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Posts Tagged Kentucky Wildcats

Game Thread: Kentucky @ Indiana

by in Game Threads | December 8th, 2007

gamethreadpiccopyxo9.jpgOpponent: Kentucky

Date: Saturday, December 8, 2007 | 4:05 EST

Arena: Assembly Hall (17,357) – Bloomington, Indiana

Line: Indiana by 8

All-time series: Kentucky leads 28-22

TV: CBS (Verne Lundquist and Billy Packer)

Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Todd Leary and Joe Smith)

Probable Starters:

  • Kentucky (4-2): Ramel Bradley, Joe Crawford, Michael Porter, Mark Coury, Patrick Patterson
  • Indiana (7-1): Jordan Crawford, Jamarcus Ellis, Lance Stemler, Mike White, D.J. White

Game Notes (Adobe Reader required to view):

3:15 PM Update: Armon Bassett is suspended and will not play.

As always, your predictions and comments are welcome in the game thread.

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IU-UK: Keys to the game and fearless predictions

by in Commentary | December 7th, 2007

ashley_judd.jpgOur Hoosiers host everyone’s favorite team, the Kentucky Wildcats, tomorrow afternoon in Assembly Hall.

It’ll be the first appearance for Big Blue in Assembly Hall in 17 years. That meeting saw a No. 7 Hoosier team hold off the pesky Wildcats, 87-84.

There’s a saying that anything can happen in a rivalry game, but make no mistake about it: Indiana is 20-0 at Assembly Hall under Kelvin Sampson, they’re more talented and the fans expect to win this game.

With that said, here are three keys to the game for each team:

Kentucky

- Keep Patrick Patterson involved and out of foul trouble: Kentucky is rail thin in the frontcourt and they must have a spectacular effort from their prized freshman if they plan to pull off the upset. Patterson is one of the top 10 freshmen in the country and is surprisingly polished inside the paint. The Hoosiers will probably rotate D.J. White, Mike White, Lance Stemler and DeAndre Thomas on Patterson to try to wear him down. If he can stay on the court and avoid silly fouls, he gives Kentucky a chance to stay in the game.

- Senior leadership: If there was ever a time for Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford to play like seniors, this is it. Both are extremely talented, but have also been labeled as inconsistent. Crawford has come on strong since coming out of Billy Gillispie’s doghouse. His field goal percentage is solid at 47.7 percent and he’s by far the closest thing the Wildcats have to a go-to-guy on the perimeter. Bradley has also played well and he’s shooting well from behind the three-point arc (46.4 percent).

- You can’t stop him, you can only hope to contain him: I’m talking about Eric Gordon. If not for his injury against Tennessee St. on Monday, he would probably be the leading scorer in the country entering this game. That begs the question: How will the Wildcats game plan against Gordon? Crawford seems to be a step slower and Bradley will probably have a hard time matching his strength and quickness. Perhaps the answer is Ramon Harris, but he too will probably look like a player stuck in quick sand if he tries to stay in front of Gordon in transition. If the Wildcats can’t prevent Gordon from running wild, it’ll be a long day.

Keys for IU and our predictions after the jump…

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Inaugural Inside the Hall Podcast: You know, you know, you know

by in Podcast | December 6th, 2007

ghetto_blaster1.jpgOK, so, hang with us here. Me and E hastily threw together a podcast last night, and well, there’s more than a few glitches. My mic messes up a few times (especially during the stripe out part), the editing is incredibly amateurish and I say “you know” about 2349234213123 times.

But hey, we’re throwing it out there for the masses anyways. We plan on continuing these and they promise to get better. In the inaugural edition, we touch on all things Kentucky: Eric Gordon and whether he should suit up or not, the IU-UK rivalry and what the student section and fans will be wearing to the game. Let us know what sucks so we can make it better next time.

You can get at it right here. (Next time we’ll hopefully get it in a nice little player on the front page here like this. Baby steps, friends.)

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Know Thy Opponent: Kentucky Wildcats

by in Opponents | December 6th, 2007

judduk1.jpgJohn Clay is a columnist for the Lexington Herald Leader. He covered Kentucky football for 13 seasons before being promoted to columnist in 2000. We recently caught up with him for a special Q & A edition of Know Thy Opponent. Unfortunately, Kentucky’s first fan Ashley Judd wasn’t available for this edition of Know Thy Opponent.

Inside the Hall: The first thing that comes to mind when you think about Kentucky basketball this season is the change to Billy Gillispie. How is Billy changing the program from the way it was run under Tubby Smith?

John Clay: Gillispie appears to be a tougher and more demanding coach. He ran a “Boot Camp” before the start of drills, he runs full practices the day of games, and he has already benched a couple of players for transgressions. Freshman A.J. Stewart sat the bench the entire game against Stony Brook, then was brought out during the post-game press conference to tell the media he had fallen asleep during a team meeting. Tubby certainly would not have made Stewart face the media as he often did not allow his freshman to speak to the media until at least the second semester. And Tubby probably would not have told the media why the player sat the bench.

ITH: Alex Legion recently announced he was leaving the program and his status now appears to be up in the air. There are rumblings that defections may occur at Kentucky. Do these rumblings have any legs?

JC: I predict we’ll see one, maybe two over the Christmas break. Some if it is just the natural fallout when a coach inherits players he didn’t recruit, and vice versa. But Gillispie isn’t for everybody. And I think the players are finding that out.

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Where will Ratliff fit in Hoosier rotation?

by in Commentary | November 8th, 2007

th_23656_commentary_122_1025lo.jpgOne of the more disappointing pieces of news this offseason was the announcement that A.J. Ratliff would be academically ineligible the first semester. I’ve always liked Ratliff’s talent, but he’s never really put it all together for a full season in a Hoosier uniform.

As a sophomore, his signature performance was a 21-point effort during IU’s 79-53 rout of Kentucky in the RCA Dome. Last year, he dropped 20 on No. 2 Wisconsin to lead IU past the Badgers, 71-66. I was optimistic heading into the offseason that this was the year Ratliff would experience a breakthrough.

As we sit here today, I’m not so sure that breakthrough can become a reality for Ratliff. If he regains eligibility for the second semester, he’ll be hard pressed to score significant playing time. Armon Bassett, Jamarcus Ellis, Eric Gordon and Jordan Crawford will be fully entrenched in IU’s rotation and Ratliff will have to prove he deserves to take minutes from one of those guys. The past couple of seasons, losing a player with Ratliff’s talent level would have been a huge blow. But this year, will the team even skip a beat without A.J.?

Color me pessimistic, but I don’t see the potential for a drop in minutes for Bassett, Gordon or Ellis. And if Crawford continues to assert himself at his current pace, he’ll be the first man off the bench. He seems to be more valuable than Ratliff thus far because he can create off the dribble as well hit the outside shot. Ratliff hasn’t shown the consistent ability to hit the midrange shot, take the ball to the basket or create off the dribble.

So, where does Ratliff fit in upon his return? Will he see significant minutes? Or is he an afterthought for this team? If the latter is true, it’s hard to feel any sympathy for someone who didn’t take care of his work in the classroom. I’m interested in hearing your thoughts.

(You know I couldn’t leave this out. The “Billy Clyde Era”, as Big Blue Nation likes to call it, is off to a great start down in Lexington. And by great start I mean getting blown out at home against Gardner Webb, a team that won nine games a year ago. The Bulldogs were picked to finish 8th in the Atlantic Sun Conference. Props to Grayson Flittner, an Indiana boy from Tri-Central HS who put up 22.)

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Hoosiers ranked No. 9 in preseason coaches poll

by in Media | October 26th, 2007

Lance StemlerThe first college hoops poll of the season was released today and IU is represented as a top 10 preseason selection by the coaches. The Hoosiers are slotted at No. 9, just behind Michigan State.

When was the last time IU was ranked this high going into the season? (To be perfectly honest, I can’t remember. Bonus points to anyone who knows.)

Two of IU’s non-conference opponents, Kentucky and Southern Illinois, also made the cut. The Wildcats, who visit Assembly Hall on December 8, are No. 22 and the Salukis, who will host the Hoosiers on December 1, are No. 23.

Besides IU and Michigan State, the only other Big Ten teams mentioned were Ohio State, Wisconsin and Illinois who were among the “others receiving votes.”

I’m inclined to say the coaches got it right this time as I can make a case for each team ranked ahead of us for the time being. Duke is, as usual, overrated at No. 11. And two-time defending national champion, Florida, seems a bit underrated. They did, after all, sign one of the top recruiting classes in the country.

So, what are your thoughts on IU’s preseason ranking? Too high? Too low? Just right? I’m interested in hearing your take.

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