photo by Chris Reynolds/CoachCal.com
Thirty-one and zero.
Part of me still can’t really believe what I’m seeing, and even though I’m paid to express my feelings in the written word I don’t really know what to say. I can’t describe what it’s like to watch this team. Not yet. Maybe someday, when I have perspective and wisdom on my side. For now, it’s just bewilderment. And awe. And pride.
What I try to do is think back to a year ago, pre-tweak, when everything seemed to be going wrong – probably because everything was going wrong. Then I think of how lucky we’ve been to see this run. Then I think about how these kids seem like genuinely good people, and I’m proud of how they play and how they love each other and that they’re in blue.
It’s been quite a season. And quite a year. Someday I think I’ll be able to write about it all.
Maybe.
Part of me still can’t really believe what I’m seeing, and even though I’m paid to express my feelings in the written word I don’t really know what to say. I can’t describe what it’s like to watch this team. Not yet. Maybe someday, when I have perspective and wisdom on my side. For now, it’s just bewilderment. And awe. And pride.
What I try to do is think back to a year ago, pre-tweak, when everything seemed to be going wrong – probably because everything was going wrong. Then I think of how lucky we’ve been to see this run. Then I think about how these kids seem like genuinely good people, and I’m proud of how they play and how they love each other and that they’re in blue.
It’s been quite a season. And quite a year. Someday I think I’ll be able to write about it all.
Maybe.
UK to play winner of Ala/Fla in the SEC Tourney
Our beloved Big Blue Kentucky Wildcats could play Florida again Friday – if the Gators beat Alabama. Personally, I’m fine with either of them.
Women’s hoops lose to Tennessee 75-64 in the SEC Tourney
After an almost inhuman performance by Makayla Epps Friday night
against No. 11 Mississippi State, where the UK sophomore scored 31
points in an epic comeback that was inspiring for all those who got to
see it, Kentucky just didn’t have enough left in the tank tonight against the Vols. UK coach Matthew Mitchell says he expects his team to be a 3 seed in the NCAAs.
Belmont upsets No.25 Murray State in OVC Tourney final, 88-87
This was the game of the night. Can the Racers get an at-large bid? Here’s hoping so.
Duke and North Carolina are playing right now
And I don’t care. At all.
Cobb back to Green Bay?
A source from NFL.com is saying Randall Cobb is headed back to Green Bay for a four-year, $40 million deal. Thank God. I was afraid he’d end up a Brown or Raider.
Like Cats, J.B. trying to go wire to wire
Major props again to J.B. Holmes who is flat killing it in the
early golf season. Going into Sunday he’s in the lead by five at Doral
after a 2-under 70 round Saturday in the Cadillac Championship. Holmes
even had a hole in one
on Doral’s par 3, 207-yard 4th, which he aced with a seven iron. Holmes
led after Thursday and Friday too, and he’s trying to become the PGA’s
first wire to wire winner since Rory McIlroy at last year’s British
Open.
Louisville somehow beats Virginia
Did the dirty Cards help Kentucky out in some way by defeating
Virginia today in the Yum! Center? Who knows? Today is for the Cats and
our undefeatedness. But I did notice – and from what I saw on Twitter
dozens of others did too – how Pitino guarded the inbounds pass with 2.7
seconds left leading The Cavs by a point. Of course, Virginia threw
their long pass out of bounds. Ah, Pitino. One thing you can bet for
certain – UofL is going to be our four seed.
More tomorrow as we re-cap the 31st victory in 31 games!
More tomorrow as we re-cap the 31st victory in 31 games!
UPDATE: That bracket was pending an Ole Miss win. Well, the Rebels decided to drop one to the ‘Dores, shaking things up a bit.
(@brandonbarca)
Photo by Barry Westerman, UK Athletics
Welcome back. First, some historical stats. With a 67-50 win over Florida today, Kentucky moved to 31-0, the best regular season in Kentucky basketball history (and that’s saying something). UK is the first Power 5 school to complete an undefeated regular season since Indiana in 1976. Thirty-one straight wins is the longest season-opening winning streak in SEC history, the second-longest winning streak in Kentucky history, and the longest winning streak for any team coached by John Calipari.
I’m not sure we’ll ever fully appreciate what happened in
Rupp today. Right now, it’s too difficult; 31-0 is great, but there are
nine more games to go until the ultimate prize, something that, as
Kentucky fans, we can’t just ignore. Billy Donovan spoke as a former
Kentucky assistant and not as the Florida head coach when he urged the
BBN to slow down and soak in this moment. “I get the expectation level
here, but people need to reflect on how special and historic this season
is for their team.”
“What they’ve done may not happen again for a long, long time,”
Donovan added. “There’s not going to be many teams that have a
collection of talent like they have.”You smiling? I’m smiling. Let’s go over it.
This was the starting lineup
That’s right, senior walk-ons Sam Malone, Brian Long, and Tod Lanter got to start on Senior Day, a very cool gesture by Calipari, who said he’s getting this picture blown up to hang in the Joe Craft Center. “The reason I started them is I wanted a picture of them starting,” Cal said. “We’re framing it. CBS is going to get me the starting lineups with their names on it. It’s going to be framed. I told them prior to the game, 35 years from now you can say you started. Who the hell knows?” [Insert swaggy Cal smile]
Of course, the three seniors only stayed in for 22 seconds, but for those 22 seconds, the entire bench was up cheering for them.
It wasn’t easy
Given all their struggles this season, Florida certainly pulled it together today. The Gators were gutty, slapping back at the Cats and refusing to lay down for the 31-0 party. Kentucky looked oddly flat at the beginning of the game, letting Florida take an 11-7 lead before Trey Lyles stepped in and established some offense. Lyles had six straight points to put Kentucky back on top, and after Florida took the lead again, Trey scored Kentucky’s last four points to put Kentucky up by three heading into halftime.“Trey Lyles, I’m telling you is as good as anybody in the country,” Cal said. Trey finished with 14 points, the most of any Cat, and told Mike Pratt that he came into today’s game ready to prove his 2-point performance against Georgia on Tuesday was a fluke. With each mid-range jumper and nifty post move, the more and more I’m convinced that Trey will be playing a long time at the next level.
Devin’s three at 10:16 opened it up
Florida hung close until Devin Booker connected on a three point shot with 10:16 left in the game. Devin’s three sparked a 7-0 run to put Kentucky up by 10, and Florida didn’t get any closer than eight points after it.
On Senior Day, a freshman was the star
Devin’s three was huge, Tyler Ulis was clutch, and Trey Lyles was great, but Karl Towns was the MVP of the game for me. Karl finished with 13 points, 9 rebounds, 6 blocks, 3 assists, and one steal in 27 minutes. “Karl Towns is as a complete basketball player as there is,” Kenny Payne said afterwards. CBS Sports’ Ian Eagle had the line of the game when he said after a Karl block, “Florida cannot solve the Lexington skyline!” Billy Donovan said he was more impressed with Karl’s 19-point performance in Gainesville last month, but Karl did it all today, changing the game on both ends of the court. I am totally biased, but if you’re picking Jahlil Okafor over Karl Towns with the #1 pick, you’re a fool.As if his on-court performance wasn’t enough, Karl stole the show in the postgame, giving his shoe to Matt Bunk, a fan from Pennsylvania who was paralyzed in a car accident as a kid. TJ Walker reports that Bunk visited practice yesterday and bonded with Karl, and the first thing Karl did when he came out for postgame interviews was find his new friend in the media horde. He gave Bunk, “the most special Wildcat I know,” his giant shoe as a souvenir:
@christianrich1
It may have been goodbye for Willie as well
Everyone gets a little emotional during “My Old Kentucky Home” on Senior Day, but according to those there, Willie Cauley-Stein seemed to be especially moved by the ceremony. Willie’s just a junior, but with recent draft projections putting him in the top ten, it’s likely he played his last game in Rupp today. It wasn’t Willie’s best performance, only 8 points and 7 rebounds, but afterwards, he said he still has more to show.“Words can’t describe it, I guess,” Willie said when asked about his progress from his freshman year until now. “It’s one of those things that you look back on later in life and realize you made history. Now, you’re living it. It’s not really history yet. I feel like, myself, I’m just now reaching the surface. I still have a lot left to show or to give.”
In true Willie style, he couldn’t help but get a bit reflective. “It’s probably one of the best things you’ll probably do in your life is playing here. Having the fans enjoy seeing you play and enjoy learning about you as a person. That never leaves here. You’re going to always be part of that family here, so it’s a great feeling.”
Before we break out the Sarah McLachlan and weep not for the memories, there’s still some basketball to play. During the mini-celebration after the game, Willie grabbed the mic and told the crowd, “We’re not done yet. We’re coming ready in Nashville.”
“You’re not stealing my joy”
John Calipari was at his swaggiest when he met with the media after the game, firing zingers at his haters and cracking jokes left and right. Cal told reporters he’s giving his team two days off to rest and appreciate the moment before the madness begins on Friday. “I think, again, the one worry I had prior to the game was I wonder if they’re feeling this,” Cal said afterwards. “I’ve been through the grind of this. They haven’t.”“Only thing I keep telling them is I’m so proud and I respect them so much to able to deal with all this,” Cal said, motioning to the circus of media in the backstage of Rupp. Cal being Cal, he couldn’t help but take a shot at the Selection Committee. “I bet you they slide the Lakers in there,” Cal quipped.
The latest hater to try to steal Cal’s shine is Dan Shaughnessy, and from his remarks after the game, I think Cal’s seen the article, which I will NOT link on this site. “I’ll tell you, I would imagine ‑ just saying ‑ there will be some stuff written and said. I want to tell you all, no one will steal my joy,” Calipari said, glaring into the camera. “If you want to attack what we’re doing, be nasty about it, have at it. You’re not stealing my joy. Coaching this team, with these kind of kids, you’re not stealing my joy.”
Then he made this face:
Not Done
After the game ended, the team put on
shirts that read “31-0, NOT DONE.” That’s this team’s new motto. “We’re
in the history books. But we want to be in there for cutting down the
nets, so we’re not done,” Karl Towns said. “I was surprised we got a t-shirt. I like it, though.” (Oh, Karl.)
“We take pride in it but our journey is not done,” Trey Lyles said. “We have a lot of work to do.”
But for now, just for today, let’s drink this in.
@TWalkerRivals
He signed his game shoes and gave them to a young fan in a wheelchair after the game. Karl powered through the insane media circus to find the young man before sitting down for his interviews. He called him “the most special Wildcat I know.”
It looks like the shoe says, “To Matt: We love you! You will always be a Cat.”
Awesome…
@bigblueexpress
After today’s game, John Calipari was asked what he expects in the NCAA tournament and he told reporters he already knows the teams Kentucky will be grouped with.
Cal said, “Do you want to me guess (the bracket) for you? I bet you they slide the Lakers in the there.”
Jokes aside, he said he is going to try his hardest to keep the players in the moment and coach them to become the best they can be.
“If that’s not good enough, I can live with it.”
Doug Gottlieb offended a lot of Kentucky fans during the game when he made a wise crack about Ashley Judd wearing glasses. Gottlieb called Ashley’s glasses “cheaters” and said, “That’s what all old people say” when Ian Eagle pointed out she doesn’t need them to see the game.
Watch it, Doug.
31-0. Not Done.
By on ©March 07th, 2015 @ 4:00pm
@Bradley_Cn2
We’ll have more all afternoon, but for now, enjoy the perfection.
30 minutes until game time!!! Let’s break down the 3 elements
the Cats will need to have in order to send the Gators back to
Gainesville with a losing SEC record.
Keying On Dorian Finney-Smith
Finney-Smith has made a career as being a Cat-Killer the past two
seasons. Earlier this season he had the Gators in control by going 3-5
from beyond the arc and 6-10 overall en route to 16 points. He also went
3-4 from downtown Gainesville to end last season against the Cats. He’s
normally a 35% 3-point shooter but against the Cats he turns into Steph
Curry. If UK can keep Dorian cool from 3 then they should have little
problem containing the rest of the Gator’s offense.
A Focused Willie
Against Florida last month Willie was MIA for most of the first half as the Gators built a lead. Then he dunked on the entire Gulf of Mexico and the game changed. If WCS is tuned in early then the Cats can burst out of the gate and put the game away. Florida is coming into this game with nothing to lose so you know they are going to try and spoil Kentucky’s perfect season. Willie can keep that from happening.
The Crowd
Playing Florida in Rupp has produced some of the loudest environments in the building’s storied history. Remember the Calathes free throws? The Matt Walsh game? #1 Florida coming to town? Today, as the Cats chase perfection, should be no different. Today has the chance to be an all time great Rupp memory and the crowd should be a big part of that.
Feel free to post your score predictions below.
Keying On Dorian Finney-Smith
Via Zimbio
A Focused Willie
Against Florida last month Willie was MIA for most of the first half as the Gators built a lead. Then he dunked on the entire Gulf of Mexico and the game changed. If WCS is tuned in early then the Cats can burst out of the gate and put the game away. Florida is coming into this game with nothing to lose so you know they are going to try and spoil Kentucky’s perfect season. Willie can keep that from happening.
The Crowd
Playing Florida in Rupp has produced some of the loudest environments in the building’s storied history. Remember the Calathes free throws? The Matt Walsh game? #1 Florida coming to town? Today, as the Cats chase perfection, should be no different. Today has the chance to be an all time great Rupp memory and the crowd should be a big part of that.
Feel free to post your score predictions below.
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