Darius Miller ????

Darius Miller is, to put it lightly, struggling so far this season for the Wildcats.  Darius' play is plagued at times because his mentality is too passive.  I think there is a great college player in Darius Miller.  John Calipari has to find what is going to motivate that greatness to come out. Tonight , versus Boston, he struggled early by getting into foul trouble.  Two fouls quickly gave him a seat on the bench, in which he stayed most of the first half.  Things did not get much better in the second half, apart from him knocking down some big time threes early in the half.  Add a alley oop dunk to mix, and then nothing else out of Darius.  My opinion is that Darius has gotten use to being a role player.  He fit the role well last season with John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, and Patrick Patterson running most of the show.  This year, we need Mr. Miller to be "da man".  I hope things turn around for Darius and he has a long Pro career.  All he needs is a fire lit underneath him!  What do you think? I love to hear your comments below!

Kentucky Shines in second half

Brandon Knight led the way with 23 points as the Cats beat Boston 91-57. After a low energy first half, UK turned on the magic and blew out Boston U in the second half of play.  Brandon Knight looked much better as a point guard tonight, dishing out 6 assists. Terrance Jones did what is becoming common, 18 points and 10 rebounds. I have to give the Cats a grade of "A+" for their performance in the final half.  Now, on to North Carolina!

Bad things going on for DeMarcus Cousins!

 

Rumors are flying around the net tonight, as DeMarcus Cousins has been kicked out of practice. This news comes after Cousins has been fined several times this season because of clashes with the coaching staff.  This is hurting his already tainted reputation, as the rest of the league will look on him as a trouble maker.  I hope this is just rumors and things get turned around for Big Cuz. 

Memory Lane

Meet Kyle Parker

 

The fact remains that the NCAA ruled Enes Kanter ineligible to play college basketball.  Enes made $33,000 dollars in Turkey, in which the NCAA sees as making him a professional.  So it is to be assumed that the NCAA deems any player who makes money at sports a professional.  No arguments there.  However.......................

Meet Kyle Parker.  He is the starting quarterback for the Clemson Tigers.  Do you want to know what's so special about him?  Before the 2010 season began, Kyle signed a $1.4 Million Dollar contract to play baseball for the Colorado Rockies, in which he received the money upfront  as a signing bonus.  What did the NCAA say? They declared him eligible, and he is playing this season.  Yes, even a sports millionaire has been given the green light to play this season as a college amateur.

So what's the difference between Enes and Kyle? One would say about a million dollars.  This absolutely baffles me. In my mind, there is no reason that this kid is not a pro, especially if Enes is a pro making a measly $33,000 dollars, of which he paid most to attend a prep school. 

I want to know what everyone else thinks.  Is there a difference in the Enes Kanter situation and the Kyle Parker one? Is the difference the name on the front of the Jersey? Or does the NCAA have a bias against foreign born players? You be the judge.

The next LeBron ?

During the telecast, I hope you picked up on Bill Rafferty's comparison of Terrance Jones to LeBron James.  Apparently, Terrance reminds Bill of a young James.  Certainly we hope that his career turns out half as good of LeBrons!

Did that just happen?

We learned alot of the Cats tonight.  Brandon Knight is going to have to become more of a pure point guard for this team to succeed.  I hope the Cats can walk away from this , and take it as a learning experience.

Josh Harrellson Steps up to the plate!

Jorts came up big tonight against Washington! He did exactly what he needed to do for this team to be a success. He had 9 points, but more important, and added 14 rebounds! He was a difference maker in this game with 7 offensive rebounds! Keep it up Josh!

Who you gonna call?

After tonight's game, I think a fitting nickname for Doron Lamb is zonebuster.  If the opposing defense shows a zone, put Lamb in the game and the zone won't last too long.  So far, Doron is proven to be a deadly marksman.

Terrance Jones has a breakout performance

Terrance Jones is beginning to get my vote for leader of this team.  As the Cats beat Oklahoma today , 76-64 , Terrance lead the way with 29 points and 13 rebounds.  While watching the game, I noticed that Jones played at a much higher level than any other player on the court.  I've heard this expression many time before, but he looked like a man among boys!

Even Obama wants the NCAA to Free Enes

George Bush thinks they should Free Enes

Free Enes

Kentucky schools the Pilots 79-48

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Brandon Knight scored 21 points to help No. 12 Kentucky rout Portland 79-48 on Friday night in the Wildcats' first trip to Oregon.
Darius Miller added 15 points for Kentucky (2-0). The Wildcats scored the first 15 points, with Portland native Terrence Jones hitting a 10-foot jump hook for the first basket and Miller scoring seven straight.Eric Waterford led Portland (3-1) with 12 points.Portland had a 13-8 run, including eight points by Waterford, to cut it to 23-13 with 7:20 left in the half. But Kentucky responded with eight straight to make it 31-13.The Pilots did manage an 11-7 spurt to end the half at 38-24, but Kentucky opened the second half with a 12-2 run that pushed the Wildcats' advantage to 24 at 50-26.Another big run -- this one 10-0 -- made it 64-32.Jones was playing in just his second college game after scoring 25 points in the season opener last week. That was a school record for a Kentucky debut. Jones finished with 12 points, 10 in the second half. He was 5 of 14 from the field."Terrence played well, but I want him to be great," Kentucky coach John Calipari said. "He has to be more physcial. He can't accept that a guy is going to body him... and he can't settle for jumpers."Jones agreed with everything Calipari had to say,"That's one reason I came here," Jones said. "Whatever he says I feel is right."Kentucky's other star freshman, Loran Lamb, had 13 points.It was a tough shooting night for the Pilots, who shot 53.5 percent from the field and 50.9 percent from the 3-point line in their first three games. But they missed their first 11 shots against the Wildcats and finished 18 of 59. The Wildcats shot 55 percent, while getting almost any shot they wanted.It was the second meeting between the schools. Kentucky won 88-71 in Lexington during the 1989-90 season.The game drew a crowd of 10,216 at the 19,980-seat Rose Garden, with a large number of fans wearing Wildcats blue. 


Taken from Associated Press, Copyright Belongs to Associated Press

Bruce Pearl Suspended

Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl has been suspended for the first 8 SEC regular season games.  Game 9 for Tennessee is against none other than the University of Kentucky Wildcats.  Should we throw him a welcome back party?????

Vote for you NBA All-Stars

Click Here to Vote NOW!

Let's show the rest of America the power of the Big Blue Nation.  Click on the above link to be redirected to the NBA.com's All-Star Ballot Page.  You have to sign up to vote, which is free and easy. Let's make sure that John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, and Rajon Rondo make the starting lineup for the All-Star Team!

A reason to dislike the Indiana Pacers !

Above found at my favorite blog that's not this one! Kentucky Sports Radio

Twitter gave us another reason to dislike the Indiana Pacers last night. Their fans on twitter came up with a couple of chants to yell at the Clippers for last night's game.  Check out Chant # 1 .  Some really class acts up in Hoosier ville ......

Enes Kanter Appeal Process

The NCAA will hear UK's appeal in late November.  Kentucky is hoping that because of the "uniqueness " of Enes Kanter's situation, they will reverse their decision.  They are betting on the new rule, which allows Pro European players to play college basketball is their income didn't greatly exceed their room and board. In Enes' case,  he was overpaid "$33,000", in which he paid $20,000 in tuition for a education in Europe.  That's the key we're hoping for, that the NCAA will say tuition does not count as excessive.  If that's the case, he would simply need to pay back $13,000 and be made to sit out 1 game.  We shall see.....................

Mitch Barnhart finalist for Kansas job?

UK AD Mitch Barnhart finds his name all over the internet today.  Rumor is that he is a finalist for the Kansas AD job.  Mitch released a statement today saying that he has not formally met with Kansas, but that statement didn't rule out any informal meetings.

Fan of the Day

Blake Huff is today's "Everything Kentucky Fan of the Day" Good job Blake on getting this snapshot with Patrick Patterson!

How far will this team go?

I know it's very early in the season , with only 1 regular season game under their belt.  The team is still very green and has lots to learn. I believe it's not to early to start to speculate however! I know every true BBN member hopes and dreams of a National Championship.  What I want to know is, what do you think their overall record will be?  Leave a comment in the box below! Go Big Blue

Great deal on UK HAT over at Amazon.com

John Calipari speaks about the Enes Kanter NCAA Decision

John Calipari had this to say about the NCAA's decision on Enes Kanter :

“Enes Kanter is like my son or any of your sons out there,” Calipari said. “He got nothing from anybody except his dad, and his dad did not do anything wrong. His dad did all the things he thought were going to make sure his son stayed an amateur. No one can argue the point that this kid wanted to be an amateur, and so did his father.
“Now, if they did some things they didn’t know were wrong by our rules, maybe. But they didn’t do anything wrong. And I feel bad. So we’re looking at the appeal and thinking that, you know, common sense, people will look at this in a common sense way and say, ‘You know what, the kid deserves better than this.’ “

Enes Kanter not Eligible to play

After speculation and rumors soared this evening , the NCAA ruled Enes Kanter ineligible to play for the University of Kentucky Wildcats. Below is a statement just released from the NCAA.

Kanter played three seasons with the Turkish sport club Fenerbahce from 2006-07 to 2008-09. Although he competed primarily for the club’s under-18 junior team, he did compete on the club’s senior team in 2008-09. According to facts agreed to by the university and the NCAA Eligibility Center, Kanter received $33,033 more than his expenses for the 2008-09 season.
The new NCAA rule that allows prospective student-athletes to compete on teams with professionals while maintaining their amateur status prior to college applies; however, the bylaw states any such benefits cannot exceed actual and necessary expenses, which was the case here.
“Enes took advantage of an opportunity to play at the highest level available to him, but the consequences of receiving payments above his actual expenses is not compatible with the collegiate model of sports that our members have developed,” said Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president of academic and membership affairs.

This was a shock to me as I fully expected the NCAA to rule in favor of Kanter playing.  I guess we can put our Free Enes shirts up now.

Calipari on Enes Kanter Practice situation

Fast forward to near the end of the video .  A reporter asks Coach if Enes can practice today and Cal replies" I don't know, let me go in here and find out" ..................even more interesting now!

Is Enes Free ???

John Clay is reporting that Enes Kanter has been ruled eligible to practice with the team, and we my have a finale eligibility ruling by the end of the month or sooner! Since there is no official announcment from the NCAA as of yet, we can't validate the report! Stay tuned..........

More Bad News for Patrick Patterson

The Houston Rockets announced today that they are sending Patrick Patterson down to the D-League.  This is terrible news for Patrick and all Kentucky fans alike.  I was hoping for great things from him this season. The Rockets GM says that there was simply no room for Patrick on the roster this year as Houston has plenty of size down low with Yao. Patrick Patterson will be joining another Cat, Ramon Harris , on the NBADL Houston Vipers . Sad news , but we still hope Patrick the very best.

Kentucky blows past Dillard 122-54

Is this a better shooting team than last year? Kentucky shot 70 percent from the field and 60 percent from behind the arc in the exhibition game tonight.  Terrance Jones led all scores with 23 points! This game has gotten me very excited about his season!

Darius Miller Comments post Pikeville game

John Wall does the "Dougie"

John Wall has a break out game!

John Wall put up some big numbers tonight.  As the Wizards defeat the 76'ers in overtime, John finished with 29 points.  He also had 13 assists and 9 steals.  His 9 thefts tied the Washington record for most steals in a game.  He also ties a rookie record for most assists in a rookies first 3 games.  Oh yeah, he also grabbed 5 rebounds in the game! Huge numbers!

Kentucky vs. Pikeville Recap

Last night we got our first real look of the Cats against actual competition.  We learned alot about this group. Brandon Knight is the obvious star and leader of the team. After the group struggled in the first half, Brandon took over and ended the half with 19 points.

The announcers made a lot about UK's poor free throws, however I feel this was not the area of weakness in the team.  They did start badly at the line, but finished 44-56, in which is pretty impressive in my mind.  The real area of concern was rebounding and an inside presence. Eloy Vargas finished with 5 points and 6 boards, while Jones added 9 points and 7 boards.  The top re-bounder was Darius Miller with 10.  I think with a little patience Terrance Jones will be a star on this team , but opening night jitters go the best of him.

Overall, I was please with the cats performance.  There will be much more dribble drive offense this time around , and once perfected by these guys, will be hard to stop.  I still say this team will be a contender in the NCAA tournament . Enter Enes Kanter, and this team will be a Final Four contender .