Kentucky Wildcats: 2009-10 Men's Basketball Preview

One era of Kentucky basketball has passed, and a new era has begun. When Kentucky fans look back at their former coaches they mention Adolph Rupp, Joe B. Hall, Rick Pitino, and Tubby Smith. They affectionately leave out Eddie Sutton and now Billy Gillispie. The past two seasons of Kentucky basketball have been rough with the Wildcats taking home losses to VMI, San Diego, and Gardner Webb. After unceremoniously bowing out of the NIT second round last season Gillispie was very publicly fired and then began Calipari-mania. Armed with the #1 recruit and the #1 recruiting class, John Calipari has his Wildcats ranked in most preseason polls in the Top 5, and expectations in Lexington are higher than ever.

Guard: A
This is perhaps Kentucky's strongest position as far as potential. Freshman sensations John Wall and Eric Bledsoe will lead Kentucky at the guard position. Many have Wall projected as an NBA lottery pick, and Bledsoe was as heavily recruited out of Birmingham, AL. Both Wall and Bledsoe are known for their lightning quick speed and athleticism. Add to that the Wildcats return Darius Miller, who spent the summer playing with USA basketball. Darnell Dodson is a Sophomore transfer from Miami-Dade Community College where he averaged 15.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Dodson is known as a strong shooter especially from outside. Off the bench the Wildcats will have freshman Jon Hood, senior Mark Krebs (played at NCC) and sophomore DeAndre Liggins.

Forward: B+
Patrick Patterson decided to skip the NBA draft and return for his Junior year at Kentucky. Patterson has been listed as a pre-season All-American and is one of the most physical players in all of college basketball. Patterson will play a significantly different role for the 'Cats this year and move away from the basket. Calipari's offensive system should play well into Patterson's game. The forward position has by far the most experience for the Wildcats with Patterson and senior Ramon Harris. Harris' role on this team is really still up in the air, he will more than likely come off of the bench but his contributions are not yet know. The wildcats also return Josh Harrelson, a 6-10 junior who has a pretty nice stroke from the perimeter.

Center: A
Kentucky adds another potential lottery pick underneath the basket in freshman DeMarcus Cousins. The McDonald's All-American Cousins will be joined by another highly touted recruit Daniel Orton. Calipari's offensive style will not have these guys anchored under the basket, but will give them the opportunity to play a pro style offense and use their athletic ability. Kentucky also has senior Perry Stevenson, known for his shot blocking ability, to give them another look at the post position.

Coach: A-
Calipari has come into Kentucky and brought his "dribble drive" offense for Kentucky to run. The basic fundamentals of the offense are to attack the basket from all angles getting to the middle of the floor and getting to the rim to finish. Don't expect to watch Kentucky play a slow paced methodical game. Expect to watch the 'Cats run the floor and attack the rim. Coming from a coach who refused to make adjustments in Gillispie, Calipari is a proven winner and should be poised to make his first ever Final Four run, seriously check the record books it will be his first!

Prediction: 28-3 regular season, Final Four appearance
Kentucky's non conference schedule is pretty strong this year with the big matchup coming on December 5th when they face off with North Carolina. Add to that games with Indiana, UConn, and Louisville there are some formidable opponents on the schedule. The SEC will be stronger this year than last with Tennessee and Mississippi State having some good teams coming back. With that being said I expect Kentucky to handily win the SEC regular season championship and the conference title and enter the tournament as a #1 seed. There really are only a few teams in College Basketball that worry me one of them being Kansas. Its hard to predict how far a team of talented freshman can go, but their talent level is as good as any team in the country.

Projected Starting Lineup

G- John Wall
G- Darnell Dodson
G- Darius Miller
F- Patrick Patterson
C- DeMarcus Cousins

Bench
G- Eric Bledsoe
F- Josh Harrellson
F- Ramon Harris
G- Jon Hood
G- Mark Krebs
G- DeAndre Liggins
F- Perry Stevenson
C- Daniel Orton

Darius Miller and Men's U-19 Team Win Gold

Today, the U.S. Men's under-19 basketball team won their first gold medal since 1991 with a 88-80 win over Greece.

Darius Miller, a soon to be sophomore at the University of Kentucky, played a key role on the team. In only 14 minutes per game, Miller averaged 5 points and also led the team with 12 blocks and 14 steals throughout the tourney run.

This win is really big because the team is made up of guys who are for the most part under the radar in college basketball.

Roster
DeAngelo Casto, Washington State
Seth Curry, Duke
Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh
Gordon Hayward, Butler
Shelvin Mack, Butler
Darius Miller, Kentucky
Arnett Moultrie, UTEP
John Shurna, Northwestern
Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas
Howard Thompkins, Georgia
Klay Thompson, Washington State
Terrico White, Mississippi

Will Xavier Henry leave Kansas for Kentucky?

In an interview with a Kansas radio program Xavier Henry's father has indicated that Xavier may not be attending Kansas. His father has indicated that the family will be meeting tonight to determine what Xavier will do. His father has indicated that Kentucky may be an option but Europe is not an option. Kentucky has one scholarship available that Henry could potentially use. However, will there be room for Henry? If Calipari can add Xavier to this roster the Wildcats would add another top notch recruit. Again I am not holding my breath but this could get very interesting.

Jodie Meeks Leaving Kentucky, Staying in the NBA Draft

Jodie Meeks has released a statement indicating that he will be staying in the NBA Draft. Although most predict that Jodie will be a second round selection Meeks has still decided to pursue his dream of playing in the NBA. This is a blow to Coach John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats but even without Meeks Kentucky should be heavily favored in the SEC.

Meeks has worked out for several NBA teams including Minnesota, Philadelphia, and Washington.

Jodie's 54 point performance at Tennessee last year was a record for the most points scored in a game from a Kentucky player. Meeks is a 56th member of UK's 1,000th point club and also holds the record for single season three pointers made.

Justin Martin Rescinds Louisville Scholarship, Xavier and Cincinnati Possible Suitors

Justin Martin, the #56 ranked recruit by rivals.com for the class of 2010, has decided to part ways for the moment with Louisville by backing out of his commitment.

Martin has scholarship offers from six schools including Xavier, Cincinnati and Dayton. Kentucky and Arizona have also expressed interest in the 6'7 small forward.

When Martin originally committed he narrowed it down to two schools, Louisville and Xavier. Now that Sean Miller has left Arizona could be a strong suitor if they decide to pony up a scholarship. Martin averaged 10.4 points for a stacked Lawrence North team last year.

Louisville has recruited several others from Lawrence North. The high school is most known for two highly touted recruits by the names of Greg Oden and Mike Conley.

How big can this be for Kentucky?

With Kentucky signing the #1 recruit in the country John Wall they will potentially propel themselves back into national prominence. But not only that, Wall can become an NBA Lottery pick in 2010 and become one of the highest drafted Kentucky players if he can reach the potential level that is speculated. So I was curious to evaluate the NBA Draft and how Kentucky has fared throughout the years. I found some data online regarding Kentucky and the NBA draft. The numbers are from 1949-2008 draft history (1949 was the first year they did the traditional round robin format)

Kentucky Wildcats
Total NBA draft picks: 35
Total First round draft picks: 23
Total Second round draft picks: 12

Kentucky has only had three first round picks in the 2000's (Jamal Magloire, Teyshaun Prince, and Rajon Rondo) With this recruiting class and the current talent at Kentucky I could see that number exploding in 2010. With Patterson, Wall, Cousins, Bledsoe, and Orton all projected to be top players in the country and Meeks could come back and make himself a first rounder.

Also, John Wall is projected to be the first pick of the 2010 NBA Draft. (Obviously this doesn't mean anything right now) But, if Wall were the first overall pick in the NBA draft he would become the first player in Kentucky Wildcat history to accomplish this feat. The closest Kentucky has had was two #2 picks (Alex Groza and Sam Bowie)

2009 Mens Basketball Attendance: Kentucky, Xavier and Cincinnati

Kentucky ranked 1st in all of college basketball last year with an average attendance of 22,239 a game and a total of 422.547 fans in 19 home games. Rupp Arena holds 23,500 for basketball games. UK filled 95% of there seats last season, despite a down year.

Xavier ranked 41st in attendance with an average of 10,097 a game and a total of 151,456 fans in 15 home games. The Cintas Center holds 10,250 for basketball games. X filled 99% of there seats last year, not to shabby.

Cincinnati ranked 70th with an average attendance of 7,818 a game and total of 140,725 fans in 18 home games. Fifth Third Arena holds 13,176 for basketball games. UC filled 60% of there seats last year. It shows that in Cincinnati it's all about winning (i.e. look at UC football (way up) and the Reds (down because of a decade of losing)).