Kentucky Wildcats: Morning Quickies - Marcus McWilson Edition

After decommitting from Nebraska this weekend, Kentucky is apparently in the driver's seat for 4* safety Marcus McWilson. More about him in today's Quickies.

Tweet of the Morning:

"@dwfaust: Sorry no names on jerseys is tradition and FAR MORE indicative of dedication to team." Nonsense. It's a coach cliche.

— Michael DeCourcy (@tsnmike) January 28, 2013

DeCourcy gets it right again.

Your Quickies:

Kentucky football

• Nebraska Recruiting: Huskers Lose Walker, McWilson To The SEC // Corn Nation

  Safety Marcus McWilson of Cardinal Mooney HS in Youngstown Ohio, which is the same school as one Bo Pelini and the Stoops brothers (Bob, Mike, and Mark), decommitted from Nebraska after a visit to Kentucky this weekend.

  Read the whole thing to find out why. Good stuff.
• NU football loses two commits over the weekend

• Huskers lose McWilson, hope to gain O-lineman // Latest Husker News

  "I'm kind of open right now, but I am leaning towards Kentucky," McWilson told the Kentucky Rivals site CatsIllustrated.com.

  I like our chances, but he's not in the bag yet.
• Larry Warford uses Senior Bowl to help draft stock // John Clay's Sidelines
• No James Hearns commitment; Keith Kelsey chooses U of L // John Clay's Sidelines
• UK Football: Mark Stoops continues to make recruiting impact in Florida // Central Kentucky News

Kentucky basketball

• More on the UK-UNC series renewal:
  

  Calipari said this summer the UNC series was simply paused because UK wanted to reset, balance home and road non-league games.

  — Kyle Tucker (@KyleTucker_CJ) January 28, 2013

• Well deserved.
  

  UK's Nerlens Noel named SEC Freshman of the week.

  — Kent Spencer (@WHAS11Kent) January 28, 2013

• Hard work will pay off; Archie will be fine // CoachCal.com

  Archie is totally invested in this program. He is the first one to come to practice every day, the last one out, and oftentimes the guy who is in the gym late at night working on his game and his free-throw shooting. He’ll have a full-blown workout before we even start practice. He is conscientious about the areas he is weak in, so he spends tons of time in the gym working on areas he needs to improve on. He is his own worst critic.

  Just in case you missed it yesterday. Backing off Goodwin is a good idea, because the kid plays as hard as anyone, he just hasn't quite turned the corner yet. As Calipari says, they all revert.

• Kentucky, North Carolina to agree to 2-year basketball series // The Courier-Journal

  Kentucky and North Carolina have agreed to a two-year, home-and-home basketball series beginning in the 2013-14 season.

  Not really surprising, we knew this series would be renewed.

• Michael Kidd-Gilchrist: Kentucky Sportsman of the Year finalist // Kentucky.com
  Fantastic.

• Calipari steps out of comfort zone for a win // The Kentucky Kernel

  Although he made crucial decisions in the final minute to help secure the victory, the most applauded move was intentionally fouling the Tigers while nursing a three-point lead in the final seconds.

  That was a bold play. I'm not sure it proves it is a good idea, but it was bold. It probably helped that we were handling the boards well against the smaller Tigers.

Other UK sports

• Men’s tennis qualify for championships // The Kentucky Kernel

  UK men’s tennis secured qualification for the ITA National Indoor Championships on Saturday after winning the ITA Regional Kick-Off Tournament at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center.

Links posts

• John Clay's Big Blue Links // John Clay's Sidelines
• The Morning Mix // Troy Machir, CollegeBasketballTalk
• Tom Leach // Monday links
• Wakeup Call: Which Oscar winner is headed to Ole Miss' next game? // CBSSports.com

College football

• Work To Begin On College Football Hall Of Fame // CBS Philly

College basketball

• Ole Miss gunner Marshall Henderson has knack for riling opponents // College Basketball

  "I feel like I'm getting it from different angles," Henderson said with infectious agreeability. "Some people just don't like the way I am. I feel that's a bunch of old-school people. They're just like, 'Oh, no. We don't like him.'

  "Old school?" Hmm. Liking you less all the time ...

• 3-point shot: Instant replay considered // ESPN
  I think it's reasonable to review shot-clock situations in the last two minutes. I'd be in favor of that, but for the whole game, I think it's too much.

• Fast Break: Villanova, La Salle break out; Self on his star // SI.com

  Classless Move of the Week: Marshall Henderson, 6-2 junior guard, Ole Miss

  I realize Henderson is an emotional player, and he's having a heck of a season for the resurgent Rebels. But that does not excuse him for running over to the Auburn student section to taunt the fans after he sank the game-winning free throws in Saturday's 63-61 victory. It's not like Henderson had a stellar game, either. He needed 13 shots to score 15 points, and as a team the Rebs shot just 4 for 17 from the foul line. I have no doubt that Henderson has many more winning moments in his future. Here's hoping that when they arrive, he chooses to act like a winner.

  Well said, Seth. Well said indeed.

Other sports news

• New Orleans Hornets Anthony Davis still chasing Damian Lillard in rookie of year battle // NOLA.com

  So far this year, Davis has been steady. But he lacks an attention-grabbing performance that could close the gap between Lillard and himself more significantly.

• John Wall is coming into his own, starting to turn heads // Bullets Forever
• Perseverance tested in DeMarcus Cousins and John Wall's third NBA seasons // Cowbell Kingdom

• Clippers topple Trail Blazers 96-83 // kgw.com Portland

  Bledsoe had 10 points, five assists and five rebounds in his seventh start, while Chris Paul missed his fourth straight game and seventh in the past nine because of a bruised right kneecap.

  Bledsoe played 36 minutes without committing a turnover.

• Super Bowl XLVII week -- Alex Smith, Colin Kaepernick, Jim Harbaugh, John Harbaugh and more // SI.com