(H-L photo/Mark Cornelison)
Big Blue Links for Tuesday:
Paul Strelow of The State reports on Clemson’s poor bowl ticket sales: “In the week since the announced pairing, Clemson has sold 4,000 tickets – just more than half of its minimum 7,500 allotment per the ACC’s contract with the Music City Bowl. Kentucky has sold close to 16,000, rifling through its initial allotment of 12,000 within one day. Those figures don’t take into account the nearly 4,000 tickets the bowl sold in the four-day window before the selection was announced when media reports surfaced that the Wildcats were the likely choice.”
Jennifer Smith of the H-L on UK women’s unbeaten mark: “t sounds glamorous to say that Kentucky is just one win away from the best start in program history. It sounds exciting to say the 9-0 Cats can get to historic win No. 10 with a victory over in-state rival Louisville on Sunday. But you might as well be telling UK Coach Matthew Mitchell a bedtime story.”
Ian Ruder of the Oregonian on a UK basketball target who is only a sophomore: “His name is Jordan Tebbutt and while only the most die-hard high school fan may have heard of the 6-5 sophomore, college coaches are flocking to the 3A school’s campus to recruit him. Not small time programs either: Kentucky, Washington, Washington State, Oregon State and most of the rest of the Pac-10.” (Hat tip to Aaron’s UK Basketball Blog.)
St. Petersburg Times has a UK football commitment: “Largo tight end/defensive end Mike Douglas put an end to the recruiting process by committing to Kentucky.”
Jerry Tipton of the H-L reports on John Wall’s weekly award: “The Southeastern Conference made Kentucky guard John Wall the first player to win the league’s Freshman of the Week award four straight weeks on Monday. To hear Auburn Coach Jeff Lebo, Wall could extend that record deep into the season.”
Mark Story of the H-L says UK could pull off a double sweep: “If Matthew Mitchell’s undefeated (but largely untested) Kentucky women’s basketball team can beat U of L (6-3) for the first time since 2003-04, that would give UK a shot at a “triple play” against the Cardinals in the three most visible sports.”
Tom Leach has video from Monday’s UK football practice.
Jody Demling of the C-J writes on UK’s A’dia Mathies: “Off the court, the reticent and soft-spoken Mathies kept people guessing. Even her future coach – Matthew Mitchell of the University of Kentucky – had a hard time getting through the recruiting process because of her shyness.”
Larry Vaught of the Danville Advocate-Messenger compares Randall Cobb and John Wall: “However, that made me wonder who is the best overall athlete — Wall or Cobb, UK’s Mr. Do-It-All in football.”
College Hoops Journal says UK and U of L have flipped fortunes: “The Kentucky Wildcats aren’t in the clear and aren’t guaranteed a Final Four berth this season. The Louisville Cardinals aren’t mired in mediocrity and aren’t one of the eight worst teams in the Big East, all of the sudden. But that doesn’t mean these two intrastate rivals haven’t switched positions in the past eight months. Think about where each of these programs were on Selection Sunday. It’s remarkable, when you think about it.”
Bluegrass State Basketball looks at 2011 recruiting: “The 2011 class could potentially rival the 2009 class at Kentucky, which is one of college basketball’s all-time great recruiting classes. The Wildcats are widely considered the favorites to land Michael Gilchrist, the overall top-rated player in 2011. They are also heavily in the mix for Marquis Teague and Quincy Miller, who rank #2 and #3 overall in the class, respectively.”
Kentucky Sports Radio is making holiday lists: “The end of the year is always a great time if you enjoy two things: (1) Reviewing the past and (2) Lists. You cant throw a stick without reading someone’s Top 10 “Somethings of the Year” and I admit that I ready nearly all of them. This is especially true this year, as we are not only ending the year but also the decade.”
Aaron’s UK Football Blog has some recruiting notes: “UK now has commitments from four players that could potentially play defensive end in college. It makes me wonder where the Cats stand with Tim Patterson? I’m sure Charlie Strong is making a big push to land Patterson.”
Inner Circle has 10 quotes for 10 wins: “Ahh the quotes. That is one of my favorite aspects of post-game press conferences. You get to hear Coach Calipari and the players tell it like it is in an emotional release. The following list is my favorite from the season so far. Hopefully, by the time the season ends, there will be one that says ‘It feels great to bring the National Championship back to Lexington.’”
Walter’s Wildcat World has an update on Randolph Morris: “It is one of coach Mike Woodson’s favorite mantras: If a bench player gets just one minute on the floor, he’d better make that one minute count, because no one is guaranteed minutes.”
