smart and Company mopped the floor with Kansas’ lost confidence and VCU’s timely three point shooting.

And though 2011’s Final Four may appear strange, it still isn’t as strange as Indiana making this year’s Final Four. Why?

I compared statistics (using KenPom.com) from the last 10 Final Fours to reach this obvious conclusion. I looked at how each Final Four team was ranked in Adjusted Offense and Adjusted Defense to make my observation/prediction about IU.

Of course, it stands to reason that offense is a less reliable barometer for a team’s success than its Defense over the course of an entire season. Even at season’s end, a great shooting team can go cold or a poor one can get red hot. For this reason Offensive efficiency in Final Four teams sees wildly fluctuating numbers, while defensive efficiency over the course of the season is less likely to fluctuate in the tournament, and as such Final Four representative team numbers do not show similarly wild fluctuations.

For example, rarely in the last 10 years are Final Four teams ranked outside of the top 20 in Defensive efficiency (of 40 potential teams, only 7 have been). In 2011 two teams were (Virginia Commonwealth- 86th, Butler-49th) and 2003 two teams were (Texas-44th, Marquette-101st). That leaves 8 other years (32 potential) where only 3 teams were ranked outside the top 20 in Defensive efficiency (2010, West Virginia- 22nd, Michigan State- 30th) and (2005, Michigan State- 25th). Only twice in the past 10 years has ANY Final Four team been ranked as low as Indiana was in 2012 (64th) in Defensive efficiency… the 2003 Marquette Warriors featuring Dwayne Wade and VCU in 2011.

NO WINNING TEAM IN THE LAST TEN YEARS HAS RANKED NEAR INDIANA’S LAST YEAR RANKING OF 64TH. The worst ranking was in 2003, when Syracuse ranked 19th in Defensive efficiency. Remember, Indiana was ranked 64th. Most years, the winning team was ranked in the top ten (in 6 of 10 years) in defensive efficiency. The others were UConn- 2011 (14th), UNC- 2009 (16th) and Florida- 2007 (12th).

Indiana was ranked 64th last year! They are returning all five starters.

Of course, the season has yet to begin, so isn’t it difficult to predict? Perhaps, but isn’t Defense less a matter of individual skills and more a matter of instinctive attributes like quickness, tenacity, peripheal vision, and coaching? Can Indiana’s players become much quicker, faster in one year? Is Tom Crean changing his habit of not relying on defense or changing it up altogether? Or is it more likely that if they do improve defensively, it will only be slightly?

These statistics show that for IU to win the National Championship a) this year it will have to be a far different year than any other, or b) they will need to have improved their defense immeasurably. Knowing what I think I know about the game of basketball, neither of these scenarios are likely.

Some might argue that Illinois returned all five starters in 2005 to reach the Final Four. Do they also mention that four of those were drafted by the NBA that year, 1 was First team All-American (Dee Brown) and 2 were Second Team All-American (Deron Williams and Luther Hodge)?

Do any detractors to this theory really contend that "White men can jump?"

Some will say Florida's defense in 2006 also improved enough to put them into the Final Four. OK, but do they mention that Florida added to their starting lineup Joakim Noah, Taurean Green, Corey Brewer, and Al Horford?

Interestingly, Louisville was ranked number 1 in defensive efficiency at the end of last season. Does this suggest that 2013 is The Year of the Cardinal? Perhaps?

Indiana cannot win the NCAA basketball tournament this year.

For the record, I do NOT like IU basketball.

Of course, no one can argue that the NCAA Basketball tournament is played on the court, and not on paper.

Rarely, if ever though, has a team suddenly begun to play defense when it hadn’t done so before.

And though 2011’s Final Four may appear strange, it still isn’t as strange as Indiana making this year’s Final Four. Why?

Indiana was ranked 64th last year! They are returning all five starters.

Do any detractors to this theory really contend that "White men can jump?"

Interestingly, Louisville was ranked number 1 in defensive efficiency at the end of last season. Does this suggest that 2013 is The Year of the Cardinal? Perhaps?

Indiana Highly Unlikely to Make 2013 Final Four

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 12:59:09 -0000

Indiana cannot win the NCAA basketball tournament this season.

For the record, I do NOT like IU basketball.

Of course, one can always argue that the NCAA Basketball tournament is played on the court, and not on paper.

Rarely, if ever though, has a team suddenly begun to play defense when it hadn’t done so before.

The other Cinderella, Virginia Commonwealth, benefited from perhaps tournament history’s most horrifying "gag" job, when it beat another number one seed in Kansas, after all of the other one seeds had been eliminated. Kansas appeared to have the tourney "by the balls", but not for one pesky bit of unfinished business; nobody had told Shaka Smart that he was "supposed" to lose. Kansas fell flat as a homemade prarie jam cake, while Smart and Company mopped the floor with Kansas’ lost confidence and VCU’s timely three point shooting.

And though 2011’s Final Four may appear strange, it still isn’t as strange as Indiana making this year’s Final Four. Why?

Indiana was ranked 64th last year!

Of course, the season has yet to begin, so isn’t it difficult to predict? Perhaps, but isn’t Defense less a matter of individual skills and more a matter of quickness, tenacity, fortitude, and coaching? Can Indiana’s players become quicker, faster? Is Tom Crean changing his habit of not teaching defense or changing it up altogether? Or is it more likely that if they do improve defensively, it will only be slightly?

Interestingly, Louisville was ranked number 1 in defensive efficiency at the end of last season. Is 2013 The Year of the Cardinal? Perhaps.

Indiana cannot win the NCAA basketball tournament this season.

For the record, I do NOT like IU basketball.

Of course, one can always argue that the NCAA Basketball tournament is played on the court, and not on paper.

Rarely, if ever though, has a team suddenly begun to play defense when it hadn’t done so before.

And though 2011’s Final Four may appear strange, it still isn’t as strange as Indiana making this year’s Final Four. Why?

Indiana was ranked 64th last year!

Interestingly, Louisville was ranked number 1 in defensive efficiency at the end of last season. Is 2013 The Year of the Cardinal? Perhaps.

Ode to Kansas

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 20:59:44 -0000

Ode to Kansas

In...Things I'm Afraid To Tell You

I love me some Demarcus Cousins

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 22 Jul 2012 23:34:07 -0000

I love me some Demarcus Cousins

The headline says it all...

2. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said Kentucky’s Anthony Davis -- the consensus No. 1 pick in the...

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 20 May 2012 19:45:03 -0000

2. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said Kentucky’s Anthony Davis -- the consensus No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft -- brings shot-blocking, something the U.S. Olympic team may need this summer in London. Davis’ chances have risen due to the injury to Orlando’s Dwight Howard. Krzyzewski said Davis isn’t "trying out" for the team; rather, Davis is now in the pool of players who may be selected. Krzyzewski said it would be good to get Davis indoctrinated right away into USA Basketball. "He’s a great talent and a good kid," Krzyzewski said. "Hopefully we don’t get any more guys hurt."

if you don't like this you're from the lower 49...

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 21:53:59 -0000

if you don't like this you're from the lower 49...

If you enjoyed my YEAR OF THE CAT Fanshot, have a listen to this classic I'm reminded of after...

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 21:43:42 -0000

If you enjoyed my YEAR OF THE CAT Fanshot, have a listen to this classic I'm reminded of after reading all the blogsperts report on how The 2012 Cats signal the end of college basketball. This man is the bomb as us oldsters know.

Everybody Knows

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 21:23:42 -0000

Everybody Knows

If you liked Year of The Cat, try this on for all the blogsperts and the fans who claim the 2012 CATS signal the end of college ball...

Somethin' Strange: Zone-Busters or Carolina Fail?

Thomas Mario Adams III — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:17:39 -0000

Something strange... is going on, in the neighborhood, something ominous maybe.

Something that I can’t remember ever having witnessed or felt before is going on... there appears to be a paradigm switch happening... right now in Chapel Hill, NC... perhaps over the past two college basketball seasons.

Who you gonna call? Dukes zone-busters?

As far back as I can remember watching, Carolina does not blow 10 point leads in the Dean Dome over the last two minutes of any game. Didn’t happen before... But it just did.

And even further back... Carolina does NOT get blown out by over 30 to Florida State or anybody else for that matter. Didn’t happen... just happened.

Perhaps fittingly on the night the iconic Dean Smith was passed by a Coach from... huh, Syracuse? on the all-time win list, UNC melted like the normal Hot-Buffalo-Wing-Dings late Spring fold-thing. Syr-excuse? Don’t they play in a giant air conditioner or something? Didn’t...do.

True, Duke has beaten Carolina in the Dome before, but never and NOT like this. Once upon a time the story of a game like that would be safely sent to the Daily Tarheel with two minutes left, and them up 10 with..."North Carolina holds off furious late Duke rally to remain atop the ACC standings". Or better yet, it was usually ..."North Carolina rallies from down double-digits, erases (fill-in-the-blank) lead, and wins by five in the final two minutes".

Seriously, I’ve hated and respected the Tarheels for so long I could write the script for most of their games in the past... or during the Dean Smith era at least. Dean awed and annoyed me more times than I can count, but... I always felt it the moment the momentum had swung back toward the baby blue direction, and always knew that I would be soon disappointed... and, that they would win like that AGAIN. Disgusting!

Maybe it would be a charging call, a missed free throw, a clumsy turnover...something... which would spell the opponent’s eventual doom, but you could ALWAYS feel it... everyone ALWAYS KNEW the Heels would rally to win the close games when they NEEDED to win.

As College basketball fans have long expected, I ALWAYS KNEW the Heels would win, and I hated them for it. Has Duke flipped the script?

But listen; Something has definitely changed down on Franklin Street... and it isn’t very good for the Heels. But, what is it really?

Has Ole Roy finally shined his sterling good-ole-boy legend so much so that it doesn’t REALLY matter to him as much? He has alluded to this post-game weak think after some painful season ending losses... that either way he is ALWAYS proud of his team, dadgummit!

It seemed to salve their pain, especially when Tar Heel fans could always point to... NEXT YEAR.

The fever pitch in NC this year had never been so high during an off season as any that I can remember... beginning immediately when most of the team that lost to Kentucky in last year’s NCAA decided to forego the NBA and remain in Chapel Hill for "some unfinished business".

Around Chapel Hill it has been a foregone conclusion that Roy was going to work his magic again this year and the Heels would skate on ice all the way home with a Natty banner from "The BIG Dance".

But so many of them had forgotten (or chose to forget) their embarrassing late-mid-season smackdown from Georgia Tech, literally last year’s perfect version of The Rambling Wreck. Right then... last year I felt a crack... something was amiss in the Hill after that lopsided game... something unkindly and sinister. The floors didn’t creek at the Four Corners bar anymore. I loved it.

Then I felt the icy cold blast when Florida State made a Seminole and Swiss with Bacon of their once vaunted, now Laissez-faire defense, en route to the ass-thumping-bone-jarring-rim-shakin’-twine-smokeout... the likes of which the ACC (nor anybody else) had ever seen until a just few short weeks ago. NEVER... NOW.

Something critical is missing but it ain’t mass. In fact there may be too much mass when you stack them butt-to-butt. I happen to think it’s more like "sass" that’s missing in these Heels. They’re just too nice, too likeable, too in love with the word Tarheel.

Everyone knows that Roy Williams has a dark side to his Andy of Mayberry routine. But does his team know it yet?, the way he runs to their defense to protect them from so many real world threats, like EVIL alumni ticket buying fans who sold their seats in Vegas, choosing the lure of the Strip over the gym while in LV town? C’mon Roy... do you walk your boys to class too?

Oh my Roy... did a fan just call Barnes "a lump of brick-laying coal?" Somebody call security! Ban him from Franklin County. Harrison is a nice young man, just nervous about his future...

How bout this Roy...?

The next time a Duke... or worse... a Kentucky smacks your little boys down till they bleed dark blue... at the post-game press conference... leave off the "it hurts sooo bad whimper"..

Try out a "I’m SOOO f&^K*n pissed!" instead.

Maybe then they’ll get the picture?

-UNC hater who feels their fan’s pain.

Something strange... is going on, in the neighborhood, something ominous maybe.

Who you gonna call? Dukes zone-busters?

As far back as I can remember watching, Carolina does not blow 10 point leads in the Dean Dome over the last two minutes of any game. Didn’t happen before... But it just did.

And even further back... Carolina does NOT get blown out by over 30 to Florida State or anybody else for that matter. Didn’t happen... just happened.

As College basketball fans have long expected, I ALWAYS KNEW the Heels would win, and I hated them for it. Has Duke flipped the script?

But listen; Something has definitely changed down on Franklin Street... and it isn’t very good for the Heels. But, what is it really?

It seemed to salve their pain, especially when Tar Heel fans could always point to... NEXT YEAR.

Around Chapel Hill it has been a foregone conclusion that Roy was going to work his magic again this year and the Heels would skate on ice all the way home with a Natty banner from "The BIG Dance".

Oh my Roy... did a fan just call Barnes "a lump of brick-laying coal?" Somebody call security! Ban him from Franklin County. Harrison is a nice young man, just nervous about his future...

How bout this Roy...?

The next time a Duke... or worse... a Kentucky smacks your little boys down till they bleed dark blue... at the post-game press conference... leave off the "it hurts sooo bad whimper"..

Try out a "I’m SOOO f&^K*n pissed!" instead.

Maybe then they’ll get the picture?

-UNC hater who feels their fan’s pain.

CHeck it out...

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:46:22 -0000

CHeck it out...

We Love This Guy's Game

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 07:41:39 -0000

We Love This Guy's Game

Love for Kidd-Gilchrist comes in many flavors...

Player Development department...Where are You?

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 02:24:10 -0000

A few months ago I wrote an article about DC on Sactown Royalty which was met with a certain degree of skepticism, derision, and sarcasm by the fine folks who troll this site.
Mainly, I got a schooled on punctuation issues and formatting with very little feedback on the content. I pointed out that Cousins was a "Sackfull", loaded with talent and enthusiasm but short on life experience. His background and immaturity could add up as explosive when pouring in the fuel (money). I indirectly suggested that the team spend time to help him grow to make it in the NBA "professional" world. I urged you to accept him as immature, yes... but a punk, NO!
When that much money is at stake, why don't teams understand that a good investment needs to mature. Cousins doesn't need help around the basket, as many of you suggest. He can do all of the physical things required with one hand behind his back while wearing a body built by Catepillar.
C'mon people! Demarcus needs positive but firm help growing up to be a man in a man's world. He's barely 20. How many of us remember those days? Piece a cake, huh? Teams need camaraderie, while coaches exploit competitiveness among them by playing with their minds and fragile egos, then claiming they need to realize this is a "profession". Paul Westphal has no business trying to relate to young men because he was never one himself. He was born grown up.
With this team, stocked with promising future stars, X's and O's are only marginal help. Build Chemistry by promoting the unique talents of each one and their TEAM mission of winning a title if they love and care about each other as brothers, not enemies. Give them ample time together socially and promote harmony among them.
Drop the thin layer of varnish you paint over your bigotry and prejudices. Hope you're happy Sac(k)townies! maybe you'll listen instead of twirping about my shift key this time!

A few months ago I wrote an article about DC on Sactown Royalty which was met with a certain degree of skepticism, derision, and sarcasm by the fine folks who troll this site. Mainly, I got a schooled on punctuation issues and formatting with very little feedback on the content. I pointed out that Cousins was a "Sackfull", loaded with talent and enthusiasm but short on life experience. His background and immaturity could add up as explosive when pouring in the fuel (money). I indirectly suggested that the team spend time to help him grow to make it in the NBA "professional" world. I urged you to accept him as immature, yes... but a punk, NO! When that much money is at stake, why don't teams understand that a good investment needs to mature. Cousins doesn't need help around the basket, as many of you suggest. He can do all of the physical things required with one hand behind his back while wearing a body built by Catepillar. C'mon people! Demarcus needs positive but firm help growing up to be a man in a man's world. He's barely 20. How many of us remember those days? Piece a cake, huh? Teams need camaraderie, while coaches exploit competitiveness among them by playing with their minds and fragile egos, then claiming they need to realize this is a "profession". Paul Westphal has no business trying to relate to young men because he was never one himself. He was born grown up. With this team, stocked with promising future stars, X's and O's are only marginal help. Build Chemistry by promoting the unique talents of each one and their TEAM mission of winning a title if they love and care about each other as brothers, not enemies. Give them ample time together socially and promote harmony among them. Drop the thin layer of varnish you paint over your bigotry and prejudices. Hope you're happy Sac(k)townies! maybe you'll listen instead of twirping about my shift key this time! A few quick thoughts on Demarcus Cousins, the NBA, and their sometimes ridiculous fans and detractors...

Why Kentucky will again be better than UNC (Part 2 of 2)

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 08:26:04 -0000

While it's typically bad form for one to pronounce their favorite team as being better than one that the consensus crowd have already crowned as "odds-on favorite to win it all", (a team that one irrationally exuberant blog-spert suggested could be UNC'S "best" ever), form isn't what I'm after here.

I also understand that the so-called experts, most of conventional wisdom, and the gasified pundits of any group, are almost always wrong. That is a fact, based on a number of recent scientific studies and books detailing those startling results.

And so, since I have always thought to call it like I see it after taking in all the information available to me despite a chorus of boos, nay-sayers, bombastic homer-screamers and the like; these ideas are my own objective/subjective viewpoint.

With all homer-ism aside, and with an honest almost-certainty, I believe Kentucky will be better than North Carolina once again this year, and most particularly by this season's end (that is in College Basketball of course).

TAKE SPECIAL NOTE that I am not so arrogant to say that "Kentucky will beat UNC this year". God only knows, but we can all agree that the best TEAM does not always win the National Championship (as my mind drifts to counting out a stack of Benjamins after a certain 1995 Cats vs.UNC NCAA game).When these titans lock horns, both teams and fans KNOW that each are CAPABLE of winning or losing it all, (as my mind now drifts to a bar in Hilton-Head, SC in 1984, as I'm counting out even more Benjamins after a second half meltdown in a UK-Georgetown NCAA tilt)

No, here I am talking about which team is/will be better by season's end, this year.

Just for fun, pretend you're the Captain in a pickup game vs. Roy Williams, with all of the 2011-12 Carolina and Kentucky rosters standing around, waiting to be chosen for some 5-on-5 pickup basketball.

Roy picks first: Harrison Barnes, so you counter with Anthony Davis. Roy grabs Tyler Zeller so you give a nod to Terrence Jones. OK, Ole' Roy says he'll take John Henson. With some hesitation you decide on Michael Kidd-Gilchrest next, leaving Darius Miller and Doron Lamb on the table with Teague and Wiltjer, along with Marshall and, uh...Strickland, Mcadoo, Bullock and P.J.Hairston.

Who should Roy take next? In my mind he has to take either Miller or Lamb, as they appear to be the two best players left on the table. He tabs Lamb and you gladly grab Darius, leaving Marshall for Roy and you are "stuck" with Marquis Teague. Stuck with Marquis Teague? Wow, what a game huh?

Well, the point is that when it comes down to it, I think Kentucky is holding the edge in talent, at least through the first five or six players, wouldn't you agree?

CAVEAT: Blindly patriotic as many fans are, these choices might go differently with folks in Chapel Hill. It's ALSO at the crux of my argument.

In part ONE, I mistakenly used statistics to try and prove that Kentucky was the better team last year as well. I mistakenly assumed "possession basketball" (some say "offensive efficiency") was WELL understood as meaning: As long as you have the ball the other team cannot score, and your team can. If you turn it over, you no longer have possession. If you fail to get a rebound, you no longer have possession. It's ALL about offensive efficiency. That is: did you score when you had the ball?

But then, AS we all know... liars figure, and figures lie.

What surprised me most was that even many Kentucky fans were unwilling to buy these facts, laid out clearly before them, which argued/showed/proved with rationale and reason that the Cats were better than the Heels during the last season, especially when it counted most: On the court in their final head-to-head game.

Yet my reasoning was maligned, my arguments mangled, and my integrity insofar as basketball knowledge laid open to serious doubt. Somewhat astoundingly, I was vehemently accused of posting an over-gratuitous self-promotion by one writer, of whom I know to be an excellent writer himself, and whose mantle is surely safe and secure without embarrassing and lambasting me as a common nit-wit.

To wit:

Lemme' jus' say that I don't write about Kentucky basketball to win awards, or get free tickets, to keep an erection during sex, or even for money or it's ensuing imaginary PRESTIGE.

For me, an occasional atta-boy if justified will suffice. Yet in my mind, this "BBN feel good" piece garnered an unusual barrage of over-the-top questioning and unreasonable ridicule, the likes of which I haven't felt since third grade. And from BIG BLUE fans to boot! Oh my?

I simply love the Cats and I like to write. I won't apologize for these perversions, because I'm not too dumb to enjoy either of these endeavors. On the other hand I love honest criticism, and so it was my error in judgment to have touted my previous posts. But shameful it was not. It was merely an effort to get some real feedback (and maybe an atta-boy!).

That said... my insufferable ego is still intact, and I'm recovering nicely. No, permanent damage has been done.

This is Part 2, which many readers begged for with a curious but devilish delight?

Part Two relies on reason and fact, but isn't entirely based on undeniable empirical evidence as was Part One; rather something a bit more insipid.

Growing up as I did the son of a gambler, I believe I have acquired some knowledge/wisdom through which observation-experience-feeling and gut are involved, though not exactly quantifiable. And some of that could be wrong.

But again the numbers, via the statistics, point to Kentucky's dominance over Carolina again, in so far as that can be measured this early in a season. And as I'm reminded each day, the game is not played on paper.

Yet some reasons, while rooted in fact are hard to pin-down.

I mean, why is it that sometimes late in a game we are happy when a certain player is fouled, when the statistical evidence would suggest that another one would have been a better choice? Call it gut feeling.

3 PT. SHOOTING-CAROLINA (and) 3 PT. DEFENSE

Where has anyone read or even heard that UNC has finally figured out how to shoot the three? Couple that with having an opponent that will guard the three better than we have yet seen at Kentucky, there should be some metal-clanking on Franklin St. this year. Roy still does not have a reliable 3 pt shooter in his entire arsenal, unless one of the vaunted freshmen steps up now and takes over quickly. OH yeah, Roy Williams loathes to play freshmen..? The Heels do not shoot free throws very well either, as good FT shooting teams go. Once again, they had better get lots of layups, dunks, and chippys. Uncontested ones.

3PT. SHOOTING - KENTUCKY (and) 3 PT. DEFENSE

Simply put, our TWO best 3 pt. bombers are back and as Cawood would say, playing "string music in Lexington K-Y". Miller and Lamb (move over Mr. Ford and Delk), Lamb may well end up as the best EVER (%-3 pt.) shooter at Kentucky. And, one year older, wiser, sharper, and more confident. Some other guys can step out and knock it down (Anthony Davis for one), and did so last year just for shits and giggles (Terrence Jones). They say Wiltjer can really shoot the three, and perhaps better than Lamb. As it's also hard to teach six foot ten, guarding him should prove especially difficult by players known to usually camp near the painted area and close to the exits (Henson, Zeller). And UNC has yet to show that it can stop a good 3 pt. shooting team.

Yet, Kentucky is primarily a DEFENSIVE TEAM, mind you. One of the best last year (9th), still a bit quicker a foot this year. John Calipari is known for coaching tenacious defensive intensity. Free Throws are a question here too, though the guys who stayed (Miller, Lamb) were two of our better free throw shooters last year and we already shoot FT better than do the Heels. All said, we both should shoot Free Throws tad higher percentage-wise this season. But in all this could be a big UK advantage.

DEPTH, TALENT

Carolina is talented big and deep. Kentucky is talented big and deep. How deep must a team go? Only ten guys can play at any given moment. The buses that carry teams are huge. It's true, UNC could field three strong starting lineups. Who cares? While it might come in handy sometimes, probably not when these two juggernauts meet. Both teams have a long talented pine forest on their sidelines, and enough players-in-waiting to interchange parts and re-tool during games if needed. Toss-up, with UNC a slight edge, but only if hacking Armageddon breaks out.

INSIDE GAME

Last year Carolina held the distinct advantage in the paint on paper (the actual game looked different). This year, the advantage is not so much, if any. Carolina loves to rebound and run-out. Kentucky will love to rebound and run-out just as much this year. We'll be a tad quicker than Carolina's vaunted front line when Zeller holds down the middle, and Gilchrist Davis, and Jones are all but blurs of light, like Friday night coeds heading toward Two Keys. No more advantage UNC. Inside advantage... Even.

THE POINT?

As in guard. Carolina (last year) had some minor turnover issues but Kendall Marshal ought to change that with a year under his belt. He can run, handle the ball, make the correct pass, and... blow the easy shot. With Marquis Teague, Kentucky will see it's bigs become more involved than ever, since he doesn't love to shoot except when finishing. But, the truth is he CAN shoot. He sees the court well much like Marshal, makes the right pass and finishes well on the break (better than Marshal). His test will be in the half-court D-D... can he run the offense without making unforced errors, over committed dribble-drives, or drill the shot when the defense steps back and begs him to fire? If you have watched his brother Jeff play, you'll see how Marquis might progress.... Jeff steadily progressed as a knock-down shoot,r and now he can actually knock down the shot, play fierce D, and will stand toe-to-toe with any NBA Point Guard. By seasons end as he becomes a better shooter and sees the court better to make good decisions, Marquis will soon follow Jeff to The League. Point guard matchup...Even.

SUPERSTARS

Harrison Barnes is no doubt SUPER, but can be erratic. Anthony Davis, for sure is not for sure but is definitely a most likely future NBA All-Star. Mike-Gilchrist, is absolutely positively a player any coach would cherish. Doron Lamb... well, like Anthony Hopkins, he will not be silenced. John Henson, a rebounding muppet show who has gained upper body strength, will be tough to control. Tyler Zeller, sometimes plays like either the Scarecrow or the Tin-Man, but hardly ever the Wizard. Terrence Jones, with early maturity, higher yield, compounded interest...should be UK's most bankable note. To my eyes, UK holds a slight Super Star advantage.

THE INTANGIBLE FACTOR, THE COACHING EDGE

Coaches. They deny, but then they lie. Roy Williams was for a long time the guy who couldn't win the BIG ONE, but over-and over, "he didn't care". He handled it well, but you must know it hurt him to understand that he needed to leave Kansas to finally get it done. Carolina was the right FIT for Roy and everyone knew it. In his element, he got it done quickly, though he claimed it hadn't entered his mind. Now, it's as if those years never happened. They don't pencil him in, they ink him in, they now expect him to win it all again and again. But is he as hungry as he was in 2003? I don't think so. Listen to him speak. He now knows his place is secure, he's a Hall-of-Famer already. He wants to win for his team, not for the Carolina faithful. He is sad, but not destroyed when he loses, and he always loses with a certain class. But hungry, he is not.

In contrast, John Calipari didn't shine Adoph Rupp's shoes for 20 years, just waiting for his day to inevitably happen. He's been making it happen every day for years, and with much longer odds than Roy Williams ever knew existed. He doesn't care about Championships he says, only his players individual successes. Nice copy. I believe him, but only to a degree. The degree that he wants to win one so bad he can taste it. And now, he will if he stays at Kentucky, if only because it's the right FIT. He understood that to get it done he must leave Memphis.

Vindication is one step away, though he suspects no matter what he does, the questions will follow him, and sour it's sweet taste. Calipari had some great mentors, safe to say, and one is Rick Pitino. He followed his every move, he even perfected his moves. It's true that most mentors eventually become resented by those chose to imitate them, and this is no exception. He wants to step out of that man's long shadow once and for all, and he understands how close he is to feeling that bright warm sunshine.

Calipari has softened through the years, and for the better I think, while Williams it seems has hardened. He's become harder to reach and feels the power of being adored, and he knows the bitter pain of fan betrayal. Being at the top of the heap can make a man feel an invincible power at times. Williams is wary of who gets too close and then slams his door shut, where he once was an open book with an open door, and a genuine guy... until early last year when the betrayals began.

Calipari wants to feel that invincible power too, but I think he'll act the opposite... become kinder and gentler, and more approachable once he finally wins it all.

Which one is hungrier, we ask? Who needs it, wants it the most? Which Coach has to have it for his own personal vindication? Who would like more than anyone on the planet to look his nay-sayers in the eye... with just a wink and a smile? Calipari understands that every cut, every bruise, every unkind and untrue word, every slap to the face will be his to own to relish and savor.

It's remarkable how he has played the coaching game with such focus on class, devotion, dedication, and the will to succeed. Who else could have weathered John Calipari's own storms? He's a man to emulate, not vilify. Of course he's made mistakes, and he's paid heavily their unending price. But he has stayed his course with dignity, just waiting for the last laugh.

He has slayed the dragon, saved the Princess from ruin, and now he will not trade the white horse for anything that resembles a CHANCE TO FAIL. Rest assured Nation of Blue... your time and his have met... fatefully at that crucial moment: when we both needed each other the most. No matter what (like his once mentor Pitino), he has saved Kentucky Basketball for Kentuckians and will forever be deified in the hearts and minds of those who understand the thing that is Kentucky Basketball.

Coaching edge: John Calipari.

CHEMISTRY. BIOCHEMISTRY. SYNERGY of systems.

Though Carolina has had a year to jell as a team, the sting of their last loss has had time heal. Yes, they do play together well, and they get along well. Roy Williams personally likes this team, always a plus. They are committed, not arrogant... just his style. But don't forget, this UNC bunch is much the same team that suffered Carolina's worst EVER ACC road thumping last year at Georgia Tech, who at the time was a true Rambling Wreck. Some of these UNC guys played in the NIT just one year before, leading to questions of will to win and talent enough to do so. Those who compare this team to UNC 2009 are blind or ignorant, an insult to that great team. There is zero to compare, especially once they suit up and step on the Dome's golden floor. Actually, I see Duke as ACC champs in March 2012. Advantage to UK in Chemistry by season's end, with UNC advantage in November..

THE all- BLUE PLAN

Unlike any team before, this Kentucky TEAM was built with the word Chemistry in mind considering the individual talents involved. These Freshmen chose one another (along with Cal) based on each one's unique ability to provide a major contribution to a Championship team without talent duplicity. This has been in the making for 2-3 years. Each player, selected by hand based on their ability to mesh and provide a single cog in this well-oiled, precision instrument.

Even Doron Lamb, as his special talents became clearer, helped recruit them to play around him. Darius Miller is the anchor, the heart, the foundation (think Chuck Hayes, Pat Patterson). These recruits choices, their high school all-star playing decisions, their signing with UK and timing all speak to a grand plan. A plan from a Championship plan book. NOW is fruition time.

Fittingly, in the end, it may have been Rick Pitino who demonstrated this lesson to John Calipari back in the mid-90‘s...

That is: Leave NO STONES un-turned. The rest? It will all take care of itself.

THIS KENTUCKY TEAM MAY BE THE ULTIMATE COLLEGE BASKETBALL TEAM, THE BEST EVER TO PLAY THE GAME.

(many thanks to Glenn and Ken for their formatting help)

Why Kentucky will again be better than UNC (Part 1 of 2)

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 23:04:49 -0000

Smart money and Shaka Smart coaches know that college basketball can be pretty simple when it all shakes out.

It’s a game of "possession basketball".

Meaning... so far as your team has the basketball, your opponent cannot score, while your team has at least some percentage chance of doing so... as long as they hang on to the rock.

Therefore, a team’s offensive efficiency is extremely important. Keep the ball. Then make the shots.

Of course, there are also some important intangibles, but ultimately, even they add up to a team's efficiency of scoring when in possession.

For those who doubt these assertions read post "A View from the Catbird Seat" from last season during Kentucky’s nasty February slump. While "almost" everyone else had given up on the Cats chances of a deep NCAA run, this writer argued that it was the most underrated Kentucky team I had watched since becoming a Kentucky fan, which began when I watched the Cats lose to Texas Western in 1966. I felt they could win the NCAA tournament, and explained why it wasn’t just a bad case of "homerism".

Then, compare how high Kentucky ranked in the Pomeroy statistics all season, versus their AP or ESPN rankings. We were one of a few teams who legitimately had a shot to win the tourney all year long when statistically considering the game of possession basketball per the Pomeroy. And, the sublime chemistry John Calipari was building in the lockeroom was showing signs of coming to fruition.

First, looking at how possession basketball works using efficiency statistics:

Three point shots do not have to be shot at as a high percentage of twos, yet twos are easier shots (especially if you’re loaded down low with big strong dunkers). Of course, these are mitigated when the opponent has a big inside front line whose defensive efficiency is high, or a high three-point defensive efficiency. Getting fouled and sent to the line is even better... you’re open and have time to shoot without jumping (see offensive free throw percentage). Does your opponent have a tendency to foul?

Shooting the ball and making shots is highly dependent on how "open" the man is. An example of how an intangible like "teamwork" can be quantified to a degree. We know that how open a man is helps determine his shooting percentage. Three-point defensive efficiency can be measured against three-point offensive efficiency. Good passing can be measured in turnovers.

But, will an open player his shot, or would he pass to a better shooter if one were equally open? Do some players tend to quit when behind or play harder? Does a team seem to let up when ahead, sometimes letting their opponents mentally back into games? Do they pout when reprimanded or get pulled from the game? These are "Chemistry" issues which cannot be quantified, but which carry vital importance in the larger scheme of things.

Of course there’s coaching; both in x’s and o’s, game situation, and off-court. Chemistry and these vital aspects are discussed in Part 2.

But Part 1 is about possession basketball:

Dean Smith, legendary coach, embarrassed the NCAA into instituting a shot clock during the mid-80’s when he began to install his famous "four corners" offense in more situations and for more reasons than it was initially designed. It had always been a late game lead preserving strategy in order to eat clock, waiting until extremely high percentage shots were available. But he began to see more reasons to use it, and not always at the end of games.

For example if he felt that his opponent had a much stronger offense against his defense, than would his defense against their offense, he simply played forty minutes of ultimate possession basketball, or keep away. If an important player got in early foul trouble, or they grabbed an early lead he might stall most of the game to keep his strongest team on the court and preserve the lead.

It was excruciating and boring to watch, considering the sport’s unique ability to entertain on-watchers. He wanted to prove that a shot clock would make the game better for everyone. He was right. In 1982 the ACC adopted the shot clock and the NCAA followed in 1985, adding the three-point line to spread defenses. Also, without the three, teams had begun to pack the lane against his bigger teams, forcing them to shoot lower percentage shots. His four corners attempted to force opponents to come out and defend.

The shot clock required that teams who were overmatched beat their opponent in the game of basketball, not keep away. Coaches like Smith long realized that every possession must count, or at least a high percentage of them, if to compete successfully against super talented basketball teams. Like Adolph Rupp’s teams, Smith’s legendary teams used teamwork to achieve his goal of getting open high percentage shots, hopefully inside the lane nearer the basket.

Possession basketball is an extension of his theory. In other words, to get and keep possession you must reduce turnovers and grab more offensive and defensive rebounds. Then find and take a high percentage shot. That meant unselfishly passing the ball, blocking out, and executing set plays to find an open man.

In essence, they needed to play extremely "smart" basketball, not unlike Virginia Commonwealth did during their incredible NCAA run last March. Of course, brainy coach Brad Stevens of Butler acknowledges that being a disciple of Pomeroy’s statistical system of possession basketball is one major key to his success.

These coaches are examples of today’s data-miner coaches: those who study mountains of statistics to find slight differences in teams and players, which they might exploit to advantage. There may be small differences in teams and players that only statistical information will reveal and support. Scouting games in person require heavier travel and administrative budgets too, usually in the form of travel expenses and assistant coaches. Coaches are turning more to the computer for answers.

With access to the plethora of information found easily on the internet at sites like KenPom.com and BasketballProspectus.com and others, a coach can hammer out a game plan against anyone in a few hours, by studying comparisons in how their opponents have performed against others thus far during the season in several important key aspects of the game.

Many very successful sports bettors use this information (and create even more of their own) to determine their ideas on how games, thus their fortunes will turn out. That is "if" the teams perform similar to their past performances. They use sophisticated algorithms to play thousands of virtual games, honing in on the minute probabilities.

Of course, that "if" is why we still play the games. The game isn’t played on paper.

In a Nostradamus-esque post on SEA OF BLUE the morning of the UNC game titled Crunching Carolina from the Catbird Seat, one astute writer correctly predicted not just the outcome of the Kentucky-Carolina tilt, but described almost exactly how the game would be played using the Pomeroy.

An egotistical chest thump, you say? Perhaps, but...

After losing a night’s sleep, I mean, who could sleep that Sunday? analyzing every single statistical difference in these two titans, it was plain to me that I had to write a Post, if only to justify to my girlfriend how much time I’d spent on the internet, or later gloat some I told-you-so z with some old UNC fans/friends. My effort was bombarded by an astounding 2 comments, both gratuitous back-slaps from Ken Howlett, and only after I emailed him and bitched about it. It shows how one can analyze these statistics to predict outcomes, and I invite you to re-read it now and provide any useful comments or critiques.

Yes, there are some great Cats fans... and Ken Howlett’s definitely one of ‘em.

Note a classic example of this coaching by data thinking at the post game press conference with Roy Williams of North Carolina last March after their epic Elite Eight loss to Kentucky. Some of the media seemed baffled by Carolina’s inability to make threes, or stop the Cats from shooting lights out from behind the arc. It clearly was the difference maker in the game as the Cats hit twelve 3-point field goals, their most since hitting 12 against Winthrop on Dec. 22, 2010.

Williams was reminded by a reporter about some of the trouble his team had all season "from behind the line". Carolina had not defended the three particularly well last season, nor had they drained a high percentage of them, as is easily noted by their season’s numbers. They simply didn’t shoot or guard well from outside.

To me, he seemed a little irritated as he began discussing what he had felt they would need to do to win before the game:

"...and I think and so do you, you have to -- there are some parts of the game that you're not going to do as well and you hope that that's not the part that will determine the outcome of the game. And you look at our stat sheet, their team averages 39.6% from the three-point line and we don't have anybody shooting better than 39.6% on our team. I think Kendall is 39.6% exactly. So their whole team shoots better than anybody on our team. And we didn't want to work and make sure that we got there and had a hand up and hoped that they didn't make some..."

And it's hard trying to overcome some things that are that big advantages. They scored 36 points from three-point line and we score nine. But that's the game of basketball!

And for us, I think Z and Dexter both said it, in the first half we didn't get very good movement. Because of that we didn't get very good shots..."-Coach Roy Williams on the defeat to Kentucky

He went on say that their game plan was to use their strengths inside, get fouled, and hope they could neutralize Kentucky’s outside shooting. But John Calipari teams are defensive ones too. The numbers had indicated that we might do a decent job stopping their formidable inside game, especially if we could stop their quick run-outs and trademark easy transition baskets. In the first half we did.

So, he knew the game would likely be decided if we shot from the 3, unless they could manage to play better 3-point defense. John Calipari understood that open 3s are nice trades for contested twos, so he put Liggins on Marshal (in the backcourt) to slow him down and exploit their poor outside shooting.

In the end Kentucky won that day because of one important factor: They were the better team.

Part 2 explains the reasons why this writer feels Kentucky will be better than UNC this year as well. Stay Tuned...

Smart money and Shaka Smart coaches know that college basketball can be pretty simple when it all shakes out.

It’s a game of "possession basketball".

Meaning... so far as your team has the basketball, your opponent cannot score, while your team has at least some percentage chance of doing so... as long as they hang on to the rock.

Therefore, a team’s offensive efficiency is extremely important. Keep the ball. Then make the shots.

Of course, there are also some important intangibles, but ultimately, even they add up to a team's efficiency of scoring when in possession.

First, looking at how possession basketball works using efficiency statistics:

Of course there’s coaching; both in x’s and o’s, game situation, and off-court. Chemistry and these vital aspects are discussed in Part 2.

But Part 1 is about possession basketball:

Of course, that "if" is why we still play the games. The game isn’t played on paper.

An egotistical chest thump, you say? Perhaps, but...

Yes, there are some great Cats fans... and Ken Howlett’s definitely one of ‘em.

To me, he seemed a little irritated as he began discussing what he had felt they would need to do to win before the game:

And it's hard trying to overcome some things that are that big advantages. They scored 36 points from three-point line and we score nine. But that's the game of basketball!

And for us, I think Z and Dexter both said it, in the first half we didn't get very good movement. Because of that we didn't get very good shots..."-Coach Roy Williams on the defeat to Kentucky

In the end Kentucky won that day because of one important factor: They were the better team.

Part 2 explains the reasons why this writer feels Kentucky will be better than UNC this year as well. Stay Tuned...

Carolina (still) on My Mind

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 05 May 2011 04:55:56 -0000

I remember the moment I became an ABC'er (anybody but Carolina) as clear as if it were yesterday, although it happened over 33 years ago.

It was March 3rd, 1978...

Ripe with a BA from J-school at Morehead State University, I had three days earlier piled everything I owned into my 1973 Chevy Impala, weathered 30" inches of fresh Kentucky snow through the craggy West Virginia coal country, zagged Southerly down Interstate-77, and finally zigged over the foggy Southern Virginia Appalachian mountains.

In a lush green North Carolina valley I finally unloaded my gear to begin my new life, and new job in Greensboro, NC. Though I'd only been there briefly in the month before (for my job interview), it had then seemed to me to be a friendly, habitable place.

This was my first day in my new position as Sales Trainee for a small fast growing real estate publisher. It was around 4:30 p.m. as I sat in my barely furnished office, shuffling papers around wondering what I might pretend to be doing for the next hour or so.

After an eager tap on my door, a toothy well-dressed man slid in, smiling and shaking hands. "Hi I'm Geoff Wolfe, the VP here. I hear you're from Kentucky? Me? I graduated from Chapel Hill, that's as in No..r..th Ca..ro..li..na. Basketball," he offers and grins Cheshire cat-ishly.

I remember the moment I became an ABC'er (anybody but Carolina) as clear as if it were yesterday, although it happened over 33 years ago.

It was March 3rd, 1978...

"Pleased to meet you, and yes I'm from Louisville, went to Morehead State University. Uh, that's as in Kentucky... as in Big Blue Bas..ket...ball," I chided, eager to see that I'm talking to a basketball fan from another great traditional power. (At that time in March 1978 Kentucky was ranked number 1 in the country, with Twin Towers so big that airplanes could never bring them down).

"Well...", he frowned then looked serious for once. "You know... Kentucky couldn't play in the ACC", he says matter-of-factly. "They're number 1 right now only because they play in such a weak conference. They could never play our schedule."

Then he shot a few 'air-free throws' looking away, he had tuned me out before I could offer rebuttal. He propped his shoes up on my desk. He shoots a three. "Yes".

I gulped. I stuttered. My face flushed and I suddenly could smell my underarms overpowering my deodorant. I was stunned as he played his semi-silent game of air-shoot-ball, complete with the "Raaahh" of crowd approval after each made shot. He made 'em all.

Looking somewhere in the distance, out the window I imagined being back over the NC mountains in Kentucky. I sat silently whiled my brain lurched, nervously 'doing the Math' on what to say to this 4-corner Neanderthal. And one whom, it seemed, owned me...

Finally..."Uh, well... that's bullshit about we can't play in the ACC. Really, that's kinda stupid. No, that's f**&king stupid," I muttered very low and gravely, and mainly to myself (and Geoff).

"Yeah... well, welcome to ACC country", laughed Smith with his stupid grin, still grabbing rebounds and making cheering putbacks. Then, as quickly, he's up and out my door, his arrogance forever starting a fire in my heart known only to a true ABC'er.

-------------

One month later I celebrated both Kentucky's fifth Natty against a formidable Duke team, and the news of Geoff Smith's firing... by yelling and hooting it up at the then-and-now famous "Four Corners" bar, in downtown Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

"Hey everybody", I squealed, both job and basketball safe from the idiocy.

"I hear that Kentucky couldn't play in the ACC! Well, looks like we just did!"

------------

I lived in NC for most of the next 24 years, enduring these basketball I.Q. equivalents of four cornered morons, sometimes arguing college basketball along the way. Though I made many friends in NC, I've hated the Baby Blue with a fervent passion since that first day.

I worked at Duke University and the University of North Carolina during many of those years, rarely talking Kentucky basketball with the infidels. I had a Press Pass at Cameron Indoor for many games/years and witnessed my share of thrilling Duke-UNC tilts there. The truth is, just as we do, they both have much to be proud of.

But I was always careful not to root for Duke, only against North Carolina.

And in all that time I've loved the Cats and Kentucky basketball, traveling to see them play wherever and whenever I could, partying years with the rest of Big Blue Nation.

Having lived in North Carolina for so long, I came to know every argument for/against Duke, Wake, NC State and UNC upside down and backwards. But, there's one thing I can say from true life experience, and from living in and being around both basketball crazed states... Kentucky and North Carolina.

"THERE'S NOTHING LIKE KENTUCKY BASKETBALL."

Crunching Carolina from the Catbird Seat

Thomas Mario Adams III — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 09:45:32 -0000

Though I usually can't pick my nose in the NCAA's, this time i predicted that only one-1 seed and no two seeds would see the final four, and the Cats can make that happen today with a win. Before the tourney started, I also predicted this year to be "The Perfect Storm" for Kentucky; with OSU, Carolina, (I said Duke but i'll take UConn), then the boys from you know where all going down at hands of these dreamers.

A dream yes, but one that as of today is alive...

Let's take a look at some numbers and facts borrowed from kenpom.com:

Generally, the Heels play faster paced than does Kentucky, thus scoring more points per game. Carolina wants to push the ball looking for open 2pt shots, and I doubt that Calipari will mind too much if a fast pace that should free the three ball. Carolina plays its offense primarily through their bigs; they are monster offensive rebounders, while Kentucky is slightly better at defensive rebounding. Keeping the Heels off their offensive glass is crucial.

The two teams are fairly equal at offensive shooting % inside the arc, but Carolina scores most of its points inside the arc, as they shoot fewer threes than Kentucky, and those are not shot that well (33.2%). Kentucky shoots the three very well (39.2%), and relatively more often, though they are not simply a three-point shooting team that lives (and dies) by the three.

Kentucky shoots free throws better (71.7% vs 67%), but Carolina does not foul nearly as much as Kentucky, and relatively little ... period. Kentucky takes care of the ball much better (makes fewer turnovers), ranked #9 in Division 1 vs #166 in offensive TO%. Kentucky defends the three about the same as Carolina (opponents shoot 33.2% vs 32.5%), but defends inside the arc better (opp shoot 41.7 vs 44.4%). Kentucky's opponents shoot fewer threes than Carolina's opposition. Kentucky typically blocks a slightly higher percentage of shots than Carolina.

Kentucky's effective field goal % is higher than Carolina's (52.5 vs 49.2). This factor is calculated combining 2pt and 3pt shooting %, and its adjusted offensive efficiency (all factors combined - shooting %, TO%, OR%, FT%), is better (ranked #7 in division 1 vs #39), although Carolina has a better adjusted defensive ratio (same factors only defensively - ranked #5 div 1 vs #20). Yet, Kentucky's effective defensive field goal % is bit higher than is Carolina's (i.e. guarding 2pt and 3pt shots combined).

This adds up to a game likely being decided on how well Kentucky can shoot the three against a Carolina defense that does not guard the three extremely well, and then defend their own basket in the paint against Carolina's bigger frontline, and how well Carolina's somewhat shaky guards take care of the basketball against a formidable defender in kentucky. Also Carolina's free throw shooting may become a factor, since they are likely to be at the line more often.

Based on the games importance, it is likely to be a dogfight through the end with the numbers suggesting (to me) Kentucky winning by 2-3 pts, say 76-74. Of course, we all know how the game is not played on paper, but in the hearts and minds of the players, and at the coaching box. For my money, I like Kentucky here too, with the 4 seeding being a large factor in the chip they seem to be wearing on their shoulders. To me, the Heels seem satisfied to just have the monkey off their backs from last year's debacle season, and seem a bit soft. Getting pounded by Duke and Georgia Tech this year shows they are vulnerable to a blowout.

Look for Liggins to possibly step out on Marshal early to test his fortitude, then settle in with defending Barnes. If Kentucky goes cold from the three point line, look for a long afternoon watching Carolina rebound and head off to the races, ending in many contested layups, dunks, and foul trouble for the Cats. This will not end pretty for our boys, and we go home to watch on TV. The play of Terrence Jones and Darius Miller seems important here in how well we can contain the big Carolina frontline. We already know Harrelson, Liggins, Lamb, and Knight will show up ready to play.

A dream yes, but one that as of today is alive...

Let's take a look at some numbers and facts borrowed from kenpom.com:

View from the Catbird Seat

Thomas Mario Adams III — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 05:56:42 -0000

What's wrong with these Cats?

I've read a lot from a number of fans, sites, supposed experts, and coach's about this year's Wildcats. Usually I have my own, sometimes overly harsh theory of why they aren't playing the way I want them to, but this year is different. From the beginning I've liked this team better than most teams of the past.

The first crack I saw was in Maui like many of us. But, as the great Leonard Cohen says, "Everything has a crack in it, that's how the light gets in." The team I saw playing was not the same team I had been watching several nights in a row before that game. They were slow to react defensively and didn't seem to want to make the extra pass on offense. UConn toyed with them and there was no obvious response. And there went the light ... that they were just plain tired.

What's wrong with these Cats?

It seems to me from then on is when the short rotation began to have it's ups and downs. And being loaded with freshman, the mental aspect of a long season with a thin bench has been more costly and affected this team's mental toughness to a larger degree. Yet, while the naysayers complain, and despite the close road losses, the team has relentlessly remained in the kenpom.com top ten all season. It seems to me that this is the most underrated Kentucky team by the fans and media I have ever witnessed in the last 45 years.

This team could win it all.

Calipari has once again been playing with the chemistry and the psychology of his team through the media, but this team has seemed to teeter on the edge of collapse instead of responding in the ways he has wanted. But I don't believe that will happen, and in the end this may his most masterful job yet.

Think about it. Five of the top six players were in the top 10 of their high school recruiting class. All six players can shoot the basketball, so if someone isn't shooting well another can step in. Their defense is arguably one of the best in the nation. There are two or three first rounders on this team, but likely four or five NBA roster players in the end (I think Miller and Liggins have a place in the NBA).

When they are rested and pumped to play, they demolish teams instead of squeak by them.

This team can win it all because the competition is razor thin at the top, evidenced by the way the top teams struggle to stay there each week. All it will take is a playing their game and avoiding a cold streak, and some luck staying out of foul trouble. Here's who else I think has a chance to go far despite the fact that no one is talking about them as final four candidates:

West Virginia, Illinois, Purdue, Georgetown, Louisville, North Carolina ... and my best sleeper pick along with the Kentucky's Wildcats: Wisconsin. So,what do you think?

What's wrong with these Cats?

For Homers n Haters n Master(de)baters

Thomas Mario Adams III — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 05:33:33 -0000

The following thread comments were taken from ESPN "Conversation" after the Kentucky-Penn game. Only those parts relevant to my discussion are included (i.e. there were other contributors in-between these comments). It begins after a number fans/haters insisted on making a litany of derogatory remarks about Kentucky's past issues, which we have all heard countless times and in varying formats and degrees:

thom_adams ME (1/4/2011 at 12:10 AM)

For homers and haters and master(de)baters, liars and losers, from the citrus to the Cusers...

1998-99 - Won 28, Lost 9
SEC Tournament Champions 2nd SEC East (11-5) Ranked 8th AP, t5th USA Today

1999-2000 - Won 23, Lost 10
Co-SEC Champions (12-4) So-SEC East Champions Preseason NIT Runner-Up Ranked 19th AP, 20th USA Today

2000-01 - Won 24, Lost 10
Co-SEC Champions (12-4) CO-SEC East Champions SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 9th AP, 8th ESPN/USA Today

2001-02 - Won 22, Lost 10
Co-SEC East Champions (10-6) Ranked 16th AP, 13th ESPN/USA Today

2002-03 - Won 32, Lost 4
SEC Eastern Division Champions (16-0) SEC Champions SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 1st AP, 4th ESPN/USA

2003-04 - Won 27, Lost 5
SEC East Champions (13-3) SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 2nd AP, 8th USA Today/ESPN

2004-05 - Won 28, Lost 6
SEC Champions (14-2) SEC East Champions Ranked 7th AP, 5th USA Today/ESPN Coach

2004-05 - Won 28, Lost 6
SEC Champions (14-2) SEC East Champions Ranked 7th AP, 5th USA Today/ESPN Coach

2005-06 - Won 22, Lost 13

2006-07 - Won 22, Lost 12

2007-08 - Won 18, Lost 13

2008-09 - Won 22, Lost 14

2009-2010 - Won 35, Lost 3 SEC East Champions Ranked 2nd AP, 2nd ESPN?USA Today

These ten years render us irrelevant? I don't think so... I think you are.

collagehoops52 (1/4/2011 at 2:44 AM) Report Violation
im not disagreeing with UK being talented .... im not targeting "UK" .... but reality is that if a "foul" is called then the shot on the other end of the floor in transistion "never happens" ... the game wasnt called fairly ... and as for CAL ... if somebody else offers him more money to coach somewhere else he will go .. just like UK did for him to leave memphis ... he provides a University for players to do theyre one year of collage and get to the NBA ... that's his recruiting method .... the countless amounts of agents and NBA coaches that he knows is a garentee for these kids to get in the pros ... same thing anywhere he coaches ... he was fired from the NETS bc the players didnt want to listen to him anymore ....he was hired in NCAA bc he can garentee schools great incomers so the teams are good ...and the fans come ...so the school can make MONEY !! .... if yould like to follow a real coach .... make a trip to durham .... meet coach K ... he acctually has his name on the court......and his player 95% of the time graduate from DUKE..... thats why they win championships.... and thats why they are the #1 team in the country... the game against penn is over and will b a memory now ... CAL brings these guys in to get them to the NBA not to win a championship at UK

thom_adams (1/4/2011 at 3:09 AM)

collagehoiops52 - i assume with your atrocious spelling you are not one of those fortunate enough to have graduated from that esteemed university? As such, what is your argument about not finishing school? How many DUKE grads will be making more money than John Wall, Demarcates Cousins, and that fellow poor speller Eric Bedsore? Or is there some higher, more esoteric reason one should earn their degree... like learning to spell?

Your type sicken me not because you combine enough basketball ignorance with arrogance to smell up cyberspace itself... but because you are "LIFE" ignorant and broadcast it and infect others who don't (or can't) see through your game.You know nothing about Coach Cal, or Coach K for that matter,,, and well... I've just realized it's not worth my sincere effort or time to educate you...so perhaps you'll #### before you embarrass yourself any further...

collagehoops52 (1/5/2011 at 2:14 AM) Report Violation

Bottom Line - UK is a circus....all of u fans are just so blind to see whats really going on here .... alls CAL needs to do is tell a HS player ...i can garentee you the NBA .... a true statement ....and they will reply ...where do i sign .....its actually a pretty genius idea ....UK basketball is an investment for the school to make money ... u people will respond harsh to this bc u love uk and they are your team..... but u will never win a championship and will b lucky to c a final four anytime soon....and Cal could care less if that happens anyway .... bc at the end of the day he still walks away with 35 million large...and everyone that he recruits gets to be a millionare playing basketball with no education......and its not just UK its all over ..... as for knight and jones returning to UK...theyre is a better chance of dartmouth winning the tourny ....i hope i had enough spelling errors this

thom_adams (1/5/2011 at 7:03 PM)

you really don't get it, do you? first, it's true that UK fans tend to feel more ownership in the program than they do elsewhere. why? i don't know but it probably has to do with the deep tradition we've built around the program. growing up in Kentucky one is brought up to feel that each of us have a say in what happens even if its critical of what IS happening. Cat fans feel its their god-given right to say whats on their mind about even the smallest detail... though its highly likely no one is really listening. So what? Its fun.

Now, what is your hang up on education? Coach is worried about helping these young men to grow in more ways than mere book knowledge and wallet size. whether or not they graduate is left up to them after he has helped instill in them the need to be better PEOPLE. Not one of them will tell you they LEFT him a "worse" person than whence they came. I could go on here but I don't have the time...

Whats important is: whats it to you how we feel and act if we aren't #U#King with you? We don't care about your team... why care so much about ours? I've been around DUKE more than I have UK basketball and i can say for certain:

THERES NOTHING LIKE KENTUCKY BASKETBALL

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now... my reason for copying these excerpts is to point out some trends I've noticed when reading NCAAB threads, and to ask other fans about their own experiences and feelings toward these haters. Am I crazy, OR do my own impressions of these posters as being ignorant Haters match up with other UK basketball fan's impressions?

Why is ONE AND DONE considered solely a Caliper/Kentucky phenomena without seemingly touching other big time universities and programs? Are fans so ignorant that they don't realize that the 1-an-D issue is the result of an NBA ruling not the NCAA's, and certainly not Kentucky''s? And do they understand that it's completely within the guidelines and rules as set forth by the NCAA? Are we supposed to overlay some (better?) moral judgment against it and refuse to recruit players of this type?
Why do Calipari/Kentucky NCAAB discussions nearly always end up with "vacated" final fours and "probation"? Are these dim-wits afraid to admit or just unaware that Calipari was allowed to walk free in the same manner that Coach K has at Duke or Roy Williams at Carolina? Or that in the dynamic world of CB, cheater Universities get caught... do their probationary sentence... and move on (almost always Bruce Pearl) under new management? I mean, is it still my fault that Thomas Jefferson owned slaves?
By studying the above chart, is it fair to say that our past tens years have been "irrelevant".
Can a Coach (Calipari) be respected even if he doesn't win a Natty? Without it, are good recruiters destined to be considered poor bench coaches? Are there never enough years of great teams and good deeds to cover a few accusations of grey-area cheating?
In education, is finishing school by earning a degree the only way a man can achieve true respect from an ignorant hater? Is just helping young men mature into better people not worthy of one's respect? Do haters even realize that Calipari teams actually have a history HIGH graduation rates?

And then, in the end... is there a place (on the internet) one can go to discuss, argue, and debate college basketball with intelligent beings who are fans of other fine basketball traditions like Kentucky? If so... please point me to it.

(I apologize for the formatting, etc... as the FanPost Editor is far beyond my own comprehension)

thom_adams ME (1/4/2011 at 12:10 AM)

For homers and haters and master(de)baters, liars and losers, from the citrus to the Cusers...

1998-99 - Won 28, Lost 9
SEC Tournament Champions 2nd SEC East (11-5) Ranked 8th AP, t5th USA Today

1999-2000 - Won 23, Lost 10
Co-SEC Champions (12-4) So-SEC East Champions Preseason NIT Runner-Up Ranked 19th AP, 20th USA Today

2000-01 - Won 24, Lost 10
Co-SEC Champions (12-4) CO-SEC East Champions SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 9th AP, 8th ESPN/USA Today

2001-02 - Won 22, Lost 10
Co-SEC East Champions (10-6) Ranked 16th AP, 13th ESPN/USA Today

2002-03 - Won 32, Lost 4
SEC Eastern Division Champions (16-0) SEC Champions SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 1st AP, 4th ESPN/USA

2003-04 - Won 27, Lost 5
SEC East Champions (13-3) SEC Tournament Champions Ranked 2nd AP, 8th USA Today/ESPN

2004-05 - Won 28, Lost 6
SEC Champions (14-2) SEC East Champions Ranked 7th AP, 5th USA Today/ESPN Coach

2004-05 - Won 28, Lost 6
SEC Champions (14-2) SEC East Champions Ranked 7th AP, 5th USA Today/ESPN Coach

2005-06 - Won 22, Lost 13

2006-07 - Won 22, Lost 12

2007-08 - Won 18, Lost 13

2008-09 - Won 22, Lost 14

2009-2010 - Won 35, Lost 3 SEC East Champions Ranked 2nd AP, 2nd ESPN?USA Today

These ten years render us irrelevant? I don't think so... I think you are.

collagehoops52 (1/4/2011 at 2:44 AM) Report Violation
im not disagreeing with UK being talented .... im not targeting "UK" .... but reality is that if a "foul" is called then the shot on the other end of the floor in transistion "never happens" ... the game wasnt called fairly ... and as for CAL ... if somebody else offers him more money to coach somewhere else he will go .. just like UK did for him to leave memphis ... he provides a University for players to do theyre one year of collage and get to the NBA ... that's his recruiting method .... the countless amounts of agents and NBA coaches that he knows is a garentee for these kids to get in the pros ... same thing anywhere he coaches ... he was fired from the NETS bc the players didnt want to listen to him anymore ....he was hired in NCAA bc he can garentee schools great incomers so the teams are good ...and the fans come ...so the school can make MONEY !! .... if yould like to follow a real coach .... make a trip to durham .... meet coach K ... he acctually has his name on the court......and his player 95% of the time graduate from DUKE..... thats why they win championships.... and thats why they are the #1 team in the country... the game against penn is over and will b a memory now ... CAL brings these guys in to get them to the NBA not to win a championship at UK

thom_adams (1/4/2011 at 3:09 AM)

collagehoops52 (1/5/2011 at 2:14 AM) Report Violation

thom_adams (1/5/2011 at 7:03 PM)

you really don't get it, do you? first, it's true that UK fans tend to feel more ownership in the program than they do elsewhere. why? i don't know but it probably has to do with the deep tradition we've built around the program. growing up in Kentucky one is brought up to feel that each of us have a say in what happens even if its critical of what IS happening. Cat fans feel its their god-given right to say whats on their mind about even the smallest detail... though its highly likely no one is really listening. So what? Its fun.

Now, what is your hang up on education? Coach is worried about helping these young men to grow in more ways than mere book knowledge and wallet size. whether or not they graduate is left up to them after he has helped instill in them the need to be better PEOPLE. Not one of them will tell you they LEFT him a "worse" person than whence they came. I could go on here but I don't have the time...

Whats important is: whats it to you how we feel and act if we aren't #U#King with you? We don't care about your team... why care so much about ours? I've been around DUKE more than I have UK basketball and i can say for certain:

THERES NOTHING LIKE KENTUCKY BASKETBALL

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why is ONE AND DONE considered solely a Caliper/Kentucky phenomena without seemingly touching other big time universities and programs? Are fans so ignorant that they don't realize that the 1-an-D issue is the result of an NBA ruling not the NCAA's, and certainly not Kentucky''s? And do they understand that it's completely within the guidelines and rules as set forth by the NCAA? Are we supposed to overlay some (better?) moral judgment against it and refuse to recruit players of this type?
Why do Calipari/Kentucky NCAAB discussions nearly always end up with "vacated" final fours and "probation"? Are these dim-wits afraid to admit or just unaware that Calipari was allowed to walk free in the same manner that Coach K has at Duke or Roy Williams at Carolina? Or that in the dynamic world of CB, cheater Universities get caught... do their probationary sentence... and move on (almost always Bruce Pearl) under new management? I mean, is it still my fault that Thomas Jefferson owned slaves?
By studying the above chart, is it fair to say that our past tens years have been "irrelevant".
Can a Coach (Calipari) be respected even if he doesn't win a Natty? Without it, are good recruiters destined to be considered poor bench coaches? Are there never enough years of great teams and good deeds to cover a few accusations of grey-area cheating?
In education, is finishing school by earning a degree the only way a man can achieve true respect from an ignorant hater? Is just helping young men mature into better people not worthy of one's respect? Do haters even realize that Calipari teams actually have a history HIGH graduation rates?

(I apologize for the formatting, etc... as the FanPost Editor is far beyond my own comprehension)

What's wrong with college basketball? Y-O-U!

Thomas Mario Adams III — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 03:52:43 -0000

What's wrong with college basketball? Y-O-U!

Yesterday at 4:24 PM | Back to Blog Posts | RSS " | Edit Post | Delete Post

One need not not stray far from the bathroom mirror to see what's wrong with college basketball today... yeah, that's right, you!

it's us, the fans, who have made college ball so irritating. since the very first recruiting newsletter was published i've watched grown men act ridiculous by trying to figure out what recruit is going where, and basing some semblence of real life on the outcome. stop it!

then there's the mother teresa holier than thou types who all of a sudden think college is such a big deal for every young man, and NO MAN SHALL DENIGRATE the great holy tradition of a college education. yeah, right. i graduated sure but i know that college does not a man make... in fact it prolongs childhood for most coeds if nothing else. get over it people!
ok calipari is having his day... so what? haven't you had yours? does everyone cheat when they beat your man to a recruit? sorry, i ain't buying it...

real men understand your look and story as plain jealousy. and it doesn't behoove you to try and spin it into something sacred today (since you lost another boo-hoo recruit to the evil kentucky)... remember, i saw you laying drunk in the gutter for 3 years spewing and crying when the chi omega you worshiped dumped you again and again for the newest frat boy with a big...bank account.

if you want to cry be a man about it. state facts as in who is cheating and how they are doing it. bettter yet, call it in to the ncaa... until then quit your fu*&ging whining and shoot the rock brick boy! oh you can't... that's right you always had your little baby blue fantasy boys do it for you. oh my! they are the most graduatinish and clean cut all american crybaby coached scammers with the best GPA in all of college basketball...oops that is until the dookies rolled in and played smash mouth with their SAT scores and string music in your face.

ooh ahhhh...they're so fine (and did you know about their graduation rates?). they're smart. that's what it is all about. NOT.

c'mon puuleese!?! play ball! stop trying to act like you know something you don't... it's basketball for god's sake! get a life. do coaches cheat? when they can get by with it. do recruiters cheat? they walk some very grey lines i'm sure. who the F cares?

get a life and quit trying to live out your glory days with the team you love (and my god we all know they wouldn't think of cheating). i know you're hurt, so go tell your wife.

education is good but it's not the holy grail. success takes more than your little peices of scrap paper boys. it takes MEN. grow up. EAT some BIG BLUE dust!

Do Americans Really Hate Soccer?

Thomas Mario Adams III — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 03:42:39 -0000

I'm American and a soccer fan. Unfortunately, I'm already feeling withdrawals from the thought of four years of semi-hibernation sans-soccer about to commence.

Like many soccer fans I watched most of this year's World Cup, read a ton of internet articles, and listened to this year's flavors of talking head, who all weighed in on "the beautiful game" and America's ambivilent attitude toward it..

I'm American and a soccer fan. Unfortunately, I'm already feeling withdrawals from the thought of four years of semi-hibernation sans-soccer about to commence.

Though I'm not an expert by any stretch, I am a fan who has watched soccer from the outside for many years. I played collegiate soccer over 30 years ago at a Division 1 college in Kentucky, though back then that term was nebulous as to it's meaning. Like many American college teams, we were a collection of decent foreign players and renegade American sports athletes who for various reasons no longer graced their once chosen sport, or who had played high school soccer at one of the few schools who fielded a team. I was an ex-distance runner with average soccer skills who was recruited on-campus after I decided to forgo my track scholarship. After graduating, I played club soccer in North Carolina for about 10 years. Now, my experience comes exclusively from my thousands of hours addiction to playing video game maker Konami and EASports PES and FIFA soccer titles.)

What changes are needed to create more fan interest in the game here on American soil?

Besides winning, American sports fans care about two things in sports: excitement and fairness. World Cup watchers got a first-hand look this year at how the lack of these two things can drive Americans crazy, and perhaps keep us from embracing the world's most beautiful game.

1. Scoring -

People all over the world love GOOOAAALS, yet Americans are criticized for their "lack of depth" because they want more of them. To say that Americans under appreciate the richness or unseen nuances of soccer is to trivialize our ability embrace value, without giving serious thought to the underlying issue. Long gone is the day when to be an American at a world soccer event was a curiosity. I'm tired of apologizing for our soccer to the world and listening to people from everywhere tell me how we just don't get it.

It is true that I found the Spain-Germany game the most exciting game of all even though the final score was 1-0. The final game may have been a let down to many, but isn't that the way finals go many times, with over-expectation? The entire event was a low scoring affair, as it is many times when quality teams play one another.

The problem with this as I see it; unless there are changes made we are doomed with 1-0 or 0-0 finals forever. Great teams are not about to give up 2, 3, 4 goals in today's game, and two great teams...well...?

The world wants GOOOAAALS!

During the World Cup I heard all kinds of opinions concerning America's attitude toward soccer, many of them ridiculous. If America thinks soccer is boring how do you explain our obsession with baseball? If it's just that we can't understand the game in its' totality, who is going to tell our women, who are the most dominant sports team in the history of International Sports?

FIFA, the governing body for International Soccer must agree that scoring more goals is important to the future health of the game, and not because of the "stupid" Americans. The Jubillane (ball) was introduced at this years' event for one reason: more goals. It failed to produce.

I suggest that the goal be made two or three meters wider and a meter taller to allow for more scoring opportunities with well placed shots. Many goalies today are superior athletes and can block even the best aimed, most twisting and screaming shots, resulting in many games being decided by fluke goals or lucky, but weak chances. It also means that there are more terribly bad shots because of the increased pressure added for the low margin for error. This is not how sport is supposed to work, and I suspect many Americans sense it.

Why not give these great athletes a better chance to display their talent to the world? A great shot should be just that... an untouchable missle blasted just outside the even the swiftest goal keeper's reach, something rarely possible in today's game. Even the final WC goal by Spain was knocked down before landing softly inside the goal. I dare say more goals roll into the back of the net than ripple it.

With a slightly larger goal there will still be the finesse of the flip shot in one-on-one situations as goalies will adjust to the larger goal area with earlier, more aggressive charges in order to cut down angles. Forwards and halfbacks will try slightly deeper shots once again with hopefull success; something rare in championship soccer today because of the evolving skill of today's goalkeepers. a larger goal means the game will not be considered over when a team goes up by two or three goals,unlike it is today. The "hope" of scoring is just as important as the notching the goal itself to the fan of soccer. I think FIFA should give everyone more hope.

2. Officiating -

I am continually amazed at how many sports governing bodies have been able to ignore the onslaught of new technology when it comes to officiating. It seems that human officials have become the "sacred cow" of many sports; the one thing that must not give in to change. Frankly, I don't understand the value proposition. What good reason or reasons are there for not getting more accurate results in a sporting event? The 2010 World Cup was an example of how protecting the purity of a sport may also be how to eventually destroy it. Game after game missed calls affected or potentially affected outcomes, leaving one to wonder at times which team was pre-destined to win?

Having played competitive soccer I know that every game endures bad calls and good calls, some favorable and others not. It is sometimes very difficult to identify the offender and the offended in a physical game like soccer where neither player owns possession in a strict sense. The World Cup officials were critcized for many calls which were made that might not be questioned in a regular contest. The magnitude of the event rightly or wrongly leads to magnification of every call and the WC officials are somewhat always in a no-win situation. Yet, at this year's Cup, it seemed yellow cards were shown to players for simply playing hard, and even worse: Hollywood style faking by their opponents. Video captured these moments to FIFA's embarrassment several times during the competition. Yet, there was no make-up call for the actors and the tragedy unfolded in horror for those falsely accused and their fans.

In soccer it is mandatory that calls be correct near the goal (inside the box) due to the excessive severity of a penalty. Time and again video replay busted the official calls or no-calls in the area, one of the most dehabilitating events which can happen to a team in soccer. Though the officials didn't predjudice one team, they missed calls on every side.

Hey FIFA, what's up? Can you explain this...?

Is it merely cost that stops FIFA from using video to insure that teams and titles aren't lost simply over bad calls? Is it time? Techno-phobia? Why are we so entranced by humans who are only all too "human"? I could go one here forever, but I'll constrain myself to this:

America will never love a sport where such contradictions exists. Yes, we hate to lose badly, but mostly we hate to lose unfairly. And who wants to win a Cup marred by so many blatant mistakes by officials? OK, you won't hear any Spainards complaining, but that's about it. There are a number of teams this year who could say that the whistle cost them a game and maybe the Cup.

I hate crybabys in sports and believe that the mistakes somehow seem even out over time. But I think FIFA owes the sport a better deal.

FIFA should "embrace change", America's mantra of the eighties and nineties when we finally convinced ourselves that technology and change does not always mean bad. Almost every industry experienced game changing rules at record setting pace as technology advancement forced us to reconsider our most cherished and hallowed traditions. In sports we witnessed technology's effect with a wary eye and slowly made changes where needed. Golf, one of the most traditional sports lengthened and re-designed courses to offset better equipment and stronger players. Basketball keeps moving the three point line and reducing the shot clock. Baseball built bigger parks and limited ball and bat technology...Every sport has had to re-evaluate and make needed changes to enhance and maintain their core value.

I think some limited use of replay has a place in soccer RIGHT NOW, not next time around. It's imperative to get the calls right and to keep the game honest if America is to participate on every level. But for this to happen changes must be made, if only in small increments. FIFA seems to be unmoved by the controversy but changes might help America's attitude toward the game improve.

Evolution has taught us that life, the world, and the universe is dynamic. Small improvements over time lead to larger overall positive results. Listen up FIFA!

Nowhere did it exclude the beautiful game of soccer.

I picked Holland over Spain in the final of my ESPN Soccerpick fantasy bracket based on a junk "home-team" theory I developed when I realized no African team was strong enough to win it all. My other picks were pretty good too, except for one glaring mistake: USA. Even though Uraguay won my WC when I played a completely computer driven WC Simulation with PES2009 on my PS3, my heart said USA would make the final four this time. Never listen to your heart when picking sporting event winners. You can check out my picks (mostdiggity) at http://games.espn.go.com/knockout/en-us/frontpage.

Sacktown got a Sackfull in Cousins

Thomas Mario Adams III — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 23:58:26 -0000

Demarcus Cousins compared to Derrick Coleman? Rasheed Wallace? I don't think so...

sure, his attitude is unconventional, and he has been involved in a few on-court altercations, giving him a reputation as a troublemaker. being beat on cursed at trash talked and badgered by lesser men will annoy any beast. but, with his size when he dishes back it out, people take notice. and some cry foul.

but sacramento fans, make no mistake, big cuz does not seek out trouble, unlike those he's been compared to. he's a lovable, cuddly bear (no, i haven't). he's happy upbeat and positive, unlike these two sulking, grudge toting maniacs. demarcus just wants to be liked. he has a short irate temper unsuited for brand image makers, but not unchangeable like those he's been compared with.

like many of us were in high school, he's overly competitive and sensitive to name-calling and trash talking, hackers and arm-hangers. he can dish it out too. and he can back it up. but in the politically correct NBA where image is god there's no place for a guy who elbows in retaliation or whacks a player who needs whacking. NBA players are paid to look away, smile and play to win, but not at all costs. jordan, bird, and others have had notorius tempers and lived to regret a few moments too. but they had over-the-top talent.

talent? demarcus? oh my. OH mY! no other player in the league or draft could have stopped the likes of gasol or even howard dpwn low. demarcus could have. demarcus will. he plays to win and plays harder than anyone else on the floor. he has a will to win and given the ball he will find a way. he passes unselfishly and gives credit to his teamates. he's a team player. he owns the best hands i've seen since mike jordan. rebounds like rodman. no, rodman on steroids. shoot like bird? No. but he can shoot.

the kings, with one pick will play (next year) later into the playoffs than ever before: but with one caveat. if big cuz is mentored. demarcus needs a mentor, someone who can warn and guide him and help him hang on to his millions, while sorting out the assorted thugs, punks and thieves who prey on open minded NAIVE rookies like demarcus cousins is sure to be. no, is.

sacktown just got a sackfull!