Kentucky Wildcats Quickies: Beat the Missouri Tigers Edition

Good morning Big Blue Nation. For the second Saturday in a row, the Kentucky Wildcats find themselves as an underdog on the road. But this time around they aren’t double-digit underdogs at least.

The Missouri Tigers aren’t very good, they have a losing conference record, but with Kentucky’s proclivity to play down to their opponents and make every game interesting, I have no doubt the game will be in question with 4 minutes to go.

Nevertheless, as long as they get a victory in the end, I’ll be happy with the result. Would I love for them to go into Columbia and blow out the Tigers? Of course I would, we all would. But that’s not the reality with this team. The SEC is better and this Wildcat team, outside of a few flashes, haven’t figured it all the way out just yet.

Tweets of the Day

It warms my heart to see this. John Calipari always responds to people in need, especially people in Kentucky.

AD hasn’t even been in the league a decade and he’s setting franchise records.

It’s awesome that Stephen Johnson is in consideration for this award.

Quickies

Time is the only variable for Jarred Vanderbilt | SEC Country- Jarred Vanderbilt needs to be on the court because of his defense, his rebounding, and his ability to find teammates in transition. But his scoring woes keep him on the bench. But he and his coaches agree that it’s just a matter of time before he starts to help in that department.

Learning Curve continues at Missouri | coachcal.com- Like I stated in the opening, this team hasn’t shown the consistency when it comes to putting the pedal to the metal and finishing off teams. It’s all a part of the learning curve and that will continue today.

Meet Brad White | Courier-Journal- The new outside linebackers coach for the Kentucky football team had the same position last season for the Indianapolis Colts before Chuck Pagano was fired. White had once committed to Yale before he decided to walk-on at Georgia and then ultimately ended up at Wake Forrest on Scholarship.

Kentucky vs. Missouri game info | SEC Country- The game is at 2:00 PM on CBS and was set up to be the marquis game because of Michael Porter, Jr. vs. the Kentucky freshmen. But with Porter out for the season, the luster is off of this one a bit.

UK gymnastics fall at LSU | UK Athletics- The second ranked Tigers bested the sixth ranked Cats 197.225-196.700. My wife is an ex-gymnast and a big fan of the sport so I did get to watch Kentucky win at Auburn earlier this week on the SEC Network. They’re very good this year.

L’Var Ball DMing high school players to join his Big Baller League | CBS- Tyler Herro, Immanuel Quickley, and Keldon Johnson all wisely declined to be in this league that’s doomed to failure.

Paying players is certainly enticing -- especially if you’re a high school senior looking to upgrade your lifestyle -- but it’s hard to see why some of the nation’s top recruits would accept. The opportunity to play at a high-major program like Kentucky, Michigan State, Syracuse, and others, will provide enough exposure to pay out ten-fold what these players might earn in a startup pro league.

I think it’s only a matter of time before the NCAA clamps down on La’Var’s DM escapades.

No Derby City Festival Basketball Classic in 2018 | WDRB- At last year’s event in Louisville, we got to see Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominate the game and give us a glimpse of how good he would be at UK. But the event will not happen this year due to dwindling support and financial losses.

Tom Jurich’s son fired at UofL | Courier-Journal- Mark Jurich, in a move of pure nepotism, was associate AD under his father’s watch. But wit Tommy out at Floyd Street, it was only a matter of time before Mark Jurich followed. My only question is why did it take this long?

There are some fools that still support Nero even though he played the fiddle while watching Rome burn. (side note: Nero really didn’t actually do that because the fiddle didn’t exist in imperial Rome)

A history of Kentucky vs. Missouri | Rock M Nation- In short, Kentucky has dominated the series with the Tigers. Much like they have dominated the series against most of the teams they’ve played.

ESPN experts pick the Super Bowl | ESPN- Spoiler Alert: they like the Patriots to win.

Several Eagles players ill on even of Super Bowl | CBS- I can’t wait for “Poisongate” to rock the NFL once the Super Bowl is over.

Dave Matthews Band violinist to take break from band | Rolling Stone- Boyd Tinsely has been a member of the 90’s jam band since 1992 and he’s decided to take a break from the group as they prepare for a pre-Super Bowl gig and a massive summer tour. My wife and I plan on seeing them at some point this summer. It’s going to be different without Boyd on the stage. He tweeted that he needed to spend more time with his family and he plans on rejoining the group next year.