Calipari takes the bait ... it's about time.

After reports of John Calipari accepting the job at the University of Kentucky, then reports of him staying at Memphis, then reports of him accepting the job at the University of Kentucky, then reports of him stay ... anyways, he has finally actually accepted the job at the University of Kentucky.  Personally, after the mistake of Billy G, I would have preferred someone who knows what Kentucky basketball means to the state like Travis Ford.  The program needs someone who truelly wants the position, not for the "stage," but for the pride.

I hope he turns it around fast, I don't want to be glued to the internet blogs in two years.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4031573

Reds Trade IF Jeff Keppinger

The Reds IF Jeff Keppinger has been traded to the Houston Astro's for a player to be named later. Keppinger has had a terrible spring thus far with the Reds and his durability and consistancy have been questioned by many in the Reds organization.

Not So Perfect

According to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office, Cincinnati Reds minor league pitching coach Tom Browning was arrested on Friday and charged with non-payment of child support on a Polk County, Fla., warrant.

Bond was set at $99,008.36. Browning, 48, of Union, Ky., remained in custody at the Sarasota County Jail as of Monday evening.

The Cincinnati Reds declined comment through media relations director Rob Butcher.

Best known for the perfect game he threw on Sept. 16, 1988, Browning in January was named pitching coach for the Carolina Mudcats, the Reds' Double-A affiliate.

New Level of Crazy

If you are really wanting to know right away what is going on with John Calipari you can you check out this link. As of 3:52 they are streaming live footage of the gate outside John Calipari's house to see if there is any activity. I am not quite sure what they are hoping to gain by having this camera hear. I am pretty sure Calipari is not going to come up wearing the Wildcat mascot suit if he does accept the job.

Still No Official Word On Calipari

As of this point there is still no official word on John Calipari leaving Memphis for the University of Kentucky. There are several Memphis media outlets that are reporting that Calipari is officially leaving. We do know that Calipari is meeting with his coaches currently at his house. The Louisville Courier Journal is reporting that Coach Calipari reached out to former UK coach Joe B. Hall this afternoon. They are reporting that it is a done deal. As I reported in an earler post I will not believe it until we have an official announcement from the University.

The Kentucky Saga Continues

This whole situation really blows my mind. I have checked a number of sources which include national sports, local media, and web related sources for information regarding the Kentucky Coaching vacancy and it amazes me as to how much contradictory information I have read. Here is my best estimation as to where Kentucky and John Calipari stand at this time.

- Kentucky has offerd John Calipari after discussing and meeting with him over the weekend.

- The terms of the contract are very large but the exact number is still unknown to the public

- John Calipari has not accepted or rejected any offers from Kentucky

- Memphis Boosters have lobbyed to keep Calipari in Memphis with help from FedEx.

- Kentucky will not have a press conference until all of the terms of the contract are negotiated and the contract is signed. (No memorandum of understanding mess like Billy Gillispie had)

- Players from Memphis current roster will not follow John Calipari to Kentucky if he leaves but current unsigned recruits may have the opportunity.

- One of Calipari's concerns was the number of young players who Kentucky has already committed to and if he will be bound to honoring those commitments.

Hopefully this whole Soap Opera will end today. I have learned that many in the Kentucky media are very quick to jump to conclusions on this whole situation. Both Kentucky and Memphis sources reported yesterday that it was a done deal which was obviously premature. In this era of reporting where everyone wants the scoop it is getting a little out of hand. Stay tuned.

Concerns over Calipari

I have my concerns about Calipari. And, I am not alone. Mark Story from the Lexington Herald-Leader spells them out in this article. You can read it here.

Shouldn't the administration slow down. Aren't they rushing in to this hire just like they did last time. I realize Calipari has a proven track record for winning, but how did he get those top recruits to sign on at UMass and Memphis anyway? Any red lights going off in your minds about this hire? Aren't there are other proven coaches that should a get a look. What if Tom Izzo would be interested? Can we wait a week to find out?

NCAA Tournament Records By Conference

Here is an update to the NCAA tournament winning percentages by each conference. The update is complete through all games.

2009 NCAA TOURNAMENT BY CONFERENCE

Big East (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 6-1, 86%
Rd 2: 5-1, 83% Overall 11-2, 85% 5 Sweet Sixteen, 5/7 or 71%
Rd 3: 4-1, 80% Overall 15-3, 83% 4 Elite Eight, 4/7 or 57%
Rd 4: 2-2, 50% Overall 17-5, 77% 2 Final Four, 2/7 or 29%

Big Ten (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 4-3, 57%
Rd 2: 2-2, 50% Overall 6-5, 54% 2 Sweet Sixteen, 2/7 or 29%
Rd 3: 1-1, 50% Overall 7-6, 54% 1 Elite Eight, 1/7 or 14%
Rd 4: 1-0, 100% Overall 8-6, 57% 1 Final Four, 1/7 or 14%

Pac 10 (6 Teams)
Rd 1: 5-1, 83%
Rd 2: 1-4, 20% Overall 6-5, 54% 1 Sweet Sixteen 1/6 or 17%
Rd 3: 0-1, 0% Overall 6-6, 50% 0 Elite Eight, 0/6
0% Final Four

ACC (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 3-4, 43 %
Rd 2: 2-1, 66% Overall 5-5, 50% 2 Sweet Sixteen, 2/7 or 29%
Rd 3: 1-1, 50% Overall 6-6, 50% 1 Elite Eight, 1/7 or 14%
Rd 4: 1-0, 100% Overall 7-6, 54% 1 Final Four, 1/7 or 14%

SEC (3 Teams)
Rd 1: 1-2, 33%
Rd 2: 0-1 Overall 1-3, 25% 0 Sweet Sixteen, 0/3 or 0 %
0% Elite Eight, Final Four

Big Twelve (6 Teams)
Rd 1: 6-0, 100%
Rd 2: 3-3, 50% Overall 9-3, 75% 3 Sweet Sixteen, 3/6 or 50%
Rd 3: 2-1, 67% Overall 11-4, 73% 2 Elite Eight, 2/6 or 33%
Rd 4: 0-2, 0% Overall 11-6, 64% 0 Final Four, 0/6, 0%

A-10 (3 Teams)
Rd 1: 2-1, 66%
Rd 2: 1-1, 50% Overall 3-2, 60% 1 Sweet Sixteen, 1/3, 33%
Rd 3: 0-1, 0% Overall 3-3, 50% 0 Elite Eight, 0/3, 0%
0% Final Four

Rumors of Kentucky's Offer to Calipari

There are a lot of internet rumors floating around now that Calipari to Kentucky is essentially a done deal and we could know as early as 4:00 today. The word is Kentucky offered Calipari $6 million per year to take the reigns of the winningest program in NCAA history. There are a number of reports as well that with Calipari could come top ranked recruits John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. If Kentucky can land Calipari and these recruits as well as retain Patrick Patterson, Daniel Orton and Jodie Meeks the Wildcat's could be scary good next year. Stay tuned.

**Update**
3:54 p.m.

http://memphis.rivals.com/

Rivals.com is reporting that the John Calipari era is over at Memphis and he will take over as the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats.

**Updste**
5:14

This story gets a little stanger by the minute. Rivals now have dropped the story that indicated Calipari is gone and word is he is currently meeting with Memphis boosters who are matching the Kentucky offer. This could get very interesting. If the University of Kentucky cannot pull this off with all of the speculation they will struggle to find a viable candidate.

LeBron James- Class Act Move

COLUMBUS — Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary has defeated Thurgood Marshall, 59-53 for the Division II state title.

Marshall’s Juwan Staten led all scorers with 28 points. After the game LeBron James pulled a crying Staten over to him and talked to him at length on the court, then hugged him.

“He just told me I’m a great pl;ayer and to keep my head up,” a tearful Staten said afterward. “He told me he knew how I felt because he lost a state title game, too. He said I’ve got a great future.”

from Dayton Daily News

Rumors Kentucky to Offer John Calipari

According to ESPN's Andy Katz Kentucky has met with Memphis Head Coach John Calipari at an undisclosed location Sunday and offered him a "mega-deal." Acording to Katz' report Calipari was going to meet with officials at Memphis to discuss the offer that Kentucky gave him and give them an opportunity to discuss his potential future with the Tigers.

One interesting note Calipari has locked up a solid verbal with DeMarcus Cousins who is the #2 ranked player in Rivals 150. Cousins did not sign a letter of intent so he could potentially follow Coach Calipari if he leaves for Kentucky.

***Update****
1:10 p.m.

The Memphis Commercial Appeal is reporting that John Calipari has met with his players and the early indication is that he is leaving for the University of Kentucky. Read the full story here. According to the source, Calipari told the team that Kentucky was the Notre Dame of basketball.


The University of Kentucky position clearly fits Calipari's ego and if he could bring the top ranked recruiting classes to the Big Blue Nation he would be welcomed with open arms. I think the whole Billy Gillispie situation taught Mitch Barnhart and the University of Kentucky a lesson. They will have to get a proven winner and not take a flyer on a coach, if they take a chance on a coach it better be a Kentucky boy!

Tiger Strikes Again

I really enjoyed a lazy sports Sunday yesterday and watched Tiger play 18 holes lurking up on Sean O'Hair. O'Hair held a 5 stroke lead to start play on Sunday but you could tell from the first tee that O'Hair could not ignore Tiger lurking and slowly inching up toward him. Woods finally caught O'Hair with a 26 foot birdie putt on the 15th but Tiger let O'Hair right back in it. It came down to the 18th, the type of drama the the PGA tour was salivating over and the situations that Tiger Woods dreams about. O'Hair missed his birdie opportunity on the 18th which left Tiger with a 16 footer on the 18th for the outright lead. With the sun setting on Bay Hill Tiger did what Tiger does, sank the putt and captured his sixth victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

John Calipari Rumors

As you would expect out of the Big Blue nation there are countless rumors floating around about potential replacements for Coach Billy Gillipsie. But one name seems to be coming up quite a bit and as we have seen in the past where there is smoke there is fire. John Calipari's name has come up on several sources as already scheduled meetings with the Kentucky brass. There were a lot of early indications that the university was going to aggresively pursue Tom Izzo but with Michigan State making the final four that may take that opportunity away. As of right now I would list the following coaches as Kentucky's main targets.

1. John Calipari
2. Tom Izzo
3. Rick Barnes
4. Sean Miller
5. Thad Matta

Who will be the next coach at Kentucky?

Kentucky.com does a very good job of laying out some of the potential candidates.

Check it out here.

Alan Cutler chasing Billy Gillispie

I really don't like Alan Cutler to begin with, he hosts a local sports talk show here in Cincinnati and I feel that he is rude to his callers who share a differing opinion but this video shows a new level of being unprofessional. I realize that you want to be the man who cracks the story and gets the quote when you are in the media but seriously chasing a man down a hallway is a bit ridiculous.

What will happen with Kentucky recruits?

With the firing of head coach Billy Gillispie there has been a lot of speculation regarding the future of the prized recruits that Gillispie has signed to play at the University of Kentucky. Here is what we know so far.

Jon Hood

Jon's father Brian Hood said that Jon was "heartbroken" that Gillispie was no longer the coach of the Wildcats. "The plan is like everybody's plan would be - to see who it is, sit down and talk to whoever it is - and then decide. When all this started coming down, at first it was disbelief and then there is not a better word for it than heartbroken. He was literally heartbroken. You have to remember, he has gone all in with Billy (Gillispie).

G.J. Vilarino

G.J. was Gillispie's first signed recruit out of McKinney Texas. G.J.'s father told the Courier Journal, "It's a tough day for us because we have known those guys (the staff) for years and they're like family," Gerry Vilarino said. "We're hurting today and we feel for them. It's a difficult day on that side of it.

"But from a basketball perspective - solely - G.J. has had his mind set for a long time. Based on our conversations, it's going to be pretty hard for him to turn it off now and say he's not going to Kentucky. He has everything ready to go."


Dominique Ferguson

Indianapolis Lawrence North junior forward Dominique Ferguson wasn't shocked that Billy Gillispie is no longer the coach at UK, but the father noted his family was in strong with the former staff at UK.

"We have a really good relationship with those guys," said the elder Ferguson, noting assistant coach Tracy Webster was a big key in the recruitment of his son. "He has a lot on his mind right now. He's just trying to figure things out.

"Right now, he's thinking about the possibility of decommitting. I would say there's a strong possibility that he re-opens the process."

The 6-foot-9 Ferguson is considered one of the top 10 players in the Class of 2010. He's ranked higher - among his class - than any of the nine players that are either signed or committed to UK through the Class of 2012.


Daniel Orton

The 6-foot-10 Orton is the highest-ranked recruit in the Class of 2009 and is going to wait to see who the school hires before making a final decision.

"We just have to sit back and wait and see," Larry Orton said. The elder Orton said the family would just "have to figure out what's going on" and who the coach might be before making a final decision.

Is Firing Billy Gillespie The Right Move?

For weeks now, the rumors have run their course regarding whether or not Billy Gillespie will be the coach at the University of Kentucky next season. For the same length of time, everybody and i mean EVERYBODY has put forth their two cents regarding who they think will be the next coach. Now that Billy Gillespie has been in fact fired from UK, the question remains Is his firing justified? Is his firing the right move?

My Answer: Absolutely NOT.
1) A coach needs time to develop his system and recruit his players. I dont care if you are UNC, Duke, UCONN, UK, or Ausin Peay. This should apply to any program. I did not care for the Billy G either and often times thought he was a sleezy stubborn coach who didnt deal well with players, fans, or the media. However, two years is not a sufficient period of time.
2) UK is creating a coaches nightmare. First, Tubby Smith was force out. Now, after two seasons Gillespie has been forced out. Is Kentucky still the desirable job it was ten years ago? You create problems when you demand excellence and then get rid of a coach every other season. It also makes other coaches think twice about want to go there.
3) Billy Donovan and John Calipari have already said they ARE NOT INTERESTED. Sorry UK fans, but gone are the days where you can just pick and choose any coach you want and they will come. By the way, Jay Wright said no also. Do you have a backup plan??
4) A problem is created when you fire a coach without a plan on who the next coach will be. Chances are, a top tier coach will not come to UK and a second tier or up and coming coach will take the job. Travis Ford is the most likely replacement. Are they going to be given time to prove themselves or will they also fall victim to the two year plan? Cause i've got news for you, Travis Ford is a UK guy but he is also only been a second tier coach that will require more than two years to right the ship at Kentucky. It will be fun the watch.

Now I wanna here from you. What is your opinion? If you think he should have been fired, tell me why and give me a logical explaination as to who the next coach will be.

Alvin Mitchell and Mike Williams Out at Cincinnati

Large scale announcements started what looks to be a roller coaster type offseason for the University of Cincinnati Men's basketball team today. Mick Cronin announced that Alvin Mitchell was dismissed from the team after a violation of team rules prior to the Big East Tournament. It was the second, and last, violation for Mitchell who just finished his sophomore season. In addition, Texas transfer Mike Williams announced that he will not seek a 6th year of eligibility through the NCAA and has thus ended his college career. Williams had originally lost a year due to transfer and was then injured missing the following season with an Achilles problem. Previous precidents in the NCAA had led UC fans to believe that Williams would have been granted an extra year had he applied. This will be a big blow to the Bearcats who will lose the teams #2 scorer and a guy who could actually hit a mid range jump shot.

Stay tuned for further developments regarding UC basketball. With these two subtractions, the offseason recruiting trail looks to have hit an accelerated mode. Rumors of a transfer by Liberty guard Seth Curry, the leading freshman scorer in the country last year and younger brother of All-American Stephen Curry, are currently running rampant.

Billy Gillispie: We Hardly Knew You

What an interesting two year ride is has been. Lee Todd and Mitch Barnhart both cite philosphical differences in the reason Gillispie is leaving. It seems as if Billy sealed his fate when he made the comment that he was not an ambassador for the University he was there to coach basketball games. Do I think Billy is a terrible coach or person? No. I think that to be the head coach of the University of Kentucky you have to be much more than a good basketball coach. You have to be an ambassador, you have to carry yourself with great pride and respect for the program and the Commonwealth. The head coach of the University of Kentucky is revered with great respect, more than even the govenor of this Commonwealth.

I wish Billy Gillispie luck in his future endeavors and feel that he will be given the keys to a great College program but I also excited about the prospects of having a new leader for the Kentucky Wildcats.

Lets look at some other names

All the talk is surrounding Calipari, Ford and Donovan. I'm just going to throw some other names out there.

Lorenzo Romar - Washington
Mike Anderson - Missouri
Matt Painter - Purdue

Mike Anderson is the most intriguiging to me. He plays the 40 minutes of Hell style offense and defense. The run and gun style that we have all missed since Pitino left.

Any interest in these 3?

Confirmed: Billy Gillispie Gone at UK

Reports have been confirmed that Coach Billy Gillispie and the Kentucky Wildcats have parted ways. Now the speculation will begin as to who will replace Coach Gillispie on the sidelines. Already numerous names have been thrown around. Stay tuned throughout the weekend and we will discuss the candidates for the job.

Press conference is set for 4:30 today.

Meeting Set on Gillespie's Future at UK

WKYT in Lexington has confirmed that there is a scheduled meeting between Billy Gillespie, Mitch Barnhart, and Lee Todd regarding the future of Billy Gillespie and the Kentucky program. This is confirmed information and not a rumor.

On the rumor front there still seems to be the biggest wave on Billy Donovan being the candidate for Kentucky but all reports are still unconfirmed. With all that has transpired in the last two days I find it hard to believe that Billy Gillespie would be back as coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. Rumors have linked Billy Donovan, Travis Ford, John Calipari, Rick Pitino, and Sean Miller to the Kentucky job but all are just rumors. Most of the rumors throughout the state are completely unfounded but at least worth discussing amidst the madness in the Bluegrass state. Stay tuned for more to come.

Saint's Release former Bengal Kevin Kaesviharn

Check it out here

"Kaesviharn, 32, was scheduled to earn $1.6 million in salary and bonuses this year. He had two years remaining on the four-year contract he signed in 2007, but the Saints decided to go in a different direction, signing veterans Darren Sharper and Prioleau in free agency."

Kentucky Statement on Future of Billy Gillespie

We are continuing to hear many different rumors regarding Coach Billy Gillespie and his future at Kentucky. At this point it is still difficult to sort everything out. A television station out of Louisville reported last night the Billy Gillespie was fired and immediately following that telecast the University of Kentucky released the following statement:

"UK men’s basketball coach Billy Gillespie has not been fired. There have been no meetings between Gillespie and UK officials today, and there is no scheduled press conference for tomorrow."

We still cannot determine what exactly the future holds for Gillespie, but after all of this speculation and reports I think it would be an even tougher situation for Billy next year if he were to stay. The best move for Gillespie and the University at this point seems to be to cut ties completely. Stay tuned we will keep you up to date as we know any new information.

Travis Ford: A Long Shot for the UK Job

Rumor has it Travis Ford is being looked at as a replacement for Billy Gillespie. Why would Travis Ford leave Oklahoma State now? He's playing in a power conference, the Big 12, and almost stunned Pittsburgh in the second round of the NCAA's in his first season at the school. He's in a good situation and wouldn't want to take on the headache that is UK basketball right now. Just for fun lets compare Billy Gillespie's career coaching record vs. Travis Ford's:

Billy Gillespie:
140-85 (62% WP)
This season he improved Kentucky's record from 18-13 to 22-14 although they didn't make the big dance. People need to remember a coach needs time to bring in big name guys, the majority of his team currently aren't his recruits. If Patterson and Meeks are both back with Daniel Orton do you really think they'll miss the tournament no matter who's coaching?

Travis Ford:
146-127 (53% WP)
Ford took a terrible EKU team and turned them into a tournament team. People need to remember this took him five years to accomplish and his only winning season there was his final year. He then was at Umass where he failed to make the NCAA tourney all three years on the job. If people think that Travis Ford can come in and turn UK into an instant winner then you're living in a fantasy world.

My point is it takes time to rebuild a team, even if you're UK. Is Travis Ford really the answer to all your problems?

Added Word on Gillespie

New information has been made available with regard to the current Billy G coaching situation. Word of his firing has the potential to create a coaching carousel across the NCAA. Word is out that Billy Donovan has a clause in his contract in which no buyout exists if he decides to leave during the months of March or April. In addition, a great deal of rumors have circulated regarding Anthony Grant, current VCU coach and former Florida assistant, who is a rising star among coaches. Anthony Grant has been offered the job at Alabama, however, he must decide on the job today. This has forced all parties to act quickly. The reason: If Billy Gillespie is fired and Donovan is hired as the next UK coach, Anthony Grant will be offered his dream job at Florida. Stay tuned for fast occuring details.

Extra word to UK fans: Be careful what you wish for. First, you create a very undesirable job when you want a new head coach every other season. Secondly, do you really want a coach in Billy Donovan who has managed to send his team to two straight NIT bids??

Gillespie Out at Kentucky?

Kentucky Sports Report is reporting that Assistant Coach Tracy Webster has been seen cleaning out his office. Many outlets are now reporting that Billy Gillespie is in fact no longer going to be the coach at the University of Kentucky. Other outlets are reporting that NC State is monitoring the situation as they are intersted in potentially signing coach Gillespie to coach at NC State. Speculation regarding Billy Donovan to UK is also heating up, we could have a new coach in the Bluegrass very soon.

Can't say anything for sure at this point but there are an awful lot of outlets reporting which would mean this is the worlds worst kept secret.

Billy Gillespie Rumors and Replacement

I have heard today on various media outlets that coaches are reporting Gillespie has known for the past few weeks that he will not be returning to the University of Kentucky next season. The rumors that are flying around currently are that Billy Donovan has at least expressed interest in discussing options with Kentucky. As of right now the pulse of the Big Blue Nation there are three candidates that have emerged as front runners only in the eyes of Kentucky fans. Top coaching candidates:

- Billy Donovan
Would Kentucky really be happy with getting slick Billy Donovan on this bench? Two years ago Billy was coming off of back to back National Championships. Now Billy Donovan is coming off of back to back NIT bids and not exactly burning up the SEC. His recruiting classes are marginal but has shown he can get the talent and he can win when the talent is there.

- John Calipari
Would he leave Memphis? He is able to recruit the best athletes to come to Memphis and play their one season before they get drafted. Would Kentucky fans be able to handle one and done type players? Also Calipari can essentially do whatever he wants in Memphis and plays in an NBA arena. He has a guaranteed trip to the NCAA tournament every year playing in the C-USA. Calipari also may not have the right squeaky clean image that Kentucky will be looking for post Billy G.

-Travis Ford
He is coming off of a great season at Oklahoma State, however he has only been there one year and his only previous experience comes from UMass. He is relatively unproven as a head coach but he is a Kentucky boy which earns him some serious credibility with the Kentucky fans. Recruiting and experience on the big stage are yet to be determined with Ford.

Billy Gillespie out at UK?

The rumors are continuing to swirl throughout the media and Internet regarding the future of Kentucky Wildcats head coach Billy Gillespie. UK President Lee Todd has confirmed that he has met with Coach Gillespie already regarding the future of the program and all indications are that we should know something by Friday of this week. From evaluating the demeanor of Coach Gillespie post game of the Notre Dame loss, my best guess is that Kentucky will be searching for a new men's head basketball coach.

What will this mean for the future of the Wildcats program? Four star recruit Daniel Orton has stated that he wants to play for Coach Gillespie and will consider other offers if the Coach leaves. The problem is Orton has already signed his Letter of Intent, so the University would have to let him out of that letter in order to go elsewhere. I don't think if Gillespie leaves it will impact the current roster of Wildcats. The two most important components would be Meeks and Patterson. Meeks has been projected to be a late round NBA pick or even a free agent so he will more than likely be back to improve his draft status. Patrick Patterson is currently projected as a late first rounder, a solid junior season would help that status so I look for Patterson to return as well.

It is somewhat troubling that Kentucky will be so quick to pull the trigger on Gillespie. He has been very dynamic on the recruiting trail and has brought in some big time players to Kentucky. Billy G just hasn't seemed to get them to gel together and play against different styles of basketball teams. Perhaps the pressure of Lexington and the Kentucky program inhibited Coach Gillespie from the start. It takes a special kind of person to be able to handle the expectations at the University of Kentucky which isn't always fair. It takes more than two years to install your program at this level. I don't blame Tubby Smith either, the problem was Tubby's style and Billy's style are very different so the personnel didn't match up well.

I think part of the problem the Big Blue Nation has with Billy Gillespie is his attitude the the persona that he projects publicly. Throughout the state rumors run rampart about him drinking in local bars and chasing college women throughout the city. I don't believe any of those rumors but think that Coach Gillespie didn't help dispel those rumors by his sarcastic comments to the media and overall attitude. I hope that whomever is tapped to be the next coach at Kentucky will be able to win over the hearts of the Big Blue Nation and get the program back on track to be another National contender.

Most wins in the NCAA Tourney since 2004

UNC 17
Kansas 14
Memphis 14
UCLA 14
Florida 13
UConn 12
Duke 11
Xavier 10
Louisville 10

Teams: Big East(2), ACC(2), "Mid Majors"(2), SEC, Big 12, PAC-10 (All 1)

Terrible move by the Tampa Bay Rays...

Coming off a year where they won the World Series the Tampa Bay Rays have done something out of the ordinary..... demote one of there best players to Triple-A.

David Price was optioned to Triple-A Durham today in a move that took many by surprise. If you watched the World Series last year the name David Price should ring a bell. Whenever the Rays needed a key out they turned to the hard-throwing 23-year old south paw.

The reasons the Rays gave the media for demoting him were development issues and too cut back on his innings.... The guy was lights out last year and his spring numbers were solid (2-0, 1.08 ERA, 10 K's). Also the GM made it sound like they wouldn't consider re-calling him until later in the season, maybe even after the all-star break. Is this a dumb move by a team that has high expectations going into the year?

NIT Matchup

Tonights Kentucky vs. Notre Dame matchup will determine which team will make it to the NIT final four. These two programs have had an intersting year and both have severely underachieved this season. There are a lot of similarities there regarding these two programs. They both have two absolute studs on their team but have not had the production from others to help. Let's compare the big time players for the Irish and Wildcats

Patrick Patterson vs. Luke Harangody

Patrick Patterson
591 Points- 17.9 ppg
309 Rebounds- 9.4 per game
67 Blocks
21 Steals

Luke Harangody
745 Points- 23.3 ppg
380 Rebounds- 11.9 per game
31 Blocks
29 Steals

Jodie Meeks vs. Kyle McAlarney

Jodie Meeks
833 Points- 23.8 ppg
.400% 3pt percentage
.461% Field Goal Percentage
.90% Free Throw Percentage
47 Steals

Kyle McAlarney
515 Points- 15.1 ppg
.429% 3pt percentage
.412% Field Goal Percentage
.86% Free Throw Percentage
22 Steals

Andrews Snubbed the Bengals

Cincinnati Benagals head coach Marvin Lewis said the team was surprised when offensive tackle Stacy Andrews signed a free-agent deal with the Philadelphia Eagles, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

According to Lewis, the Bengals believed they had a deal done with Andrews when be backed out, packed up and headed to Philadelphia to play on the same team with his older brother, Shaun Andrews, a two-time Pro Bowl guard with the Eagles.

"I was surprised because he led us to believe differently," Lewis said. "I was disappointed because Stacy led us to believe that he wanted to stay [in Cincinnati], so it was up to his representative to get a contract done. We felt like we had a deal done and then, all of a sudden, he walked away and that disappointed me."

Source: Philly.com

Bitter Rivals: Can They Get Along?

Great Article by Doc on UC and Xavier fans.

My favorite pull quote from the article is listed below:

(1) UC Fan: He’ll root for Pitt. How could he not? It’s two for one, buy one get one free. Watch a Big East team show Xavier how big-boy basketball is played. What’s better than that?

At that point, XUFan will ask UCFan how UC did in the tournament. “Oh, that’s right," he will say. “You didn’t make the tournament. Any tournament. Having a fun March?"

UCFan will flex his 1992 Final Four sweat shirt and say, “Talk to me when you get one of these, little man."

Alonzo Trier

Interesting basketball article in the New York Times. Its a long read but a very very good one. It involves a sixth grade basketball player from Seattle named Alonzo Trier. It also includes a somewhat sad, depressing, and even amazing insight into the current state of American basketball. For what its worth, Billy Gillespie's name is mentioned as well.

Read it here.

Holmes Ricardo Johnson

Holmes Junior Ricardo Johnson was named MVP of the Boys Sweet Sixteen tournament after averaging 13.3 points and eight rebounds and playing stellar defense.

Following receiving the award and leading his Bulldogs to the State Championship Ricardo receieved his first D-1 offer from Bradley. I would imagine that there will be more to come for Ricardo he is being heavily recruited by Louisville, Kentucky, Butler, Xavier, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Oklahoma State, and Mississippi State to name a few. Needless to say Ricardo will be receiving more of these letters as his AAU career and Senior season move on. From my conversations with this young man he is very soft spoken and humble and will be a great addition to nay program.

NCAA Tourney By Conference

A great deal of debate occurs each year with regard to which conferences are truly the best. There is no better stage to prove this than at the NCAA tournament. I have calculated the winning percentages and overall conference records based on the teams in the NCAA tournament and have placed the results below. Results are based on the 1st and 2nd rounds. I will continue to update these results after additional rounds are completed.

Big East (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 6-1, 86%
Rd 2: 5-1, 83% Overall 11-2, 85% 5 Sweet Sixteen, 5/7 or 71%

Big Ten (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 4-3, 57%
Rd 2: 2-2, 50% Overall 6-5, 54% 2 Sweet Sixteen, 2/7 or 29%

Pac 10 (6 Teams)
Rd 1: 5-1, 83%
Rd 2: 1-4, 20% Overall 6-5, 54% 1 Sweet Sixteen 1/6 or 17%

ACC (7 Teams)
Rd 1: 3-4, 43 %
Rd 2: 2-1, 66% Overall 5-5, 50% 2 Sweet Sixteen, 2/7 or 29%

SEC (3 Teams)
Rd 1: 1-2, 33%
Rd 2: 0-1 Overall 1-3, 25% 0 Sweet Sixteen, 0/3 or 0 %

Big Twelve (6 Teams)
Rd 1: 6-0, 100%
Rd 2: 3-3, 50% Overall 9-3, 75% 3 Sweet Sixteen, 3/6 or 50%

A-10 (3 Teams)
Rd 1: 2-1, 66%
Rd 2: 1-1, 50% Overall 3-2, 60% 1 Sweet Sixteen, 1/3, 33%

Kentucky Rumors Floating Around

I spent four days in Lexington this past weekend to watch the high school state basketball tournament. As you would imagine there was a lot of chatter regarding the Kentucky basketball program and Billy G. Almost everyone was talking from the manager of our hotel, to the waitress as Ramsey's, to fans at the tournament. Here are a few "rumors" that were circulating around Lexington. Keep in mind these are all rumors and only rumors.

- Darius Miller is unhappy with Coach Gillespie and has contacted Shelvin Mack at Butler regarding a transfer.

- A Kentucky recruit from the 2011 class was told by Mitch Barnhart that Coach Gillespie will not be coaching the Kentucky Wildcats next year.

- A.D. Mitch Barnhart traveled to Dayton to meet with Travis Ford about becoming Kentucky's head coach.

- Kentucky boosters have already pledged the $6 million buyout of Billy's contract.

- Patrick Patterson will go to the NBA is coach Gillespie returns.

- John Calipari was in Lexington to meet with Barnhart (this one was my favorite because it was a day that Memphis was playing in the tournament)

I get it why people think Kentucky fans are absolutely crazy! It seemed like everywhere I turned there was someone who had "inside information." Only time will tell.

Things Noticed in the WBC

South Korea, the reigning Olympic Champions and 3rd place finishers in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, have 6 players on their roster with the last name Lee

You can see for yourself here.

FB Tahi signs offer sheet with Cincy

Click Here for more.

Roy Williams visiting with Cincinnati

Cut by the Cowboys on March 5, Roy Williams is in Cincinnati, visiting with the Bengals and possibly rejoining defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.

According to Williams' agent, Jordan Woy, Williams has already turned down one offer and he has two more potential visits.

Scheduled to count $6.6 million against the salary cap this season, the Cowboys released Williams, who was named to the Pro Bowl five times in his first seven seasons.

Williams was limited to three games in 2008 because of a twice fractured right forearm and had just nine tackles. Zimmer was the Cowboys' defensive coordinator from 2000-06, covering Williams' time as the team's No. 1 pick in 2002 through his first four Pro Bowl appearances. With Zimmer calling the defensive shots, Williams averaged more than three interceptions and nearly 98 tackles a season.

Imagine if this happened in the U.S.?

Police say an Iraqi soccer player has been shot dead just as he was about to kick what could have been the tying goal in a weekend game south of Baghdad.

Police Maj. Muthanna Khalid says a striker from the Buhairat amateur team was facing only the goalie during a Sunday match in Hillah when a supporter of the rival Sinjar club shot him in the head in the final minute of play.

Sinjar was leading 1-0 when the shooting occurred. Khalid said a spectator was arrested.

More Iraqis are turning out for sports events now that security is improving. Major matches in Baghdad are heavily guarded but security in amateur games in smaller cities is often lax.

Should they be in?

What if I told you there was a team from the Mid-American conference that entered their conference tournament going undefeated in the conference, and 26-3 overall. They eventually lose in their conference tournament final by four points and finish their season 15-1 in their conference and 28-4 overall and they do not make the tournament! That team is the Bowling Green women's basketball team. They were discussing this today on ESPN radio in Indianapolis. Which leads me to another conclusion regarding automatic bids.

I think, from a lot of discussion from Lance McCallister and from watching a lot of basketball that the automatic bids should be given to the conference regular season champions rather than the tournament champion. If the committee is really looking at the body of work then what better criteria than how they played the regular season. What do you think? I think this will make the field of 64 much stronger.

2009 NFL Draft Disappointment

Just found out that the NFL Draft start time has been moved to 4 p.m. this year. The draft will take place on April 25th and used to start at around noon. Unfortunately, a 4 p.m. start will make it difficult to see draft because Jacki and Kevin have rudely decided to schedule their wedding on this date. This will potentially end a pretty good streak I had going for most years in a row sitting in front of the TV watching the draft all weekend. This is disappointing.

Boys what are we going to do about this? Skip the wedding, skip the draft, skip the first part of the wedding to make sure we see the Bengals pick, have the wedding time/date changed, bring our radios to the wedding? Advice needed.

Thoughts on College Basketball

* Every game is better when Erin Andrews does the sideline.

* St. Mary's, San Diego State, and Creighton all got hosed. The committee spoke a lot about strength of schedule. But these teams cannot help it they are in a weak conference and cannot get the big teams to play them. If Duke knows that St. Mary's is going to have a great team they would avoid them, St. Mary's has everything to gain and Duke has everything to lose. If they lose to a team like that then it will kill their RPI, on the flip side if they win it won't give them any credit. It's a cycle that needs to change.

* Arizona getting in is an absolute joke. They finished 6th in the Pac-10 and had a losing record in their conference. They finished the season losing 5 of their last 6. They had a mediocre strength of schedule and a terrible RPI. I think their name got them in.

* SEC got hosed as far as seeding. I don't think any other teams should have gotten in, however, you are a top conference in college basketball you get three teams in, your seeds are #8, #9, and #13. LSU was #1 in the SEC and was rewarded with an 8 seed. Just look at the next seed up the 7 seeds, West Virginia (7th in Big East) Cal (3rd in Pac-10) Clemson (5th in ACC) Texas (4th in the Big 12) I agree that the SEC was down but not that down.

* Big 10 got way too much love. Watch and see. The Big 10 got seven teams in the tournament. They will not have more than 2 teams in the sweet sixteen.

* Big East is good, but not that good. I think it is funny that the Big East is considered the greatest conference of all time and coincidentally have the TV contract with ESPN. They also have like 20 teams in the conference.

* Big East should not have three number one seeds. UConn should be a two seed and Memphis should be a #1. To be undefeated in the conference play is a great accomplishment for Memphis. I think they will scare some people. UConn ended the season on a skid.

*The NIT is actually loaded with good teams. I guess I never realized before because I was always covering the Cats. There are five teams who were in the Preseason Top 25 poll playing in the NIT (Florida, Notre Dame, Georgetown, UNLV, Davidson) Add to that list Auburn, Baylor, San Diego State, South Carolina, St. Mary's, Providence, Miami, and Creighton. This will be a tough tournament.

My Bracket Selections

Here you go, enjoy winning your pool by selecting these teams:

Sweet 16-
Louisville vs. Wake Forest
Kansas vs. Michigan State
UConn vs. Washington
Missouri vs. Memphis

Pitt vs. Florida St.
Villanova vs. Duke
UNC vs. Gonzaga
Arizona St. vs. Oklahoma

Elite 8- Louisville vs. Kansas
Washington vs. Memphis
Pitt vs. Duke
UNC vs. Oklahoma

Final Four-Louisville vs. Memphis
Pitt vs. Oklahoma

Finals
Memphis vs. Pitt

National Champions
Pittsburgh Panthers

Will this record ever be broken?

4,256 hits by Charlie Hustle. Will this record ever be broken? Here's a list of active players with the best shot at reaching the record:

Derek Jeter 2,535
Alex Rodriguez 2,404
Manny Ramirez 2,392
Albert Pujols 1,531

Barring injuries, Pujols I believe has the best shot as he's only 29. A-Rod is only 33 but we can already see him breaking down.

Kentucky Wildcats Looking to the Future

I think this is going to be a very long and interesting off season for the Kentucky Wildcats. The Wildcats have no doubt ended their 17 consecutive year streak of playing in the NCAA tournament. There are a lot of questions swirrling regarding Kentucky players and the Billy Gillespie situation at UK.

- Coach Gillespie is 38-26 in two seasons at Kentucky so far which is a far cry from the program of national prominence that they once were. Worst part is Billy doesn't understand that when you are the coach of the Kentucky Wildcats you are more popular than the Govenor in the state. Billy doesn't embrace that role he ignores it or faces it with sarcasm. I think you will see UK and AD Mitch Barnhart take action on Billy. If he doesn't shape up soon, we will be recognizing the new coach. Who would I want as coach of Kentucky? One guy only, Travis Ford. More on that later.

Wrestling's Dirty Secret

After hearing about the latest passing of wrestler Chris "Test" Martin I decided to do some research on wrestlers who've died an early death. Many of these deaths have been linked to steroids, drug usage, large bodies, and some accidents....

The list below only includes wrestlers that have appeared on national TV and were stars. Imagine if this many baseball players died at such an early age.

Chris Von Erich - 21
Mike Von Erich - 23
Louie Spiccoli - 27
Art Barr - 28
Gino Hernandez - 29
Jay Youngblood - 30
Rick McGraw - 30
Joey Marella - 30
Ed Gatner - 31
Buzz Sawyer - 32
Crash Holly - 32
Kerry Von Erich - 33
D.J. Peterson - 33
Eddie Gilbert - 33
The Renegade - 33
Chris Candido - 33
Test - 33
Adrian Adonis - 34
Gary Albright - 34
Bobby Duncum Jr. - 34
Owen Hart - 34
Yokozuna - 34
Big Dick Dudley - 34
Brian Pillman - 35
Marianna Komlos - 35
Pitbull #2 - 36
The Wall/Malice - 36
Emory Hale - 36
Leroy Brown - 38
Mark Curtis - 38
Eddie Guerrero - 38
John Kronus - 38
Davey Boy "The British Bulldog" Smith - 39
Johnny Grunge - 39
Vivian Vachon - 40
Jeep Swenson - 40
Brady Boone - 40
Terry Gordy - 40
Bertha Faye - 40
Billy Joe Travis - 40
Chris Benoit - 40
Larry Cameron - 41
Rick Rude - 41
Randy Anderson - 41
Bruiser Brody - 42
Miss Elizabeth - 42
Big Boss Man - 42
Earthquake - 42
Mike Awesome - 42
Biff Wellington - 42
Brian Adams (Crush) - 43
Ray Candy - 43
Nancy Benoit (Woman) - 43
Dino Bravo - 44
Curt Hennig - 44
Bam Bam Bigelow - 45
Jerry Blackwell - 45
Junkyard Dog - 45
Hercules - 45
Andre the Giant - 46
Big John Studd - 46
Chris Adams - 46
Mike Davis - 46
Hawk - 46

Coaching Rumor Mill

I am not sure why Kyle didn't post this tidbit of information, maybe because he is praying that it is not true! But the coaching rumor mill has linked Sean Miller's name with the Arizona Wildcat job. Apparently Arizona has mentioned Miller's name as a top candidate. It would most definitely be an upward move for Miller taking over one of the top notch programs in the country. But he does have some things going for X right now. If Xavier were in a better conference they would not longer be a stepping stone job but a destination career. For now, I guess they will keep cranking out top coaching candidates. They are like a minor league program for basketball coaches. Personally, I would like to see Miller stay.

Ouch!

The Cincinnati Bearcats just took a 67-57 loss to the DePaul Blue Demons. DePaul was 8-23 on the season and 0-18 in the Big East. This one should really hurt Bearcat nation, an absolutely embarrassing loss.

*Update: I went back and looked at the Bearcats schedule, Back in early February the Bearcats were looking like a legitmate bubble team after winning three consecutive against Notre Dame, Georgetown, and St. Johns. Then it all fell apart with the Bearcats ending their season with a four game losing streak and 6 of their last 7. At that St. Johns game they were 17-8, they finished the season 18-14.

All Time Kentucky Wilcats Team

Since the current version of the Kentucky Wildcats are doing so wonderful this year I decided to do a special section highlighting my top 5 Kentucky players of all-time. I am sure that this list can be debated, but I evaluated several factors and have selected the following 5 players for my All-Time Kentucky Wildcats Team

- Dan Issel

Issel was at UK 1966-1970 and scored 2,138 points (an average of 25.7 per game) while being named an All American for two of his three seasons he was eligible for the award. Dan Issel is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.

- Tony Delk

As a sophomore at Kentucky, Delk was named to the All-American and All-SEC first teams and was named NCAA Basketball Tournament Most Outstanding Player during the Wilcats Championship run in 95-96. He also received SEC Player of the Year honors during the season.

- Jamal Mashburn

Mashburn played for Kentucky from 1991-1993 and scored 1843 points in his career at Kentucky which was cut short when he entered the NBA draft after his junior year. Mashburn was a two time All-American, 1993 SEC player of the year, three time all SEC and named to the 92-93 All Final Four Team.

- Kenny Walker

Walker had a very successful college career, being named to an All-SEC team four times and the All-American team twice. Walker's 1984 Kentucky team made it to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament before losing to the Georgetown Hoyas. He averaged 20.0 points a game, giving him 2,080 points in his career


- Cotton Nash

From 1961 to 1964 the 6'5", 220 lb Nash, in only 78 games played, scored 1,770 points. His career average stands at 22 points per game, to go along with his 12 rebounds per game average. Nash is one of only six Kentucky players to garner All-America honors three straight years. He's also one of only three Kentucky players to lead their respective teams in scoring for three straight years

SEC Post Season Awards

First Team All-SEC
*Nick Calathes, Florida – G, 6-6, 194, So.
*Jodie Meeks, Kentucky – 6-4, 208, Jr.
Patrick Patterson, Kentucky – 6-9, 235, So.
Tasmin Mitchell, LSU – F, 6-7, 240, Jr.
*Marcus Thornton, LSU – G, 6-4, 205, Sr.
Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State – F/C, 6-9, 210, Jr.
*Devan Downey, South Carolina – G, 5-9, 175, Jr.
*Tyler Smith, Tennessee – F, 6-7, 215, Jr.

*Unanimous selection

SEC Coach of the Year: Trent Johnson, LSU
SEC Player of the Year: Marcus Thornton, LSU
SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Justin Knox, Alabama
SEC Freshman of the Year: Terrico White, Ole Miss
SEC Sixth-Man of the Year: Brandis Raley-Ross, South Carolina
SEC Defensive Player of the Year: Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State

NIT Brackets

It looks like more people in the Tri-state will be filling out NIT brackets rather than regular tournament brackets in their office pool. But honestly, there will be some big name schools who will more than likely not get a tournament bid and find themselves in the NIT. They include:

Maryland
UNLV
Vanderbilt
Miami (FL)
Georgetown
Notre Dame
Baylor
Nebraska
USC
Kentucky
Stanford
Cincinnati

Building this Red's Team

I found this listed on a baseball website and I thought it was kind of cool to see how this Reds team was put together. This is based off of the March 2009 40 man roster:

Players Drafted:
2002- Joey Votto (2nd Round)
2003- Chris Dickerson (16th Round)
2004- Homer Bailey (1st) Craig Tatum (3rd) Paul Janish (5th)
2005- Jay Bruce (1st) Sam LeCure (4th) Carlos Fisher (11th) Adam Rosales (12th)
2006- Josh Roenicke (10th)
2007- Jared Burton (Rule 5)
2008- Yonder Alonso (1st)

Players Acquired by Trade:
2001- Edwin Encarnacion
2003- Aaron Harang
2006- Bronson Arroyo, Bill Bray, Robert Manuel, Brandon Phillips, Daryl Thompson
2007- Jeff Kepinger, Matt Maloney
2008- Wilkin Castillo, Danny Herrera, Nick Masset, Micah Owings, Danny Richar, Edinson Volquez
2009- Ramon Hernandez

Players Acquired in Free Agency:
2002- Ryan Hannigan
2003- Ramon Ramirez
2004- Johnny Cueto
2005- Norris Hopper, David Weathers
2006- Juan Francisco
2007- Alex Gonzalez
2008- Francisco Cordero, Jerry Hairston Jr., Mike Lincoln
2009- Arthur Rhodes, Willy Taveras

Is it time to deal Edwin?

I'm a big Edwin fan (and I don't know why...) but is it time for the Reds to trade him? I ask this because they're several teams in need of a quality third baseman, one suitor being the Yankees with A-Roid out. Edwin is only 26 and is only making $2 million this year and close to $5 million next. The guy is an above average hitter but a well below-average fielder. With guys such as Todd Frazier (plays some third), Juan Francisco, and Neftali Soto waiting in the wings why not try to get something for him now?

Tri-State Basketball Best of Awards

I tried to start this post a little while back with little fanfare. I think now that the NCAA basketball season is coming to a close its a good time to bring this one back up. This gives an opportunity for us to decide who you would pick as the best players, teams, coaches, etc. from the the area for the 2008-2009 basketball season. Players, coaches, and teams from Xavier, Cincinnati, Kentucky, Dayton, Miami, Indiana are all fare game. I have included my awards and answers. You can add your own awards or just use these.

Best Team: Xavier
Best Player: Jodie Meeks
Best Supporting Player: BJ Raymond
Best Coach: Sean Miller (though I dont think any of them were very good)
Best Freshman/Newcomer: Yancy Gates
Best Moment/Play: Tie- Jodie Meeks scores 54 against UT, Deonta Vaughn alley-oop to Yancy Gates as time expires to send EKU game to OT (if UC doesn't choke to end the year it saved their season)
Best Chance for NCAA Tourney Run: Xavier
Best Chance for Success Next Season: Cincinnati

Top 10 picked for Bengals Virtual Hall of Fame

This topic was brought up a few weeks ago when voting was still ongoing for the inagural Cincinnati Bengals virtual Hall of Fame. Five players/coaches will be added this year. Anthony Munoz and Paul Brown are the first two since they are part of the NFL HOF. The other 3 will be voted on. Originally, 32 people were placed on a ballot at Bengals.com which allowed for nearly two months of fan voting. Fans voted in order to narrow the list down to 10. The ten players/coaches are as follows (in order of votes received):

Ken Anderson
Boomer Esiason
Isaac Curtis
Tim Krumrie
Ken Riley
James Brooks
Chris Collinsworth
Sam Wyche
David Fulcher
Lemar Parrish

Which 3 would you vote for? My 3 choices would be Ken Anderson, Ken Riley, and Sam Wyche. Anderson and Riley should be in the NFL Hall of Fame and are not. Wyche orchestrated the only two Super Bowl appearances in franchise history

Facts of the Day

* Jerry Palm, a major NCAA basketball RPI and tournament analyst, spoke on Lance McAllister today. He said the SEC this year has the lowest conference RPI of any major basketball conference that he has seen in the 15 years that he has been working in the business.

* In a surprising move, UC QB and former Notre Dame football player Demetrius Jones will switch positions from QB to OLB for next season

Make Your Choice?

Which of these two teams would you chose if the NCAA tournament started today?

Team A
Record: 21-10
Conference Record: 10-8
RPI: 61
Strength of Schedule: 79
Record vs RPI Top 100: 7-9

Team B
Record: 25-7
Conference Record: 18-3
RPI: 67
Strength of Schedule: 176
Record vs RPI Top 100: 1-4

NKU Men and Women Are GLVC Champs

Congratulations to the NKU Norse men and women basketball programs.

The men defeated Bellarmine 69-47. Senior Leslie Malone was named GLVC MVP.

The women defeated Quincy 77-72.

As both basketball programs continue their success this shows the university that the basketball teams are ready for the next challenge... Division 1 basketball.

For more information click here.

NCAA Tournament

I was listening to Pat Forde on ESPN Radio earlier this week and he made an intersting point. There is a lot of discussion about making the tournament or not making the tournament. But the reality is EVERYONE makes the tournmanent, all you have to do is win your conference, keep winning and your in. Plain and simple.

For the Die Hard UK Fans

Suicide Watch in Lexington

With Kentucky's atrocious loss to Georgia at home the other at Rupp Arena the 'Cats are in a complete must win situation tomorrow in Gainesville, which could turn into a tournament play in game. The SEC is looking rather bleak this season and could very possibly be only a two to three team bid conference. LSU for all intensive purposes looks like a lock for the tournament simply because they have taken care of business within the SEC. Tennessee Vols locked up the regular season SEC east title last night beating South Carolina and may have helped jockey themselves into the tourney. But the Vols have just as bad of a resume as Kentucky, if not worse. If LSU is able to win the tournament, then things really could get intersting for the SEC. I don't see them getting more than 3 teams this year and may be a stretch to reach even three. In order for the 'Cats to make it they will have to get a win in Gainesville and then pull off at least a couple of wins in the tournament. If they can do that then I think they may sneak in.