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Welcome, ladies and gentlemen of the Big Blue Nation, to the Final Four. Again. This is a very familiar destination for Kentucky. As it should be. Here’s how the Wildcats got there.
Kentucky is currently 5/6 to win the whole thing.
Tweet of the Morning
If Alabama calls Marshall to present a lucrative offer I believe he is ready to listen. Texas is better job but not a slam dunk for him.
— Seth Davis (@SethDavisHoops) March 30, 2015
With the right coach, Alabama can be a contender. Is Marshall that guy? Maybe…
Your Quickies:
Kentucky football
- Kentucky adds a late commitment from a 6‘9"/270 lb. prospect who is projected to play either defensive end or offensive tackle. It’s interesting.
Kentucky basketball
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One of Kentucky’s 2015 recruits will be apparently matriculating elsewhere:
Just talked to Ivan Rabb w/ @JoshGershon. Rabb confirmed that he is down to Arizona & California. Says he could announce in next 48 hours.
— Evan Daniels (@EvanDaniels) March 30, 2015 -
Look at who is now #1 on the DraftExpress mock for the 2015 NBA Draft.
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John Clay says that a true Champion’s Classic would be Duke and Kentucky for the NCAA Tournament championship.
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Kentucky will be tested by heavyweight Final Four field. That’s as it should be. If we are the best, in fact, we must beat the best. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
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It could have a point guard play "an okay game" in the coach’s words, as did Andrew Harrison, yet have him make a cool, shifting drive down the right side of the lane to draw a blocking foul on Demetrius Jackson with six seconds left, then drain the winning free throws. It could have another guard, Harrison’s twin Aaron, get to the five-minute mark with zero field goals, yet drive in for a dunk, then rain in a three-point shot from the edge of Lake Erie, with 3:18 left, for Kentucky’s first lead in 12 minutes at 64-63.
Hat tip: UKSprinter
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I meant to post this earlier. Thanks to multiple people for sending it in. It’s a little hard to watch for the first minute or so, and then it becomes absolutely gut-busting.
The last part isn’t quite as funny, because that "miracle" almost showed up.
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Kaminski, Dekkar give UW a shot to topple Kentucky. No doubt, Wisconsin will be the biggest challenge Kentucky has faced all year. They are talented, big, and mature. If UK plays like they played against Notre Dame, I don’t think they can win.
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I doubt very many Notre Dame fans actually feel "disrespected" by trying to vainly parse John Calipari’s post-game comments. What they are doing is confusing respect with butt-hurt.
Other Kentucky sports
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Huge series win for the Bat Cats on the road at #1 LSU. Could this baseball team be coming around after a so-so start?
College football
- Really, Steve Spurrier? An eighth-grader? Billy Gillispie would be proud. There is a significant UK connection, though.
College basketball
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Some fan puked over the railing at the Carrier Dome on Sunday and strafed some of the reporters in the media area below. Yikes.
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Greg Marshall is apparently interested in the Texas job. I can see why.
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Looks like former Red Storm star Chris Mullen is going to be the new head coach of St. Johns.
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This is an interesting story on officiating. I think it is a shame that we don’t get more transparency and engagement from the officials, but given the level of vitriol directed at them, I do understand.
Having said that, I do think criticism is often warranted — they are paid to make the right calls, and even though we must make allowances for error, repeated poor judgment should not be left unchallenged.
What I hate to see is people implying some kind of intentional wrongdoing — while you can’t rule that out completely, Hanlon’s Razor is surely the most applicable thing.
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Gonzaga denied trip to Final Four. Honestly, they didn’t play well enough. They missed layups and open shots, and did a poor defensive job on Justise Winslow.
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Emotional Louisville tries to process bitter loss. It was a game that Louisville honestly should’ve won. Kentucky fans know what it’s like to lose to Izzo, too.
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I think "hack-a-Jah" is a real strategy against Duke. That unguarded 15-footer barely made it 14 feet.
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Rocky Top Talk thinks Rick Barnes might be their guy. As I said before, he wouldn’t even have to change his wardrobe. Well, much, I guess technically Texas is burnt orange and Tennessee is Orange Crush orange.
Other sports news
- Craig Sager’s leukemia has returned, unfortunately. Hopefully he’ll be able to kick it for good this time.
Other news
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How do you dismantle a nuclear submarine? Very carefully.
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Planets like Luke Skywalker’s home, Tatooine, could be common in the universe. But what about Sandpeople? Are they going to be common too? And Jawas?
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NASA launches astronaut on a historic, one-year mission. This is to study long-duration spaceflight on the human body.