In the Gary regional of the NCAA Baseball Tournament yesterday, the Kent St. Golden Flashes defeated the Kentucky Wildcats for the second time in three days with a controversial home run that turns out not to have been one. The breaks went against the boys in this tournament, but the core of this outstanding team is young and will be back for more.
Be sure and read, if you haven't, JLeverenz's outstanding recap of the game. The Wildcats set a record for wins in a season this year, and despite the disappointing outcome, they deserve nothing but the highest praise from the Big Blue Nation.
Your quickies follow the jump. [Editorial note: Don't count on these being daily for the rest of this week -- I'm on holiday in my traditional place, enjoying the sun, surf, and golf].
DraftExpress: Doron Lamb/Tony Wroten Workout Interviews
Doron being Doron.
SEC/Big East Matchups Announced, But Lack a Headliner // Rush The Court
I don't get the beef. Notre Dame and Kentucky used to have a really great and competitive series, and the Irish will be tough next year. As far as the rest, well, you can read about the realities in his post.
Morning Five: 06.04.12 Edition // Rush The Court
The big news over the weekend was the announcement by Devonta Pollard that he would be heading to Alabama next season. The addition of a McDonald’s All-American is a big deal for any program (ok, they might not go nuts over someone who is "just" a McDonald’s All-American in Lexington these days), but it is an even bigger deal for a Crimson Tide program that did not have a single player signed for the class of 2012.
This is great for Anthony Grant and the Tide. They will wind up starting next year with two McDonalds All-Americans on the squad. Not bad.
Basketball Prospectus // NBA Lottery
This is a thoughtful piece by Bradford Dolittle. He makes a compelling case that even though the "Rigged Draft Lottery" conspiracy theory is bogus, the questions rising in the top levels of the NBA argue for greater transparency and perhaps an audit.
I tend to agree. I laugh at the conspiracy theory, but I must say that most people doing this sort of big-money random chance drawing have a continuous audit by a Big 3 accounting firm. Perhaps it's time the NBA do the same thing, and put all this conspiracy nonsense to bed.
The top four is the only model that doesn't represent the interests of inferior conferences, which is why the Big Ten and Pac 12 oppose it.
I remember Orlando well, and I'm very saddened by this news. Our prayers go out to his family and friends.
"I think Jabari is the first (high school) player who has experienced this social media stuff. LeBron (James) and Kobe (Bryant) never experienced that. Jabari can't go to the bathroom without being on Twitter. It's the first time a player of his caliber you know he plays a game, gets out of the shower and he's on YouTube."
Yeah, I'm sure Anthony Davis, Nerlens Noel, and John Wall never experienced this sort of thing, the were pre-Cambrian stars. < /sarcasm >. Good grief.
Montrezl Harrell is headed to Louisville // CollegeBasketballTalk
As has been widely expected.
Ex-Wildcat's case sent to grand jury // www.krmg.com
I don't have much to say about this except let the legal system do its job.
Rajon Rondo Becoming Consistently Great // CelticsBlog
I always felt that Rondo was going to be an outstanding NBA player. I'm not sure I ever thought he would be this good, though.
However, maybe this will be for the best for both programs. Taking a break from a series isn’t always a bad thing. When Kentucky and Louisville finally renewed their basketball series after a LONG drought from playing each other, the first game in the series was hugely anticipated. Can you imagine if the Cats were to pick up the IU series 15 years from now? The anticipation would be enormous, and would undoubtedly create a game for the ages.
I think Ashley makes a good point here. The renewal of the series, when it eventually happens, will be much-anticipated. Perhaps this was the idea all along, although I very seriously doubt it.
Corey Peters out until camp starts // Bleed Blue Kentucky
Cats offer 2013 TN Quarterback // Bleed Blue Kentucky
Update with Trey Kilgore (’13 WR) // Bleed Blue Kentucky
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist - DRAFT 2012 Prospects // NBA.com
What Outsiders Say:
Georgia coach Mark Fox
"When you’ve got Kidd-Gilchrist at the three, with the size of a power forward, defensively, they just overpower you."
Word.
Tom Leach // Monday Wildcat Links
SEC East spring preview: Kentucky Wildcats looking to build around solid D-line // al.com
It's tough to see UK in a bowl this year, which means that Phillips will likely feel a lot of heat.
SEC teams' penalties for drugs not created equally // ajc.com
I wonder what would happen if the SEC had a policy that forced a minimum standard? I fear that some schools would just find a way to overlook the tests. But there should be some minimum standard that all schools have to enforce, otherwise the playing field isn't very level.
Seems Rhodes hasn't quite learned how to work the refs in high school ...