The Big Blue Lowdown

A recurring theme seems to fit this Kentucky basketball team in SEC play-it wasn't pretty, but a win is a win.  That was certainly true in Rupp Arena on Saturday as the Wildcats withstood a tremendous effort by Alabama to claim a 77-71 win.  Give the Tide credit-they had a great shooting performance for the game including 5-of-7 from three but, more importantly, it seemed every time UK was about to make a run, Alabama came up with a big shot to snuff it out.  It was great free throw shooting...

For the first time in several games, the Kentucky Wildcats were clicking on all cylinders last night in a 86-63 thrashing of Arkansas.  It was a glorious thing to see on ESPN last night as the Cats seemed intent from the opening tip to shake off the offensive woes that have plagued the team recently.  Arkansas wanted to push the tempo, and UK showed why that isn't such a great idea as they jumped out to an 8-0 lead and never looked back.

The star of the game had to be Anthony Davis who...

In what has become a recurring theme in SEC play, the Kentucky Wildcats overcame a sluggish first half and a raucous crowd while showing poise down the stretch to pull away to a 65-62 win over Tennessee in Knoxville.  Anthony Davis led the Wildcats with 1 points and 8 rebounds and turned in another huge second half when the Cats were trailing.  Davis also had four blocked shots to pull within one of the UK season record for blocks.  Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was again an absolute beast with 17...

The Kentucky Wildcats are in Auburn, Alabama tonight for their first SEC road game of the year.  The road was not kind to the Cats in league play last season-they lost six of their eight games on the road, yet they were able to rebound and win the SEC tournament and advance to the Final Four.  I don't expect this team to struggle that much on the road, but its fair to say that conference road games are a different animal and the freshmen are in for an eye opening experience.

With that said,...

Kentucky’s nonconference slate is finally complete and the Southeastern Conference opener awaits this Saturday when the Cats host the South Carolina Gamecocks in the league opener for both teams.  The Wildcats now stand at 14-1 overall with significant wins over Kansas, North Carolina, and Louisville while a loss to the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington on a three at the buzzer is their only blemish on the year.

But now is when the real work begins, and as last year’s team found out,...

It's fair to say I'm not a big fan of programs like Kentucky beating up on teams like Arkansas-Little Rock, but I am a realist and accept that this is the way of big time college basketball.  For UK, these types of games are no more than glorified practices that sell tickets and provide needed breaks in a very impressive pre-conference slate of games.  I realize you can't play North Carolina and Louisiville every night out, and for teams such as UALR, these games provide financial support of...

Just a few random notes on the New Year's holiday as I sit here and watch college bowl games that unfortunately don't feature the Wildcats...

As expected, Kentucky moved up to the #2 ranking in both the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll and the AP poll.  Syracuse has a serious lock on the top spot, but the Wildcats still garnered one top vote in the Coaches poll and five in the AP poll.  North Carolina, Baylor, and Duke round out the top five in the AP poll and the same three teams fill out the...

The Kentucky Wildcats overcame a poor shooting effort and a gritty performance to pull away to a 69-62 win over Louisvlle on Saturday. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was an absolute beast for the Cats with 24 points and 19 rebounds while Anthony Davis had a huge second half to help the Wildcats pull away from the Cardinals in the second half after U of L fought back to force a 40-40 tie with 15 minutes to play.

The Wildcats actually led by 13 with 10 seconds to play, but a pair of late threes by...

So the game we have all been waiting for is finally here-the filthy Cards will visit Rupp Arena on Saturday for a game featuring two coaches who clearly disdain each other, two of the most historic programs in all of college basketball, and two teams ranked in the top 5. Whether Louisville actually deserves that ranking is a matter of much discussion, but nevertheless, that's where we stand now.

Before we talk about recent developments with the Cats and look ahead to Saturday, let me...

Rumor has it that there is a big basketball game in Lexington tomorrow, and one would have to agree. While I certainly thought the North Carolina game was a little better barometer for where UK stands on a national level, certainly there aren’t many more bitter rivalries in college basketball than the one that exists between Louisville and Kentucky.
I tend to put rivalries in two categories-there are some rivalries that are good ones simply because the rivalry is competitive, the competition...

As expected, Kentucky is again the number 1 team in the country in both the AP and Coaches poll, with Ohio State firmly entrenched at #2 in both polls.  The only real question about the polls is how anyone could give Syracuse a vote at #1 after last week's games, but some coach apparently thinks the Orangemen are the top team in the country.  I guess in some fantasy land that's possible, but the Cats and the Buckeyes made pretty emphatic statements last week and, at least in the first week of...

While I hate to admit this, I spent much of the day officiating high school basketball, so I am one of the few Americans alive who just finished watching the UK-North Carolina game thanks to the beautiful modern technology of the DVR, and my, oh my, what a game.  UK overcame a nine point deficit late in the first half to outlast a tough Tarheel squad for a 73-72 win at Rupp Arena.  This game was one of the best regular season games I've seen in years, and UK didn't seal the win until Anthony...

Anthony Davis came within an eyelash of a triple-double, the team defense was ferocious and UK dominated St. John's at Rupp Arena Thursday night.

Many worried the Cats would overlook the Red Storm with UNC coming to town in two days. Not so.

Davis scored 15 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and had eight of a school-record 18 blocks, as the Cats rolled 81-59.

Terrence Jones exploded for 26 points and Doron Lamb dropped 16, and UK proved that there would be no letdown after it took over the...

As I write this today, the Cats are the No. 1 team in the nation. At this point in the season, is it too early for this team to have the bullseye on their back? No one knows for sure, but here is what we do know so far.

Strengths

    •    Defense. This team is the best shot blocking team in the nation. Davis (4.3 bpg) rightfully gets the pub, but Jones (2.2 bpg) and Kidd-Gilchrist (1.3 bpg) are intimidators as well. Overall, the Cats block 10 shots a night.

    •    Rebounding. The...

As expected, Kentucky assumed the top spot in both the AP and the Coaches polls today following this weekend's loss by then #1 North Carolina.  Kentucky is followed in both polls by Ohio State while the Tarheels, who will visit Rupp Arena on Saturday, fell to #5 in both surveys.