John Clay’s Sidelines

Here is UK freshman guard Eric Bledsoe talking about hitting five three-pointers, and how tough it is to play defense in college.

Hat tip to Straitpinkie.

Kentucky freshman Eric Bledsoe talks to the media after scoring 24 points in his collegiate debut, the most we believe in UK history. Sam Bowie scored 22 in the 1979 Hall of Fame game in his first collegiate game.

Eric Bledsoe (H-L photo/John Clay)

Don’t forget, doing two liveblogs today. The first will be from the UK women’s game at Memorial Coliseum. The second will be from UK men’s opener tonight at Rupp.

Big Blue Links for Friday:

• Jerry Tipton of the Herald-Leader reports that John Calipari is focusing his lasers on progress for tonight’s opener.
• Tipton’s notes leads with the return of speedball Eric Bledsoe.
• Jennifer Smith of the H-L previews this morning’s opener — that’s right, morning opener — for the Kentucky women.
• Chip Cosby of the H-L writes on playmaking linebacker Sam Maxwell.
• Fabian Lyon of the Miami Herald reports that Brandon Knight is visiting Florida today.
• Brett Dawson of the Courier-Journal writes on the Kentucky-Morehead matchup.
• James Pennington of the Kentucky Kernel addresses the official start of the John Calipari Era.
• B.W. Jones of the Kernel reports that equal-opportunity Rich Brooks says both Mike Hartline and Morgan Newton will play Saturday.
• Eric Lindsey of Cat Scratches writes on the UK women’s early-bird special.

Continue reading ‘BBL: Brandon Knight visiting Florida today’

(H-L photo/Charles Bertram)

Big Blue Links for Tuesday:

• Jerry Tipton of the Herald-Leader writes that UK’s first exhibition win was an eye-opener.
• Mark Story of the H-L writes that we can try and judge the Cats on an exhibition victory.
• Here’s Herald-Leader photo slide show from last night’s game.
• Video interviews with Darius Miller, Patrick Patterson and Daniel Orton.
• Here’s audio of John Calipari’s post-game press conference.
• Chip Cosby of the H-L reports that UK football hopes to salvage its season.
• Zagsblog says Doron Lamb will visit UConn on Nov. 15.
• Gary Parrish of CBS Sportsline writes that UK is cleared to play off the Wall.
• Brett Dawson of the Courier-Journal writes that Kentucky showed sloppy offense in its exhibition opener.
• Larry Vaught of the Danville Advocate-Messenger writes that Eric Bledsoe and John Wall are better together.
• Matt May of the Cats Pause writes that UK has a long road ahead.
• Chuck Jones of the Elizabethtown News-Enterprise says don’t rush to judgment on these Cats.

Continue reading ‘BBL: Cats sloppy in win; Doron Lamb to visit UConn’

(H-L photo/Mark Cornelison)

Update: The Shiver reports Payne will announce at 5:30 p.m. on ESPNU.

Big Blue Links for Thursday:

• Fox Sports’ Jeff Goodman tweeets that Adreian Payne will make his announcement today, with UK West Virginia and Michigan State the finalists.
• Kyle Nagel of the Dayton Daily News confirms that Payne will announce his choice tonight.
• Bruce Pascoe of the Arizona Daily Star also reports that Payne may announce today.
• Bluegrass State Basketball thinks Payne is headed to Michigan State.
• Best of the Best thinks that Payne is headed to East Lansing. (Hat tip to Aaron’s UK Basketball Blog.)
• Wildcat Blue Blog goes rumor-mongering with Payne.
• Jerry Tipton reports that the Cats showed their star power in basketball scrimmage.
• Tipton reports that John Calipari downplayed the John Wall eligibility questions.
• My master-of-the-obvious column that the Cats are much more athletic than in previous years.
• The Herald-Leader slide show of the scrimmage.

Continue reading ‘BBL: Is Adreian Payne headed to Michigan State?’

A ten-spot from the Blue-White scrimmage:

• 1. This team is athletic. I know that’s obvious. But when was the last time we could truly say that about a Kentucky basketball team. Not that the Cats lacked athletes in the past few years. It’s just that they haven’t had this many athletes on one team since, when, 1996?

• 2. John Wall is ridiculous. But then you already knew that. As for the eligibility issue, John Calipari tried to play coy in the post-scrimmage press conference, answering Alan Cutler’s first question about Wall’s status as if it was another question entirely. But Wall was made available to the media afterward, where he didn’t have much to say about what was going on, or how he felt about what was going on. But at least we got the opportunity to ask.

• 3. Darnell Dodson will fill a key role on this team. The sophomore juco transfer was slighted on the publicity, what with Wall and DeMarcus Cousins and Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton, etc., being in the newcomer class. But Dodson’s outside shot is a needed asset on this team. He made four-of-11 threes on the night, and that after looking a bit nervous in the early going

• 4. Calipari claims that Wall and Bledsoe play better together than they do apart, and that may in fact be true. I’m not going to doubt the coach. So whatever happened to all those who said, before Bledsoe signed, that the two could not co-exist in the same backcourt. I’m with Cal. There’s no reason they can’t do better than that in the same backcourt.

• 5. The best move of the night was when Calipari pulled Joe B. Hall off the front row behind the bench and had him sit on the bench with him. That got a standing ovation from the Rupp crowd of 14,060, and deservedly so. I know, Joe has said all the right things about this Wildcat Coal Lodge controversy. And I have no doubt he understands the difficulties of raising funds for facility improvements, etc. But still, it’s the only thing on campus named in his honor, a former basketball coach who won a national championship and went to three Final Fours. And you’re going to tell me there’s anyone out there who loves the program more than Joe? Mitch Barnhart said the school will find another way to honor Joe. It better.

Continue reading ‘A 10-spot from the UK Blue-White scrimmage’

UK freshman guard Eric Bledsoe talks here at Media Day about how he’s learning to play without the basketball. He also continues the “Three Amigos” theme. Many of the players talked about how Wall and Bledsoe seem to be everywhere together.

Matt Pilgrim

Big Blue Links for Tuesday:

• H-L report on minor NCAA violation involving Darius Miller.
• In the Courier-Journal, Jody Demling writes on Joe Jackson and UK.
• Demling reports that California forward DeAndre Daniels visited UK on Sunday.
• Big Blue Uncensored writes on the curious case of Matt Pilgrim.
• Inner Circle wants UK basketball to give the open scholarship to Pilgrim.
• Kentucky State Basketball also has Matt Pilgrim on its mind.
• Andrew Gribble of the Opelika-Auburn News previews the UK-Auburn football game. (Hat tip to A Sea of Blue.)
• USA Today’s Jim Halley writes on the NBA player camp, focusing on Harrison Barnes and Brandon Knight.
• Zagsblog talks to Rod Strickland, who says Eric Bledsoe and John Wall can play together.

Continue reading ‘BBL: Blue blogs want Matt Pilgrim back’

Big Blue Links for Sunday:

• In the Herald-Leader, Jerry Tipton writes that so far John Calipari has made all the right moves.
• Chip Cosby of the Herald-Leader reports that Jeremy Jarmon accepts blame for NCAA suspension.
• My Sunday column saying others should learn from Jarmon’s mistake.
• Valarie Honeycutt Spears of the H-L reports that positive tests are rate rare, but not unheard of.
• Cosby writes that just like Jarmon, Cats have to move on.
• Tipton’s basketball notebook leads with UK will open next season against Morehead.
• Dick Weiss of the New York Daily News writes that Calipari has expectations through the roof.
• ESPN.com Chris Low writes that Jeremy Jarmon is “as real as it gets.”
• Robbi Pickeral of the Charlotte Observer writes that losing Wall could block UNC from all-time win mark.
• In the Oklahoman, Brandon Chatmon has Daniel Orton saying that Wall is last piece of the puzzle for UK. (Hat tip to Spam’s Wildcat Page.)

Continue reading ‘BBL: Jeremy Jarmon reaction links’