non-Party like its 1999 : UK vs Austin “Let’s Go” Peay

You could tell by the way the arena lazily filled up before tip, you could tell in the near silence in the arena from the fans, you could tell it by the players energy and lack of enthusiasm. What you could tell is that the in between game just was one everyone wanted to get past us and move on. People were possibly contemplating holiday recipes or perhaps making travel plans, whatever they were doing it wasn’t cheering for their team. Very few times have I ever seen a crowd not get up for the 2001: Space Oddessy version of the big flag turn at half court. What do you call that deal anyway? After a complete spin there was still a good percentage of folks sitting on their butts. One person who wasnt was the Boogey man as he was spotted gyrating in the ERupption Zone this game in another throwback jersey. Another rare creature spotted was DeAndre Liggins who for the most part came in and looked fresh and focused to play. He seemed to have a good energy to his play and the fact that he had a great rebound and put back that excited the crowd louder than any other moment in the evening. His assist to Cousins was a beauty too. You can tell people are pulling for this young man and I for one am not in the closet over it. I have liked him from the beginning but last years retard for a coach about ruined a talented athletes career.That atmosphere set what was possibly one of the most boring wins in history, and you know we have 1998 of those already so that says something. We dominated them in the paint, they couldn’t hit a basket to save their lives and we seriously outrebounded them to where I was asking if something was wrong with APeay. We however allowed them to shoot well early in the game and it seemed as if there was a five minute stall on starting for the cats.I am simply amazed at how in tune this team is to each other. We should call this team the alley-cats because they have so many beautiful ally-oops and dunks. The one from Bledsoe, to Wall, to Patterson was the proof that AP was simply outmanned. I am not for certain but I don’t think either of those three guys had a defender on him during that play. The other nice dunk was in fact a “tigger” sighting. I don’t know how Eric Bledsoe can jump so high but he definitely needs to continue training as he skied over both teams to put back a miss with a thundering dunk. He was also the man in charge and got fancy with the behind the back pass to Patterson who took care of the ball and scored. It was great to see Darius starting to sync a bit more with the offense. With the combo of him, Dodson and Bledsoe we will not need a definitive outside shooter this season, My highlight was having my Grace with me as we got to get a new cheerleading uniform for this game! She is having a blast at the games this year and I have caught her watching the game and following it. What the most fun is she now claps for the cats when the crowd roars.

She is picking up on what she needs for the rest of her life as a wildcat! I really enjoyed a nice game in Rupp with my Girls and hope we might be able to get in one more this season all together. Our attention inevitably turns to the number 2000, not the next opponent but the next win. I hope that this team can come out and not play so flat against what appears to be another sleeper. Glad to have the pics back again.

Carolina pics are up please scroll down to see

Hoosier Daddy: the Kentucky Wildcats is who

Slow style of play from IU and the hoosiers hanging in there like a hair on a biscuit in the first half of the annual "rivalry" game. Its still a game till the second half starts then UK showed IU exactly what a (soon to be) great basketball team can do. What can you say other than UK didn’t act like a bunch of freshmen like they are supposed to be doing right now. If anything veterans Harris and Darius Miller are reacting like freshmen and like MOST freshmen in the NCAA they are watching from the bench. DeMarcus and his antics showed up again. This time he simply used the ball to pick up a kid. No worries he set him back down and appropriately acted as if he had done nothing. He didn’t get the foul he deserved but he did get to ride the pine for a while to make sure nothing is made out of it. Give the guy a break; he is a sasquatch without the hair. He is huge. Until you have stood next to him its hard to imagine a nearly 7 foot giant that has arms bigger than most peoples legs. I think he and Orton are seriously playing outside of their physical capabilities. They haven’t adjusted to the agility and finesse that is required to play with the best down low. I think that describes the foul situation pretty well. Big Cuz had only 16 minutes but managed 8 rebs and 14 pts while catching 4 fouls. A very solid effort from the guy who may be the man to go to when he is able to manage his psyche while playing on a high level.

How about Maurice (don’t call him Cheeks) Creek? What a freshman phenom. His 17 point first half, and our ability to foul away from the ball, kept IU into the game through the first half. Man o Man, in that second half, to see blue Jesus and his disciple Bledsoe so in sync brings a smile to my face. Walls 8 assists are a direct catalyst to the scoring we saw Bledsoe hitting; 4-5 from beyond the arc showed exactly how good Wall is in finding open people on the floor. He looks but doesn’t look and is impossible to read as a defender. His crisp passing has every UK player on alert so as not to be the kid JW breaks his nose with a strong pass. Pat just has that ability to be the guy night in, night out. Its almost as if he doesn’t exist minus his huge presence on the floor and his superior rebounding qualities. Those 15-20 points a night are worth something too, right? I still say we are missing two half players. One half is Darius Millers dark side where he isn’t afraid to be aggressive and the other is the sharp-shooting side of Darnell D. If either half shows up in any game we seriously have 6 super threats to guard.

Good signs abound especially once again in the latter half of the game: our team is acting like a bunch of veterans (minus Cuz) and not letting things get away from us. Cuz playing aggressive and NOT fouling out, Patrick proving again he is unstoppable and Bledsoe and Darnell hitting 3s. And the best sign of the game was DeAndre Liggins. I know some of the folks who follow this have told me they are ready for him to leave. I feel just the opposite, I want him to stay and learn under Cal (who else could do well with this kid?) and prosper as his own man. He got a raw deal with Billy G and it seems he didn’t do anything to improve the situation this season but it appears he is staying strong, proud, and ready to be a contributor to this team. His speed alone makes him valuable to us but lets hope he has picked up on some things from the two frosh guards. Good for you DeAndre Liggins I wish I could shake your hand and tell you way to hang in there and keep doing the right things and good results will occur. Congrats to the coach for being the first since Rupp to have such success in the beginning of the season. I can see us going well into SEC play with no losses. However Rupp’s first loss in the 31-32 season? Georgia, the first SEC team we will play. I can too see another not so rosy scenario where we win everything but to TN and FL. YUCK and F….

IU vs. UK wasn’t a super exciting game but it was once again entertaining meaning that we are having FUN again! I think that is really all us UK fans have been wanting. We have finally gotten over our bland brand of basketball and have some excitement again!

In between musings: the state of things that dont really matter.

UNC fan who lives in the real world. Every other person and their brother has read this story but I will link it anyway. He apparently recognizes what we do about wall and understands how sacred this game really is to us. This shows the difference in UNC fans and Duck(I mean Dook) fans. UNC has class in victory and defeat and you have to respect that. I would hope if the shoe were on the other foot we would be as gracious.
http://www.sbnation.com/2009/12/7/1188752/the-basketball-cathedral-kentuckys?login=1260235707

Where’s the Boogie man?
Darren Moscoe better known to UK fans as the boogie man in section 18/19 who is gyrating dancing machine has been missing after his initial presence of the season in one of the first games. I actually have video of his performance in what looked to be like an authentic Rick Robey warm up. I hope he is well and we get to see more of his great energy this season.

Liggens wearing a jersey. For the first time this season I have noticed that Liggins was wearing a jersey under his warm-ups. Previously he has worn bulkier shirts underneath. This time like the rest of the team it was clearly visible under his top. Could it be just hopeful wishing on his part by at least fully dressing for what has been the biggest hyped game of his young career at UK? I have heard everything regarding rumors on this issue this season. Some were pretty interesting while some were just right distasteful. I think the good news coming from this from my perspective is in question form. Would you rather have DeAndre Liggins playing time as a distraction or perhaps an injury or starter being a ball hog or perhaps our stars getting in trouble using fake IDs to get into a club where all the patrons and staff know you? I will take this distraction any day and good for Cal putting everybody in their place and telling them to mind their own business. UPDATE: Lil Lig got 40 seconds of PT baby! This means that he has not been institutionally disciplined which simply means that it’s a “team” issue and not a violation worthy of investigation (at least that what most of us where hoping for).

During halftime of the NC game I got to shake hands with and congratulate Randall Cobb for having a great season this year and I have to say I was pretty numb to not have at least asked to get my picture with the guy.

Sprowl, my long time friend, roommate and co-worker that went to UK when I did came to the game with me on Saturday for the UNC smashing party and I couldn’t have been thrilled more to have him there right in the middle of it. SO thrilled I guess I owe him an apology for talking so damn much during the game; I am pretty sure he knows the difference in PP and the rest is that PP is an NBA player playing college ball and I don’t have to repeat telling him that again… I am sure he knows that Buffalo Trace is partly responsible for that.

How exciting that the Monster Mash will be in house and on the broadcast for the highly anticipated win 2000. What great memories he created for us blue bloods in the early 90s when throwing the entire program on his shoulders and bringing us out of the dark and back into the glory.

IS Wall All that? Add the other two games not listed below and I have to agree with John Clay of the Herald leader. He says so and the “survey says” yes:

through their first six games

John Wall, UK 18.5 7.8 4.0 55.6
Cal coached players:
Tyreke Evans, Memphis 16.2 3.8 3.5 44.9
Derrick Rose, Memphis 17.0 4.3 2.8 50.0
UK freshmen:
Patrick Patterson, 2007-08 (15.7 ppg, 8.8 rpg)
Jamal Mashburn, 1990-91 (14.7 ppg, 7.3 rpg)
Chris Mills, 1988-89 (12.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg)
Rex Chapman, 1986-87 (16.3 ppg, 3.3 apg)

UK vs. UCONN: heavyweight bout in the Garden

So is it that surprising now after 8 (some) hard fought games that we would go to anyone other than “JW” as some in the media is now putting it so as not to get tired saying his name? Perhaps they aren’t saying so much to prevent them from getting tired of it as they are for everyone else’s benefit. Is there another way to say John Wall is the man? The savior? The messiah? God? Okay I will take Blue Jesus. I like that one better for some reason.

Post game Cal spoke of riding JW at the end of the game. I don’t think he was just talking about the team. I think when he said his collective “we” he meant all of us who bleed blue. While its true the fortunes of this team ride heavily on Wall lets be honest and just all admit we are smitten. How many years has it been since you have loved a cat more than this guy? I hear some folks in the back talking about a skinny kid named Chapman? Wasn’t he also knicknamed the savior? It feels good to let someone inside our hearts to warm it up with basketball fire that hasn’t really been felt around here for many years or some would say 11 to be exact.

When he had his first spurt of the game it led to a 12-0 UK lead and many people shaking their heads at the Garden that maybe just maybe this guy is actually better than we currently think he is? That first run was what this team should be all about, taking the ball away and taking it up court fast and to the rim. When you are this much more talented than your opponents and don’t make stupid mistakes you can just look them in the eye and tell them you are taking it to the rim and they aren’t going to stop you. I think that describes John Wall in the open court with the ball in his hand, “stop me if you can”. Just like most of the great heavyweight title fights that the Madison Square Garden has hosted this wasnt over in the first round. As a matter of fact this bout would go the distance. All UCONN could do is call time outs to stop him and it sort of worked, and sort of worked well. After UK dominated and got a burst out of their system they sit back and let their opponent push them around for a while.

All UK could do is get out of the way of the husky rebounders it seemed on each play. The cats were manhandled on the inside especially on the offensive end where second chance points were non-existent because we were being whipped that bad on the boards and as a matter of fact being doubled up. All in all the first half wasn’t that great for UK and if it weren’t for our two workhorses we would have been in much worse position than down by 6 at half. Jerome Dyson’s experience and poise shown through as he ended up putting 17 on Kentucky (13 in the 1st half) and proving to a lot of folks out there that he is for real a great guard. He is the only reason UCONN made a stand against our early run and took the lead.

The second half belong to two freshmen, Cousins and “JW”. Cousins 7 rebounds and 10 points with only one foul in a solid second half gave us room to spread and let the blue baby do his thing. The turnovers are nothing new to this team especially Wall but he had half of the teams total to himself while he was busy dismantling a solid experienced backcourt. The offfensive effort by Dyson and Kemba Walker who had a solid game himself made UCONN a competitor throughout. Kentucky’s shooting could do nothing but improve from an anemic first half. Solid efforts by Harris on the defensive end and Dodson solidifying the shooting range threat really show how this team can be diverse in its efforts each night out. UConn didn’t slow down in the second half and shot the same % I just think we really clamped down and stayed aggressive after the ball forcing 8 more turnovers 5 of which were steals. I believe the lack of aggressiveness on both ends of the court by Darius Miller for the cats is the real catalyst for our grinding slow to a near stop during the first half. He didn’t show up to play in the 2nd half either compared with what he is capable of.

Overall the cats are making real strides in simple things like composure and poise when something needs to go our way. We outscored a team in the second half this time as Carolina did a good job outplaying us in the 2nd half of that game. With this win can we start to assume the pieces of this puzzle are coming together this early in the season? I am not for certain but I am trying to visualize a team that’s had a tougher week of basketball than what the cats are currently being tested under? Could a sleeper/trap game be in our future? Would it be a bad thing if we did get caught up? I say so. I want to be 14-0 when that team from up the road comes into town on Jan 2nd. Do I think we are capable? Yes. Will we make it to that mark. Yes.

Bliss in the Bluegrass: UK vs. UNC 32nd edition

The two royal families of basketball met in Rupp on Saturday afternoon for a game fit for a king. I have to admit that bliss is a light term compared to the way it felt on Saturday afternoon as my team, the team with decades more tradition than the “new” winning program in basketball, was once again (insert “finally”) flexing some muscle. Dare I say that its been 6 years since we were even talked about in the same realm of the other final 4 contenders, should I further dare to say its been 10 since we were really that good. This is Kentucky, the place where absences from final fours gets you shown to the door after 20 win seasons each year, the same Kentucky where the NIT gets you put out on your BUTT. There is a lot of talk lately about what is it really that a Kentucky fan “wants” or expects and I am going to venture a guess here. I think we, just like young girls in high school, want to be invited to the dance by someone who wants us. I guess you could compare my analogy to all the late talk about being relevant. Being relevant is however, well, relative. You know a concept of interpretation as to whom it is you that you are relative, and how relevant you actually are. Being wanted means that without you it was boring and no fun, not only did you want to go to the dance really bad, someone else thought you would be a good partner to dance with and wanted you to be there enjoying the same thing. I guess I am beating around the bush saying that without KY in the national picture recently there have been other teams enjoying a level of success at our expense that was unheard of. They had successes in recruiting, pre-season, non-conference, conference and of course tourney play. Saturday afternoon, in front of more people than ever before witnessed a game in Rupp Arena (24468), we learned that once again we like to dance with the big kids and on some level they missed dancing with us while we weren’t dancing so well. What they may have forgotten is that once we start learning to dance again we may soon be the Belle of the Ball.

What we can clearly see from the outset (and from every other person’s opinion) Kentucky goes as John Wall goes. While this is a pretty accurate statement I feel that this team would still be okay without him. The fear-theory, early on, that the two best point guards in the nation playing together would create some issues may have some teeth to it. I will say it differently however as it was alluded to by Bledsoe himself, after the 68-66 Kentucky victory over Carolina on Saturday. He wouldn’t be making some of his mistakes that have currently dogged him as he has turned the ball over by trying to operate “around” Wall or be “having to throw the ball to John”. It’s hard to tiptoe around a sleeping giant and not have some sort of fear of disturbing him. With Wall clearly the superior athlete in this scenario I can see how young Bledsoe can make a couple of rookie mistakes based on being in the shadow of the future superstar. Does anyone remember the best debut of a KY freshman ever? I do it was nearly a month ago and the young man was casting his own shadow on the court of Rupp against a 09 tournament team. The Bledsoe we saw that night was without fear of involving a player better than him at his own position. The one we saw on Saturday was a more mature version of the same player contributing in a very different manner than in his debut. He is the kid who had a bad game until it was his turn to shine. He never let down his aggressive nature on either sideo fo the ball although he had a piddly game admittedly even to his own standards up to the point of the game where he bailed us out with his free throws like a Wall-St. investment bank .

For the folks that know me they know I have seen Kentucky-Carolina before as well as Kentucky-Duke in person. Those who I have gotten to bore over and over with my stories of getting to see the 96-98 championship run live and in person will tell you that I am fond of those teams for a lot of reasons. I have the same level of admiration for this team as I did those. I am honestly giddy still from getting to sit 5 feet from the sidelines at this game and get to witness these two storied programs clash in our house. I told folks all week that it would likely be that I won’t get much sleep before the game and it held true. I recall seeing 2:30AM and still being wide awake from the anticipation of what was to come. Boy was I ever right in that anticipation. Kentucky-Carolina 2009 edition did not fail to mesmerize this basketball fan.
The 9-2 start from the Tarheels was starting to reel and even as Kentucky answered with two baskets in the next couple of minutes it was as if the wildcats of previous seasons were in the game letting a good team be better. The 28-2 run everyone is talking about really should be shortened to a 24-2 as the “run” started as sloppy as the first 5 minutes but we were lucky to get a couple of rebounds off misses. However you want to cue the run it was probably the most fun I have ever had watching a basketball game. Maybe it was the Tarheels, maybe it was the seat location or maybe it was we saw shades of the past in a big run against a good team. I pick the latter. Remember when the cats used to go on big runs? Well unless you’re at least 20 years old you probably don’t as we haven’t had a team since the 90s do that. Now the big question is can we replicate that type of play. Two huge things stick out in this game for me. The first was that our 28-2 run could have been much better. Really? Yes, really. I am sorry to say but the reason was that one player wasn’t on the same page as the others. I won’t embarrass him by saying his name but his jersey number is 15. Smack dab in the middle of our run and after hitting an impossible looking rainbow of a jump shot Cuz shut us down in less than 30 seconds. Breaking it down: fouled on a miss, miss the FT, fouled on a miss, miss the FT, miss the 2nd FT, miss a jumper then foul the Carolina man who got the rebound. The score never changed during this time but it certainly should have in our favor.

I want to honor this long awaited run that Kentucky fans have been waiting on for 10 years now by breaking it down. I hope this is easly enough to follow from the 2-9 score at 16:30 to go in the half:
John Wall dunk
Orton steal
Orton block
Wall layup
UNC turnover
Miller jumper
Miller steal
Patterson jumper
UNC turnover
Miller – 3 assist to wall
UNC jumper by Drew
Patterson layup assist by miller
Cousins Jumper assist to harris
(Big CUZ breakdown for about 40 seconds)
Dodson steal, miss a 3 and get his own rebound, hit a 3 assist to wall
Wall layup and one
Patterson 2 FTs

Playing not to lose almost cost us the game in the second half although UNC never rallied back. The play of Tyler Zeller kept them in the game in addition to the three timely 3 pointers that they made. For Zeller to not be as physically intimidating as our bigs he sure carries a good game especially around the rim. Our 12 turnovers for the half is unacceptable and unfortunately mostly on Wall and Bledso. Thank goodness Eric Bledsoe has practiced his free throws. With a sub-par first half he bounced back like tigger again and held his composure and didn’t allow himself to bring his play down. Cousins can learn a lot from this kid. With our gaurds the fast breaks are getting freakish as even though someone may be assigned to guard them they hardly have enough time to find them by the time they are streaking to the basket. Our points off turnovers really disappeared in the 2nd half indicating that our defense lapsed and we were indeed playing not to lose.

Earshots:
cal to Bledsoe while Wall was MIA - "Eric control the game!"
Roy Williams to his entire team " SOMEBODY STOP THE EASY PASS" Well there you have it folks my take on the Carolina game. For what its worth I have heard Rupp louder but I haven’t seen many times when the cotton tops and blue-hairs all get up and down the whole game. The fan participation was much better than I have ever seen. It was so much fun I cant say I have ever been more entertained by a game of basketball in my life. Lets hope this win sets us up for a very successful rest of the season.

Carolina prep: games 6 & 7

Okay folks sorry for the delay. I have been working on some personal items of mine that require a lot of writing to finish. I am going to sum up the Stanford a& UNC Asheville games as periods of growth that have included growing pains. Putting themselves in difficult positions and being able to pull it out has shown very valuable as both the coaches and team have discussed following both of those two games.
Notables from Stanford: good effort by Cousins with 13 pts but fouling out overshadowed a good performance and took a weapon from the team. His emotions were something that were questioned during his recruitment so we cant pretend we didnt know what we were getting. Once he gets a little more time under his belt and some things go his way I believe he is going to play HUGE in the SEC season. P-square getting another double-double and Bledsoe showing back up with 13 pts & 4 rebounds & assists. John Wall doing what he does best as a scoring machine while still getting 5 assists. Ramon coming on strong with 7 pts & 7 rebs getting solid minutes. Darius’ resurrection with 13 made him look like a go to guy coming in the following months.

Notables from UNCA: Demarcus playing like superman again is the highlight of the game. 24 pts & 10 rebounds show that when he isn’t crying like a baby he will be in the running for superman. PP got another double-double but got robbed by the official scorers. Go back and watch the game and see if he didn’t have at lease 10 rebs. Miller putting in solid minutes and nailing 3 – 3s. Darnell breaking out of the riding the pine funk that has had him missing in action over a couple of games was good to see with 15 pts including 3 – 3s. Bledsoe was a silent partner again putting up decent numbers in several categories: 7 pts, 5 assists, and 3 steals. While John Wall wasn’t throwing up huge numbers he was 6 for 9 with 12 pts and 14 HUGE assists while still bringing down 4 rebounds and 6 steals. I will say a smaller point total wasn’t the big story as the all around play that this guy gives us is incredible.

Alright the baby blue Tarheels are next. I have some good lines for this one so it should be interested. Did I mention I don’t like watching on TV anymore? What a big cuz I am being…

Team name after 5 games: Complacent Cats

Short and sweet today as the cats play isn’t really improving at all and watching games on TV is much harder than in person to see things like tempo, emotion and focus. It seems they are doing what Kentucky teams of recent history have been guilty of. They play based on their competition. It almost bit us in the butt with Miami too. Its allowing these small schools without much talent a way in the door against a mediocre approach to defense by the cats.

Some good things that I am still seeing however is the distribution of scoring. Sure JWall & P-square are going to get theirs from night to night its refreshing to see guys like Miller, Orton and even Harrellson lighting up the scoring column. Its good to see the shooting go well too as our field goal & 3pt percentages are right on track. The relentless approach to shot blocking is a healthy area as long as teams don’t try to benefit from it by getting our guys up and off their feet and get us into foul trouble. Which by the way is something it appears Big Cuz cannot do. He is averaging 3 and a half fouls per game and seems to not be able to avoid silly plays that aren’t even solid defensive attempts. The silly turnovers returned as well with UK getting 20, 10 of which were ridiculously made by this talent. There were some points in the game I wondered to myself if they were really just taking it away from us. And they were. The one in the second half where the guy dribbled the ball away from an already dribbling Bledsoe. I imagine he took quite a bit of Mexican heat for that one. Lastly the free throw percentage is steadily “not getting worse” meaning I think its headed in the right direction. It seems to be Cals mantra that free throw practice kills the shot for a lot of these kids. He is the man making 5 mil this year so I will respect that professional opinion.

DeMarcus Cousins seems to be a wild card at all times. He can break free for 27 or break down for 5, fouls that is. An average game last night turned nasty when the big kid from AL threw a flagrant elbow. He was appropriately benched but this tells of the larger problem that I see looming for him that I have already written about. Tennessee’s Wayne Chism is about as dirty and trash talking as they come, not to mention he is a pretty good baler. Guys like him will penetrate this young mans skin and once they get under they will undermine his whole game until he learns to leave his emotions at the door and off of his face. A solid effort by the big freshman including a couple of super blocks.

Miller had a solid game with 9 points and 8 rebounds. If it were not for he and Jon Hood the first half may have gotten away from us and the game would have been much closer. They book-ended scores for a period of a couple of minutes that led to at least 4 of our turnovers in what I am going to call the ugliest few minutes of play all season.

Yay for Ramon Harris who is steadily getting his playing time by doing the right things on the defensive end. Last night his anemic scoring drought continued with only 2 but he played very solid with 8 rebounds and a couple of steals. Hood’s 3 was a highlight for him but even though it was his only score he still had some solid minutes by defending the right way.

Bledsoe is hit and miss but I think it comes from his adjustment of not being at the point position and his migration to a shooting guard. I certainly hope that limp that P-square had after the game can be worked out by tonight but if not the freshman need to get it going strong and smart, which is something neither of them have done remotely as well as Patterson so far.

So the Liggins thing is not such a big deal but people are wanting to know what is up. I don’t think any of us “deserve” to know what is going on here as its obviously a private matter. What Dodson did to get benched is beyond me but he must have had the wrong attitude about it since he cant even get on to smell the floor wax these days.

Sorry it wasn’t as short and sweet as I thought. Its really tough not focusing on the next home game as it looms large in my mind. Even though I hate overshooting two opponents in Stanford and App State, bring on the Tarheels.

Watch a game on TV? REALLY?

So now having been spoiled by getting to watch all 6 of this seasons games from the backs I am trying to figure out how I can watch and blog about a game on the television. Any motivation is welcome as I just hope I can bring myself to do it.

The best is yet to come. Game 4: Rider

How good is John Wall? I don’t think anyone knows just yet. What was shown to us on a beautiful sunny November day in Rupp Arena was probably a sign of the flash and dash style of a very talented and fast 18 year old. A sign? 21 pts & 11 assists a sign? Aren’t those career numbers for most guys, not to mention freshmen? The point is that now John is hitting on both of his important cylinders as a scorer and as a guy who gets others involved. I believe he is better at both than he was on Saturday. I think we have a true leader there who has a heart that enjoys the competition and then the thrills that come from beating them into submission. It was a great thing to see him smiling so big, almost as if to say, “didya see that? I cant believe it either”. The reverse layup was the most impressive as he didn’t really use a drive to make the shot. He was on one side of the basket and the next thing you know he is on the other side and the hoop is full. His drives were very impressive and he appeared to read some of the tells of the defense and was able to penetrate them with ease. Eventually they just started fouling him on the floor since his free throw percentage isn’t that great. I guess they were tired of being on his highlight reel and wanted to take their chances with him not scoring from the line. John Wall’s picture is next to the definition of Stat Sheet Stuffer (a la Dickie V baby!). His line was great including only letting 2 turnovers go. During shootaround and warm-ups he was intently working on his shot and it appears Bledsoe is doing the same. The two they were working on were the 3 from the front and the mid-range jumper

A consistent start and a persistent defensive effort helped the cats garner the tempo of the game and run with it for both halves. The smaller but athletic Rider team seemed to be running backwards on their heels the entire game. The frustration coming from trying to stop two very talented outside players and three inside down low players was evident. Additionally the defensive intensity lacking in part of the team from early on in the season was gone. Everyone played their man well and avoided allowing any easy shots. The most noticeable thing from the stat sheet for Rider was that their leading scorer was 14-14 from the line meaning he hit only one basket. The small frustrated team however never stepped back down giving UK some of its own frustrations, mainly in stopping some of the transitions, or repetitions to put it in a better way, from play to play. Cal was often overheard calling a play and then would say “Two times”. Sure enough the cats would run the set play and get either Wall or Miller open with a great look and all of a sudden they would stop the play and re-run it. I guess if they know its coming twice and cant stop it on the first time and we still score on the second then its probably a good sign of things to come.

Superman doesn’t have to be a good guy does he? DeMarcus Cousins did not like the fact that after battling on the floor for the ball he had another man on top of him. He rolled him over and errantly starting trying to break bad ass. For what I ask? To make a point? To whom? This isn’t like high school Big Cuz, people don’t know who you are and that you are so “mean” all the time. I will guess though that you have now caught 3 SEC officials’ eye and they will not be taking it so lightly on you in the future when you should be getting a technical foul. From my perspective I saw nothing on that pile that made me think “DeMarcus should kick his ass”. I did see him immaturely get up on top of that guy staring him down the entire time. I saw him make an unintentional swipe with his hand that would have certainly got him kicked out if he had accidentally hit that ref. And then I saw Patrick keeping him in the game by ushering him to the sideline and Coach Cal doing his part by taking him out of the game. It was a great lobbying effort to prove to the officials that they know he was in the wrong and they are trying to correct it. A great teachable moment ensued and Cal got to spend some good quality time with one of his children on the bench. The good things were gone instantly when he started to do this, and that is when Calipari started throwing his freshman at the feet of the refs (see earshots below). His 18 points, 6 rebounds and 5 blocks in 15 minutes were erased by the realization by me that people like TN are going to have a field day with this kid. They are going to get under his skin and he will have foul trouble and will be on the bench a bunch unless he grows up. Conversely how great is Daniel Orton, he is a silent producer when he has been getting minutes. He is a very smart kid who is going to be a shot blocking king as the season progresses and he gets better control over his body as currently he is fouling with his blocks. Looking at the stat sheet I had to look twice at his point total I thought it was lower and once again it was hard to believe that he fouled out. I don’t even remember that I must have been watching coach or something. The major headache of the season in a poor perimeter defensive effort was gone. Rider couldn’t “hit the barn” so to speak from outside not even hitting a 3 until well into the 2nd half. By that time Kentucky had put the brakes on them and stopped them from all sides. At half they were shooting somewhere in the 30%s from the floor and 0% from treyville. That is colder than cold and as Andre 3000 puts it, “ice cold”. Once again I am going to have to confer with the experts to find that elusive 6th scorer from this team. I am sure we will find him but when o when will we see the essential points that he will give us? Sorry sarcasm wasn’t my best subject in school but I am sure you get the point that I am on occasion comparing this season with last. Eric Bledsoe is on a two game skid, so to speak, but his presence and range from 3 will make him someone who constantly has to be guarded.
Great for P-Square that he is consistently taking his game to a new level. He was so upset when he had to come out because you could just tell he wanted more. Between his stats, his desire and his ability to take care of his entire team shows this guy is exactly an example of what an All-American should be.

While I saw small instances of greatness yet to be opened up I am firmly under the conclusion that this team has a lot more to give than what we are currently seeing. Running plays to run plays and not score, specifically posting and trying to recieve passes inside the zone, pushing 40 minutes a game? All small tests to see if the intestinal fortitude is there to excell in the spring. Its obvious now that the talent is there lets hope we can put it all together and put it in a large can of whoop-ass.

(New feature!) Earshots: (or the things I get to hear from being within earshot of the court and the bench.)

Several Play names for the UK offense: Fist, double fist, loop, x, 2, 3. #3 seemed to be pure DDMO as the players were turning and churning leaving Miller open at the left elbow once, Bledsoe open from 3 twice and a Wall delivery another time. I cant wait to see (and hear) more from the offensive sets as I try to learn this offense better.

A “son-of-a-bitch” from the Rider coach.

a raucous “G-D”, that shocked the crowd in the general vicinity and got the teams attention. It was early in the game, while UK was on offense but seemed to be miscommunicating between themselves on the floor and the bench.

coach telling referee Karl Hess after the jump ball on the floor involving Big Cuz “don’t pay any attention to him (Cousins) he is 12 and I have a team of kids and I am trying to teach them right from wrong like a father. They should know better…”

again later in the game close to the end I overheard Cal “look at this Ed(referee), I have got 5 freshman, two sophomores and a junior I am trying to raise here, they think they can do no wrong. I don’t know what I am going to do with them, they are about to give me an aneurism”. Replies Corbett as he walks away, “You need some more hair gel then…”

At last a big shout out to Wazoo sports, the new channel on broadcast. It has had excellent programming so far playing old school UK football games, local standout performances from the high school level and many other great choices like the UK Bball women live against Morehead. It definitely was a welcome addition to us media challenged kids who don’t pay for any media.

Game 3 Sam Houston St.- the rain off main falls mainly with pain.

What the heck does that mean? Well simply put everyone is coming at us with their A games early. That is not a bad thing for us as we are seeing some solid backcourts that usually have a combined 4 years advantage on our two freshman playmakers in Wall and Bledsoe who now have a combined 5 games experience on this level of play. The other frosh, the guy who thinks he is superman, Big Cuz brought it to the house tonight.

For me the difference in this KY team and the GREAT one that it could be are related to 4 things: 3s, frees, Ts and D.
There is an old basketball saying that says you can’t stop a great shooter when he is shooting great. I think that has been half of the issue with the cats getting rained on like its April. While it is difficult to see when a great shooter is going to shoot (a la Jodie Meeks) its not difficult to get in his face if you are playing in the appropriate position in front of him and between him and the basket. The half of the opponents’ 3-point issue that is a problem is that they are getting great looks at the ball while a cat has either been screened in the low post area or the guy responsible for guarding him is flat footed or too far back. I think all three of those issues have created the “rain” in Rupp this season. SH St. had a 4 guard set-up from the beginning and wasn’t a great low post team.

The frees is easy, shoot 65% of your free throws and you could lose the NCAA Championship to a lesser team. Whoops that actually already happened to our coach in 2008. Free throws cost him a championship. The T stands for turnovers and they have been plentiful, mostly from our inexperience handling the ball in the zone at this level of play. Hopefully that will clean up as the season goes along and we start stretching the floor out, especially in the half court where we will have to make everyone start giving up at least one if not two people to come out of the standard zone and chase. When that happens, man o man it will get interesting (and more fun) to watch. Obviously the last one is the defensive intensity (you heard it here first a couple of updates ago folks) that seems to have caught only a few eyes this year because nobody is talking much about it. When a team is hitting from outside like that you stay on them like stink on … er white on rice. That lack of urgency to be up in that guys face has primarily been the reason that Dodson and Harrelson are sitting. Its because they are slower to react and they both tend stay off on D when they should be up in their guys face, again especially from the perimeter.

Big Cuz got the superman thing in his head again Thursday night with 27 points and 18 rebounds. Please don’t anyone tell him that freshman don’t play like that on a regular basis. His ability to stay out of foul troubled fueled his game big time. Expect people to be coming hard after him and P-square to get them in foul trouble. The odd thing about this breakout game is that he could have played better. Hard to imagine I know but for just 27 minutes on the floor he dominated during that time except for the whole 5 turnover thing. Quick stat - Wall, Bledsoe and Cousins attributed to 17 of UKs total 23 turnovers which is not unheard of for freshman to do. He created two turnovers from blocks but he still had a great game and let go of the laces 5 times. Pretty impressive. Patterson had a great game shooting from outside, inside and at the line while at the same time creating offense for others by giving a couple of great dishes to Cuz. Its obvious that Cuz has the most growing to do on this team as a solid bballer as he lets his emotions get the best of him on a regular basis, although he could have the best game of any of our newcomers so far.

Uk got outscored by 1 in the second half (not good). We had a great rebounding show & didn’t let them have as many offensive rebounds. I am gonna start calling Eric Bledsoe tigger from now on as this little guard has bounce that rivals anything Christopher Robbins ever witnessed. He literally had to make up for almost a foot of height advantage to block that kid and stuff the ball beneath the rim. Yet another impressive frosh feat by Bledsoe who I think has the most firm grasp on the system and positioning so far. I believe his 5 3-pointers are proof of that.

Rider will be similar in set up as SH St. in that they are small and play several guards (up to 4) at once. It is for certain that this experienced team who has 4 returning starters and is 3-point trigger happy ( and prone to rain down on you) will come out shooting. Lets see if this team has adapted from their coaching the past 24 hours, that will be a big test.

Sorry no pics from the game tonight. We forgot to pay our photog this week :)

Its John Walls world, we only live in it

Its John Walls world, we only live in it. There I told you in the last update that I hoped to be saying that by now. What wasn’t said was that John Wall is a man and doesn’t don a cape and become bullet proof. However he seems about as close as one could hope for in the situation KY fans have lived through now for about 10 years with no true point guard to lead the team.

So by now if you are reading this you fully are aware that there are folks out there pimping John Wall as a legend of his time. How much time exactly has that been? 38 minutes to be exact. .633 of an hour against Miami(OH). The great spectacle of this young man hit the game winning shot, after struggling early on, was a terrific sight. It all too well reminded me of Mr. Meeks again, only this time against FLA in his last game against them at Rupp last February and with about 2 more seconds to shoot. While this shot may have put JWall on the map as a clutch guy, what wasn’t abundantly clear was that he was our only chance for a shot because there wasn’t another avenue to get the ball even close. He took it and got it down the court in speed that can only be appreciated in the Bonneville Salt Flats. He was Mr. Clutch, 38 minutes into a career that could have (and might have) been labeled frustrating up to that point. What was the most frustrating, and commendable to Miami, was that they denied the driving lanes on both sides of the lane and the middle itself. The “post passing patterson” that we have seen right inside of the free throw line the first three games was evicted from his spot by up to 4 guys wearing red jerseys. They did a terrific job of denying UK the lanes that made Eric Bledsoe (who was very quiet tonight) look like the last coming in game 3 at Rupp. When the teams that try to zone us like that fail at getting to the shooters (read-Dodson) that is when they will open back up and Mr. Wall can do his magic or DD himself can make it rain points. One thing that they couldn’t do which was promising was stress us from full court like Morehead had done with more success. While the drives into the zone coverage created a lot of the turnovers we had last night I would remind any UK fan how much would we have loved to had only 15 turnovers in more than half of our games last season. With a much bigger team that can play zone and cover the outside like North Carolina it makes me wonder when our bigs are going to see some pass-post play and not just the DDMO all the time.

Maybe my continual joking about Gillispies “mysteriouso elusive” scorer that never materialized last year may come back to haunt me this season. We are no longer looking for our outside shooter Dodson to show up, he did last night going 3-4 from “treyville” as color commentator and former cat Mike Pratt puts it. What we are looking for is him to be in the game. This is a spot where too much talent to be all on the floor at the same time may actually do harm to the cats. Wall, Bledsoe, P-squared, Big Cuz, Miller were all on the floor at the same time when we needed that still elusive shooter and weren’t able to produce. I have a feeling that Dodson’s lack of defensive intensity overshadowed his shooting and ultimately kept him from being in the game. His play was clean but that is because all he was doing was shooting and playing loose on defense. I fear that Darius Miller is putting undue pressure upon himself to produce and is overplaying a bit but the bottom line is that his defensive skills are keeping him in the game even when he is not scoring. He could be our other rainmaker when the lane is closed to drivers. It was good to see him play such a “clean” game contributing across the board with no turnovers. Calipari kept screaming for Darnell (and others to be fair) to be up playing his man and instead at least 3 of the record tying 15 3-pointers by a UK opponent (EVER in Rupp) were because of a good look from deep outside past the line. That good look is what has been pissing Cal off the most lately. It’s the same good look that last season cost us big time.
Speaking of pissed off, when KY went down by 16 in the first half (the total got to 18 eventually) there was a UK timeout and once everybody huddled, Cal got up out of his chair and smacked down his clip board on his seat. After pacing around the back of the huddle he came behind his chair and punched the E-L-S (if you have to ask you don’t want to know) out of the board breaking it into two pieces and screaming “WHY ARE YOU PLAYING THIS WAY?”. After abruptly sweeping the broken pieces out of his seat he got back to work with a more attentive audience. The feeling of that huddle was almost comparable to that of a funeral home. Once again his high energy approach to being the devil in brief spurts seemed to catch everyone’s attention. I haven’t heard any F-bombs yet but I am sure they have been abound.

I am going to put this simply. DeMarcus “Big Cuz” Cousins finally quit pouting like a baby last night and out played everyone on the court during his spans in the second half. He dared to let anyone get a good hand on his put backs and wouldn’t be denied the rim to get them. So good at one point did required help to guard him totally leaving P-squared right under the basket for what is likely one of the easy yet still assertive dunks he will see this year. P himself was a silent partner for the cats only getting another double-double. A lot of folks are expecting more from him but I don’t think he is underplaying or even spreading the wealth. In his position at the next level he will be a 14-ish point scorer a night and be a mid range machine that will see a lot of successes. Why does he need to score 20+ pts a night if he is making sure his team is clicking and running well? Look at how “clean” his stats look with good shooting/rebounding but a couple of turnovers.

A quick look at the stats doesn’t give the credit due to Cuz as his 19 minutes were really 9-10 minutes in two different worlds. The first-half “world” was totally awkward and foul ridden but at least he didn’t get 3 this half this time. The second world would be Krypton (sorry I am going to stick to the Superman theme for him), 10 points and 10 boards in roughly 10 minutes says a lot about how his play changed and perhaps how he grew even over one half of a game. He is my MVP of the game because without his contribution we would be stuck comparing MOH to VMI or Gardiner Webb. Oh by the way sorry for the VMI near jinx from the last update. I am starting to sound like the negative old man at the Herald Leader now!

A big tip of the paw to Codi for taking some great pictures this game, she was totally on top of her game minus the drooling over where she was sitting (or being so close to those ballers)!

I am freshman hear me roar! Game 1: Morehead St.

As the inaugural season opened for Calipari and his new cast, there was the obvious kid in the blue jumpsuit that didn’t have a jersey on underneath. This was Kentucky without John Wall and it was a very intriguing match up with an experienced and talented Morehead State team. A lot of the small pains to be expected from those guys who have never played in the league they call NCAA. My inaugural season in the backs began with taking a good friend to the game that had nothing but sheer joy watching this team and coach in action. Steve had been with his father to a game when he was a child and he was able to relive a lot of his childhood memories up close and personal. It was obvious it meant a lot to him and I hope it was obvious that it meant a lot for me to be able to make sure he got in on the goods this season.

Without John Wall there were questions abound about how the other freshman point guard would handle the load. And what a load he delivered! Lets talk some more about Eric Bledsoe. The first thing I noticed last night was what kind of condition this young man (who is technically still a teenager but in stature is an incredible example of a man) is in. His arms and legs are beyond being “in shape” but instead superiorly conditioned, of course he would need that conditioning with 36 minutes of PT and a still sore ankle from last weeks sprain. As he effortlessly got to the front of the drive each time, passing not only the MSU players but his own teammates, it made it look like he was playing against kids a lower level than him. He certainly had poise as the floor leader and he let his presence be known early scoring in many unique ways including a spinning, fouled hard, no look shooting behind his head, NBA - no universally impossible, shot that did nothing but hit the square and fall the basket. I don’t think we have seen many players in many years that could perform tasks quite as difficult as he was making them look effortless. As the second half was underway I felt that I was watching him take the reigns of the team and make it happen. His effort led to Patterson to get open shots, including another 3, and good looks at the basket. He was getting other folks involved again as the floor leader with 4 assists and should have had a couple more but there were some fumbles happening as should be expected this time of the season. You cant get on to a kid for not getting you 6-7 assists, I imagine, if he scores a third of the total offensive output. His defense was solid including when he took flight as a human imitating a rocket ship and rejected an MSU drive. Oh yeah, his 24 point debut (the best of any UK freshman ever!) was exactly on the high side of the average that #23 put up last year with 23.7. I am gonna keep saying that he may be Jodie Meeks reincarnated without the whole carrying the team on his back deal to worry about. Wow, great game Bledsoe. What I look for with him now that he and Wall will be playing together is as they spread the floor, will be more involvement from the bigs keeping the lanes open so they can dig, drive & dish or deliver. The traffic jams down low disappearing will open up new things to these two young men as they show the world that the two best point guards CAN play together on the same team. I can basically see both Eric and John doing a dual in your face matchup that cant be defended on the floor. They are simply too fast and its apparent now, too good. With all this optimism there has to be something negative right? Well he did have a band aid on his right forearm…
















Apparently the kryptonite came out and affected Superman DeMarcus Cousins as three quick (and mostly cheap) fouls cost him some PT in both halves. 7 points and 4 rebounds should be a great debut for a freshman at KY. However for this class at this time in the program the play was not up to the hype. His 2 blocks were promising but when only playing 18 minutes its hard to establish yourself as a threat to the other team. I felt his anger after the game, his anger at himself for taking himself out of the game for stupid little fouls that could have been easily avoided. I expect a big game out of him on Monday night as the little guys from Miami of Ohio come in for some anger management and stress relief.

Darius Miller should be beyond uncomfortable games where he turns it over as much as he dishes it, misses more than than he hits. Actually he never hit a basket creating a genuine surprise among the wildcat faithful that he was still in the game and in the end playing a total of 32 minutes in this system where nobody is supposed to play that much. Our silent partner in this firm has to be Darnell Dodson as he once again scored in double digits with 15 but only 6 of that was from 3 where once again he didn’t stand up to his reputation as a scorer. Like Miller & Harris, Darnell had a negative turnover to assist ratio and we cant help but hear Cals warning about “balls flying all over the place” early in the season.

What cant you say about Patrick “p-square” Patterson? His talent, experience and leadership shone through as MSU never let up in intensity through the game. He had the difficult task of sharing Faried with the other bigs. A great field goal %, including his first 3 pointer of his college career, drove the game changing performance that saw him put the smack down on the post with 12 rebounds including 1 monstrous block on Faried who was going for one of his many dunks of the night. Without the finger wagging, that block was exactly the style of denial put down by the great Akeem Olajiwan and it was a truly barnstorming rendition of “not in my house”. Faried is a legit player who moves well around the basket and can jump very high, very fast. He put several dunks down on our bigs and it was a joy to watch such a great player who too represents KY with his college choice.

We also got a great glimpse of the on court demeanor that Coach Call will be bringing each night. While active he did very little directing as his team is supposed to drible and drive, right? I think Bledsoe excelled in taking a little direction and turning it into results. However Cal’s devil voice will motivate any person not doing what he wants them to do to realize they are going to do it right from now on. There was an inbound play in which Darius Miller missed an easy take away and he instantly was taken out of the game. As he walked by us at half-court Cal berated him in the most evil, meaner than your father ever thought about voice, “ Why didn’t YOU get the BALL?!, Why didn’t YOU get the BALL! ? “. Another time after a couple of consecutive turnovers he turned to his bench and said, “ Why are you playing like this?” God even the guys on the pine cant get a break. Thankfully…

Well Monday night we get the great experience of seeing this incredibly hyped and talented team in its entirety throw down. The scouting report on Miami doesn’t appear that they will give us great challenges but still are a worthy enough opponent that hopefully we wont be VMI’d. I am hoping the rumors that DeAndre Liggins will be seen tonight are true. I am so pulling for that young man its hard to describe. He deserves to have it all turned around. I hope to report after the game “Welcome to John Walls world, we only live in it.”

Last of the exhibitions

If you hear that faint echo beaming from the south of us you don’t need to see an audiologist. What you are faintly able to hear are the last questions from Chapel Hill, Lawrence and Raleigh-Durham slowly dribbling off into the universe whether John Wall is going to bring Kentucky back to the upper echelon of the college basketball world or not. A NOT-SO NEWS_FLASH here folks: John Wall is the real deal, the manchild, the man, the bomb whatever adjective you wish to use he probably fits it as he is not only as good as advertised, but perhaps better. The things we knew he could do he did, tomahawk dunk – check, around the back dribble to serve as a pass to himself – check, sliding by defenders making everyone in the building wonder how he could twist his body like that – check, making the rest of the team better-check; and of course scoring - 27 check marks here. Its John Walls matrix, the rest of us have to tumultuously grind ourselves, unlike our hero Wall - read Neo (Keanu Reeves), around in it while the things we do appear to be in slow motion. The man moves unlike any basketballer to ever don a UK Jersey. The moves he made on Friday against Clarion seemed to be other worldly in that he didn’t appear to be doing anything but just being the smooth roller he is. In this highly anticipated fishbowl John Wall is starting to show why he is the biggest fish in there, 27 points is a start but think about the other points that generated by his game high 9 assists. That is just him making everyone else draft pick caliber as he should be doing. If Eric Bledsoe is Jodie Meeks’ clone then thank god we got the first John Wall model so nobody could clone him before he plays in the Big Blue fishbowl. I cannot even begin to imagine how good the both of them on the floor will make us. The defense will be spread even further and create more room for the DDMO to make good things happen.

The consistency that I seem to detect from Miller will be an unsung role as leader throughout most of the season. He appears to be on the level and so cool in his demeanor as he scored 11 but also as did Wall provide great assists, 7. Not only are these great players all looking to score they are also looking for others to score. Once again the late gamers like Stevenson and Krebs are putting it to already tired teams don’t look for too many comebacks late in the game on us this year as these guys are doing superb off the bench. I am going to re-state from the previous story, Big Cuz thinks he may be impermeable to kryptonite and actually he’s got to be better than Superman in the low post. A highlight for me was to watch him drive the floor after taking the ball away from a defender then get the ball out in front to John Wall who would have probably opened up a new skylight in Rupp if the guy hadn’t flagrantly taken him down with the bear-hug defensive style that would make Grizzly Adams proud.
I am going to start this here but mark my words the media is going to soon be wondering where that elusive seventh scorer is on this team. With “only” six guys in double digits in scoring its makes life good to be guessing who is going to take the game over this time. The same thing happened Friday that happened in the first exb. game, how did Dodson score so without really being noticed? I suppose the answer is blue collar points earned the scrappy way just kind of show up. Once he connects from the outside on a hot night watch out because with his four assists he is proving he will get others the pill too. How about a team that “never” practices free throws going 25-30? Sounds to me like everything this administration is doing with this team is totally about-face to the fear/shame tactics that the players had to deal with last season under a different coach. What was his name again? I think everyone is finally forgetting his name.

A lot of talk in the media this week centered on Cal toughening up the team by 2-a-daying and making life hard caught some people off guard. My personal outtake on all of this is that it was done for the purpose of focusing a team that is too easily distracted by trying to learn a new system, get in shape and then perform in that system. They were forgetting about the toughness involved in training hard like the full 40 suicides in football oh yeah then going for a run. The defense was harrowing for little Clarion, we seemed to be all over them all over the court. With pressure like that and the wonderful directive to take it straight to the rim we will be looking like tennis spectators before its over with. Of course most of us will miss JWall as he blasts past us in supersonic mode. The big time stat of the game, UK hit the golden ratio of 12 or fewer turnovers with 18 or more assists. Cal said that the good games it ought to be 12-14 & 16-18 respectively and I want to believe him after watching much better efficiency on both ends of the court. Another quick stat is that there were 6 guys with over 20 minutes (and one with 19) but the max was 28 mins by wall. That 24-28 min thing Cal talked about too is coming to be. It appears a lot of his talk is straight, or has been so far.

After all this fuss we are still talking about what was the last of two exhibitions and everyone is getting warmed up including us shade tree participants. Its still mind bending to think at the current state and expectations of this programmed compared with 1 year ago. Simply amazing. Oh well the next one is for real, against a real opponent (from KY) who went to a real post-season tournament last year, unlike the team from Lexington…

When they throw the ball up against Morehead St. they will be keeping score for real this time and all the games matter now. Time to start paying attention now cats and kittys.

The view just got a whole lot better...

The view from the "backs" this season...

The ticket says right across the top “GAME 1” but tonight seemed to be much less about playing in the “Game” than it did trying some things that appeared to take the young wildcats out of their comfort zone and practice what they have only been able to collectively do for about 15 days now in this new system. DDMO stands for Dribble Drive Motion Offense and it appears this team has conquered the first D but that is about it. I am not trying to portray the whole performance as a negative one but the drives often fell short of anything but running into a crowd. They seemed to drive knowing that the play wouldn’t work itself out and they would have to pass. Many times plays would blow up and look great with only a turnover or fizzle at the end. I do on more than one occasion recall Cal simply screaming "Drive!", "Drive!". Kudos to Campbellsville for making the cats honest the whole game. The perimeter portion of ‘the’ motion that Darnell Dodson was playing appeared to be right on track with what he is capable of doing for our team from the floor. When he starts clicking his outside shot its gonna be a beautiful thing. The other guys, especially the bigs, simply filled the lane up and didn’t give much option due to the lack of the motion in the system they have been learning. With the promise of the excitement that will follow the DDMO once the players are able to play it I cant help but say with the first D in place the other 3 should follow but how easily will be the question. The promise from Coach Cal early in the season that balls would be flying all over the place and %70 of the time we will be doing it wrong may not be his spinning a new program with a new style for new players, it may be him just being honest.

The first half was what we have been missing at UK for the past few seasons, aggressive attacking style basketball that awards taking chances and making plays. The second half was what we have been used to for about 10 years now, a good team being complacent because they were better than their opponent and just forgetting that defense was necessary – I call this the “Goliath Syndrome”. The Cats stunk it up in the second half and at one point by my count were being outscored by Campbellsville due to their relentless pursuit of the ball trying to make turnovers. We were hot from the floor early but only one of those was from long range. A great majority were close range jumpers and dunks. Everybody and their brother will be questioning who our perimeter players/shooters will be kind of like that proverbial missing third scorer from last years team. Unlike the cats of 08-09 we won’t be looking for that other guy night in and night out because he won’t ever be the same player. The depth that we will enjoy this season is hard to believe compared to last year when we were begging for at least one other guy to show up each night. We will however on occasion be asking what happened to the all the ‘3’ signs that used to get tallied up during games. Until there is a consistent outside scorer expect to see a lot of zone defense from our competitors as they will want to gum up the middle and avoid Wall & Bledsoe tearing them new ones right up that middle.

Speaking of Bledsoe, he is for real. Dare I say the reincarnation of Jodie Meeks’ role last season? (Minus that carrying the team on his back thing). My first impressions are that he is as good as advertised however with the signing of Wall many simply aren’t going to expect Eric to be as good as he appeared he is going to be last night. He is a fast, smart handler with the ball, often ahead of his teammates on the rotation on the court. He seemed to be able to see what was supposed to be happening but then not having anyone else in position to score nor be in great position himself to drive to the rim. He appears to have the ‘it’ factor as a playmaker and a game changer. I couldn’t help but notice on the 2nd half charge to the rim and put back of the missed free throw that he had lined up like a school kid racing his classmates on the playground and was bubbling eager to get off that line to the basket. A very smart play on the froshs part to make the other 9 players look like they didn’t even know the ball had bounced off the rim. His presence will grow on the floor and making plays like the monster block (coming from our point guard mind you) and getting up the floor on offense shows he is going to be something special.

As the leading scorer you would think Dodson would have been very noticeable. The last play in the first half was a set play that got him open and reminds a UK fan of shades of the past, say oh 12 years ago? While he didn’t hit the 3 the sheer openness of his position and the ability of his teammates to get him the ball says he may be our go to guy when we’re down with one shot left. While he seemed to be a smart player perhaps he was over thinking some things as he appeared somewhat timid in going up strong with the ball. It seemed he wanted to keep it in front of him rather than up and in front. He is another one that we will be glad is shooting in blue late this season although his speed down the court may be a factor.

DeMarcus Cousins – from what I could tell he thinks he is superman. He might just be right. He goes up strong, makes smart defensive moves and but acts loose on other plays. Definitely, he will be the intimidator of this team but it could cost him in fouls in close games if his emotions are on the outside of his skin where they are likely to be hurt at some point. His frosh counterpart Orton was a silent partner tonight thanks to other people being more visible but made great plays including the one where he received the pass from behind his head to simply dunk with a procession move that made it look like he was 13 feet tall. A great feed from Bledsoe made it an open play that no one in a burgundy jersey could even get near. My personal opinion based on appearance tells me that Orton is not only big but his is in extremely good shape very similar to his summer “hell camp” roommate Patterson. PP or P2 as I will refer to him from now on – was tonight another silent partner by making everyone work that much harder on defense. He was simply stronger than everyone he posted or dribbled against. Speaking of dribbling it was noticeable that with both hands he has taken a weakness away that the competition must now look elsewhere to try and defend him. He looks thinner this season but it is an optical illusion as he is just leaner and meaner and not bulky like he was last season resulting in his speed with and without the ball going through the roof.
More player notes:

Perry – earning his keep as a senior partner in the firm, proving desire makes up for what some say is a lack of talent.

Miller – picking up from last year, needs to be a bit more aggressive offensively like he did on the early head fake spin move to pull up jumper from about 8 feet out. Truly a beautiful play that appeared to be what he placed on this earth to do.

Krebs – aint’ skeered’ and seemed to please the coach by that play.

Hood – solid minutes but didn’t have a super floor presence. Just guessing those are the nerves of playing in front of Rupp crowd with Kentucky on your jersey not to mention being the reigning Mr. Basketball in this round-ball obsessed place.

MVP – Bledsoe over high scorer Dodson for the simple presence of position, duty on the floor, and improvisational skills. Could he be that reincarnation of a jersey number very close to his?

Overall - ?. It was just an exhibition game against an NAIA opponent silly, there really isn’t that much one could analyze is there? Whoops…

Bleachers to the backs a unique perspective

Since I was a small child I remember many things about going to see the University of Kentucky Wildcats play in Rupp Arena. This 09-10 season for many reasons will be memorable but none more important to me personally than finally breaking the barrier and having my own season tickets in the lower arena, even better on the floor in the lower arena. A dream come true is what many would consider my march from the bleachers high in 231, to my own season tickets just a few rows behind the railing in the upper, to now possessing the holy grail of tickets, floor seats with backs on them, mid-court, practically eyeball to eyeball with Coach John Calipari as he engages his team on the floor. That is why I am calling this blog bleachers to backs.

I am venturing a guess only based on what I can conjure by looking at the schedule but this is likely the 28th season I have seen a game in Rupp. My earliest memories of course are of the wildcats winning, Rupp being loud., Joe B. being classy & cool as he always was and nachos. However a funny perspective of those early days is that the wildcat mascots on stilts kept my attention away from anything else during those twin tower days of Sam Bowie and Melvin Turpin. The sheer joy I got from watching those two mascots on stilts resonates today when I watch my daughter try to get "the animals" attention at games. I do however remember the Ole Miss mascot making me cry once. I have hated the Rebels to this day for that very reason.

Although I was never a great athlete, I managed to be a varsity collegiate athlete in multiple sports and lettering after much persistence. My point is that I have some experience in what these young men are going through as student athletes and I have watched many processions of this wildcat nation go through the motions. I have simply loved this game since I can remember and cant put it better than the old saying, "Kentuckian by birth, Wildcat by the grace of God". I am a fan, a real fan, not to mistaken for fanatic. I dont get overzealous when it comes to matchups and looking at the competition the Big Blue will be facing and try to be real.
As some of you know I own my own whitewater rafting business and also am a kayaker. We have a couple of sayings in whitewater that transfer over to being a UK fan. When you "read and run" in a boat in whitewater you are simply taking the river head on with some confidence you know what you are doing but until each incremental spot in a rapid you wont know your next move. The same goes here. I will try to never get ahead of myself although some may disagree. I hope this season is as enjoyable for us all as I percieve it to be, of course not to be getting ahead of myself. Enjoy.