Sunday was not a good day for Big Blue Nation. We awoke with not only a rainy morning to greet us, but also the realization that Saturday's game wasn't just a nightmare but a grim reality. I spent the few first hours of my day trying to do anything that would take my mind off the tournament and my eyes away from the television. Yet, when the first of the final two elite games tipped off, I found myself back in the friendly confines of my office glued to the set. I was rewarded with two pretty good NCAA basketball games, even though one of them saw those nasty Blue Devils punching their ticket to the Final Four.
It wasn't the exciting games today that eased my mind, if anything it made me more frustrated that our team wasn't one of the teams that would be on the grand stage of the Final Four next weekend in Indy, a destination that many of us thought would be the perfect ending to what was nearly a storybook season. Instead it was a random glance at the calendar that filled my heart with hope. Then I reflected with a bit of perspective on what this team accomplished this season and the journey that started a year ago Sunday with the firing of Billy G.
Don't get me wrong, I am still upset with the way we went out last night; but one game does not make a season. This season saw the Cats win the SEC regular season championship, reach the 2K mark in all time wins, a season sweep of our biggest non-conference rivals (Louisville, North Carolina and Indiana), a SEC Tournament Championship and earning a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. How can anyone say this season is a failure because we we had a bad shooting night in Syracuse? If someone had told me a year ago that this year's team would've accomplished all that it did, then I would've told them they should check themselves in to the State Hospital in Hopkinsville.
This team should be remembered proudly of putting Kentucky back in it's rightful spot among the elite of college basketball. What Coach Cal did this season was remarkable. He secured a base on which his era will be built on. We say thank you to all of the players who will graduate and those that are likely to move on to the NBA knowing they have left this program better than they found it.
As we look toward the near future, it's very uncertain as to how the cards will fall. As Mike pointed out earlier, there are still a number of players who could return and several 5 star recruits who could join Kanter and Poole in our freshman class. The puzzle will start to work itself out very soon as Brandon Knight, who is Cal's primary recruiting focus, will choose his school of choice in the coming weeks. Also in the mix are Selby, Leslie, Lamb and Jones, all high-quality players that Cal is gunning for.
Even with all these questions one things remain true, Coach Cal is our coach. As he continues to rebuild the proud brand that is Kentucky Basketball, you can rest assured that time will heal the wounds of last night's game and that brighter days are still ahead.
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