Kentucky vs. Louisville Preview...

Gomez here...

Summer vacation is almost over. We've all lazed around alot over the past few months, only reporting on whatever is most truly important to the Big Blue Nation, but this weekend, our break comes to an end. That's because on Saturday afternoon, the Joker Phillips era officially begins with a road trip to Louisville. We're here to break down what you might expect from the first game of the season.

First of all, the summer long quest to learn who UK's starting QB will be has finally come to a close. As expected (by me anyway), veteran Mike Hartline has gotten the nod, and Morgan Newton will be his back-up. At least for now. Joker Phillips has said he fully expects to see a ton of blitzing, which means Hartline better be quick on his feet, and quicker than what we've seen in the past. His ability to stay composed and on his feet will most likely determine if he'll play the entire game or give way to one of his younger counterparts.

With that said, most people expect Kentucky to win comfortably. Louisville wasn't good last year, and they lost a big portion of their key players from last year's team. They did, however, upgrade in way of coaching, and sometimes, that is hard to predict how quickly that will translate to performance on the field. Still, Kentucky is noticeably more talented than Louisville and our coaches are pretty okay too.

The game will be on ABC, called by two guys you've never heard of and will never hear of again. With that said, its hard not to get really pumped for the kick off to a new season. Here's hoping that Kentucky's recent domination of the rivalry continues on Saturday!

For more information for the upcoming season, take a look at the most recent configuration of the always important UK depth chart...

QUARTERBACK
Mike Hartline
Morgan Newton
Ryan Mossakowski

TAILBACK
Derrick Locke
Donald Russell
Raymond Sanders

FULLBACK
Moncell Allen
Greg Meisner

WIDE RECEIVER
Chris Matthews
Brian Adams

WIDE RECEIVER
Randall Cobb
Matt Roark

WIDE RECEIVER
La’Rod King
Aaron Boyd
E.J. Fields

TIGHT END
Jordan Aumiller
Tyler Robinson

LEFT TACKLE
Chandler Burden
Trevino Woods

LEFT GUARD
Stuart Hines
Kevin Mitchell

CENTER
Matt Smith
Jake Lanefski

RIGHT GUARD
Larry Warford
Marcus Davis

RIGHT TACKLE
Billy Joe Murphy
Brad Durham

PUNTER
Ryan Tydlacka

KICKOFFS
Craig McIntosh
Joe Mansour

PAT/FG
Ryan Tydlacka
Craig McIntosh

KOR
Derrick Locke
Randall Cobb

PR
Randall Cobb
Mychal Bailey

DEFENSIVE END
Collins Ukwu
Taylor Wyndham

DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Ricky Lumpkin
Shane McCord

DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Luke McDermott
Mark Crawford

DEFENSIVE END
DeQuin Evans
Tristian Johnson

STRONGSIDE LINEBACKER
Jacob Dufrene
Ridge Wilson

MIDDLE LINEBACKER
Ronnie Sneed
Qua Huzzie

WEAKSIDE LINEBACKER
Danny Trevathan
Jewell Ratliff

CORNERBACK
Martavius Neloms
Jerrell Priester

STRONG SAFETY
Winston Guy
Taiedo Smith

FREE SAFETY
Mychal Bailey
Dakotah Tyler

CORNERBACK
Randall Burden
Anthony Mosley

That's all for now! GO BIG BLUE!

New Commit for 2011?

Neal Nieves from Coast2Coast Recruiting is reporting that Cal has landed another big commitment for the 2011 class. Center/Power Forward/Huge Match up Problem Kyle Wiltjer (#19 player on Scout.com) has committed to the Cats. Now this news is being kicked around from different outlets but has not been made official. Honestly this is one of the guys from the 2011 class I was hoping would bring his game to Lexington. From what I gather from the guru's Wiltjer is a nightmare match up because he has great size and can bang down low but also hurt teams from the outside. Those qualities along with his huge basketball IQ could make Wiltjer fun to watch (if he's on your team.) Again this news is not official but there's a lot of smoke. On a side note Wiltjer is from Portland, Oregon. Sounds like Cal and Co. are wearing the North West out. Sorry Washington.

UPDATE: Wiltjer made it official tonight on ESPN 2. Cal is set to have the No. 1 ranked class for the third consecutive season in 2011.

ESPN gives UK football props...

Joker Phillips and his staff are tearing up the recruiting trail, and people are starting to take notice. What people? The World Wide Leader for one. Joker's UK 2011 class has earned him the ranking of 25th best in the nation according to ESPN's recruiting rankings.

Its nice to see all their hard work paying off, and we can only hope it translates to big wins and more record breaking seasons in Lexington.

Wow... we're only one week away from another kick off to a new season of Kentucky football and the beginning of the Joker Phillips era. Go crazy, folks; go crazy!

2010-11 BBall Schedule Released...

2010-2011 SCHEDULE:

11/01/10 vs. Pikeville # Lexington, Ky. TBA
11/05/10 vs. Dillard # Lexington, Ky. TBA
11/12/10 vs. ETSU - Lexington, Ky. TBA
11/19/10 at Portland - Portland, Ore. 10:00 p.m. ET
11/22/10 vs. Oklahoma - Maui, Hawaii 5:30 p.m. ET
11/23/10 Virginia/Washington - Maui, Hawaii 4:30/9:30 ET
11/24/10 TBD Maui Tourney - Hawaii TBA
11/30/10 vs. Boston University - Lexington, Ky. TBA
12/04/10 at North Carolina - Chapel Hill, N.C. 12:30 p.m. ET
12/08/10 vs. Notre Dame - Louisville, Ky. 9:30 p.m. ET
12/11/10 vs. Indiana - Lexington, Ky. 5:15 p.m. ET
12/18/10 vs. Mississippi Valley State - Lexington, Ky. TBA
12/22/10 vs. Winthrop - Lexington, Ky. TBA
12/28/10 vs. Coppin State - Lexington, Ky. TBA
12/31/10 at Louisville - Louisville, Ky. 12:00 p.m. ET
01/03/11 vs. Penn - Lexington, Ky. 7:00 p.m. ET
01/08/11 at Georgia -Athens, Ga. 4:00 p.m. ET
01/11/11 vs. Auburn -Lexington, Ky. 7:00 p.m. ET
01/15/11 vs. LSU -Lexington, Ky. 4:00 p.m. ET
01/18/11 at Alabama - Tuscaloosa, Ala. 9:00 p.m. ET
01/22/11 at South Carolina - Columbia, S.C. 6:00 p.m. ET
01/29/11 vs. Georgia - Lexington, Ky. 4:00 p.m. ET
02/01/11 at Ole Miss - Oxford, Miss. 7:00 p.m. ET
02/05/11 at Florida - Gainesville, Fla. 9:00 p.m. ET
02/08/11 vs. Tennessee - Lexington, Ky. 9:00 p.m. ET
02/12/11 at Vanderbilt - Nashville, Tenn. 1:00 p.m. ET
02/15/11 vs. Mississippi State - Lexington, Ky. 7:00 p.m. ET
02/19/11 vs. South Carolina - Lexington, Ky. 4:00 p.m. ET
02/23/11 at Arkansas - Fayetteville, Ark. 8:00 p.m. ET
02/26/11 vs. Florida - Lexington, Ky. 4:00 p.m. ET
03/01/11 vs. Vanderbilt - Lexington, Ky. 9:00 p.m. ET
03/06/11 at Tennessee - Knoxville, Tn. 12:00 p.m. ET

GameDay to cover UK vs. Florida...

UPDATE: So yeah, we read the press release wrong. GameDay will be in Florida, not Lexington. Oh well, its still good exposure for the program either way.

I guess the conspiracy about ESPN hating UK is a bit overblown. After all, ESPN did announce today that they will be returning to Kentucky for their February showdown with Florida. This will be the second straight year, and two of the last three seasons, that Gameday has come to Lexington.

For more details about ESPN's College Basketball Gameday schedule, click here.

UK Football team offers helping hands...

Saturday Stuff...

Gomez here...

Well as you might have noticed, we took a few days off after the Canadian beat down, but we're checking in today to share a few thoughts about the trip.

First off all, like we mentioned, the Wildcats went up north and easily won three exhibition games at Windsor University. Brandon Knight, as expected was exceptionally strong and appears to be more than ready to replace John Wall as the Wildcats' starting point guard. He played under control, shot for a high percentage, and nailed his free throws. He also dished the ball to his teammates on a regular basis, proving himself unselfish when necessary.

Also of note was the outstanding play of our veterans, namely DeAndre Liggins and Darius Miller. Both of these guys appear more than able to step up into the leadership roles that this team clearly needs. They played hard on both ends of the floor and were vocal with their teammates when they needed to be. Since most of the roster will be made up of new players to the program, this veteran leadership will be key. It should be exciting to see how they continue to develop over the remainder of the off-season.

Overall, I think there's alot of reasons to be optimistic, especially when you keep in mind that Vargus and Kanter didn't make the trip, and Jones was unavailable for most of the trip due to injury. When those three guys rejoin the team, the Cats should prove to be even stronger, especially down low.

Again, its early, and the final product will look much different when the Wildcats take the floor on November 12 for the season opener against East Tennessee State. With that said, I think we saw enough during these games to give us some solid expectations as to what this Kentucky team can become before March. Losing 5 first round draft picks will certainly be difficult to replace, but so far, it seems this new batch of Cats are going to be ready for the challenge.

We'll be back later with more updates on what's going on with UK basketball and football this fine weekend.

Cats finish 3-0 in Canada...

Gomez here...

Kentucky won again, beating Windsor for the second time in three days, 104-75 in overtime. (Just kidding about the overtime part.)

Brandon Knight, Doron Lamb and Darius Miller lead the team in scoring (again) and Josh Harrellson grabbed 19 boards and had four steals.

Here's how the final stats for today's game broke down:
Darius Miller 24 pts, 3 reb, 3 assts
Stacey Poole 2 pts, 1 steal
Jon Hood 8 pts, 8 rebs, 4 assts
Brandon Knight 27 pts, 5 rbs, 9 assts
Doron Lamb 23 pts, 3 rbs
Jarrod Polson 2 pts
Deandre Liggins 10 pts, 2 rbs, 6 assts
Josh Harrellson 8 pts, 19 rbs, 4 steals

This morning's game conclude's the Canadian trip, and we'll have more to share about this three game swing later today.

Stay tuned...

UK basketball wins game 2...

Kentucky won its second exhibition game in Canada despite having a limited roster.

The Wildcats, with just eight players available Monday night, still managed to turn up the defensive pressure in a 96-68 victory over Western (Ontario) University.

Kentucky started its three-day, three-game exhibition tour without 6-foot-11 forwards Enes Kanter (awaiting NCAA clearance) and Eloy Vargas (academics). Forward Terrence Jones, a 6-8 freshman, scored four points in the first half of Sunday's opening win over Windsor but left after seeming to aggravate a shoulder injury. Without Jones, who was on the bench in street clothes, the Wildcats had no player taller than 6-7.

The school announced Monday that Jones was taken for an MRI in Detroit, and he was diagnosed with a stress fracture of a rib, which was causing the shoulder pain. He is expected to be available once the Wildcats begin individual workouts in about a month.

Doron Lamb led Kentucky with 24 points, while Darius Miller added 20 and Brandon Knight had 17 points and 12 assists.

Kentucky used its full-court pressure defense to turn a close game into a blowout quickly, forcing 27 turnovers.

The Wildcats led by five points with less than 2 minutes remaining in the first half, then turned it into 23-point lead 7 minutes into the second half.

UK, Knight dominate the first game of trip...

Kentucky coach John Calipari has already started turning a top-notch recruiting class into part of a team that hopes to contend for a national championship.

The Wildcats started a three-day, three-game exhibition series in Canada on Sunday night, defeating the University of Windsor 95-62.

Two months before official practice even begins, incoming freshman point guard Brandon Knight led the Wildcats with 31 points. Knight is supposed to fill the sneakers of John Wall, who led Kentucky to 35 wins last season as a freshman while earning All-America honors.

Wall was one of five Kentucky players - including DeMarcus Cousins, Wall's classmate and fellow All-America - who left school early for the NBA.

The game was played before a sellout crowd of 2,500 at the St. Denis Centre on Windsor's campus.

SI predicts UK to finish 2nd in SEC East...

Gomez here...

Sports Illustrated, which annually only publishes one issue worth looking at, err reading, has predicted that Kentucky will finish with a record of 4-4 in the SEC and in a tie for second-place with Georgia and South Carolina in the East.

While its not beyond the realm of possibility that their record could be either worse or better than that, I'd say we'd all have to be very pleased with an 8-4 record in the first season of Operation Win. It would be the first second-place finish ever for Kentucky, which would be huge.

Just three more weeks, folks and then we'll get to see Joker's first season get underway at Louisville. I guess we'll have to watch some Canadian Basketball to hold us over until the big day.

Anthony Davis Highlight Reel...

Anthony Davis is a Cat

Tonight was a great night for men across America, as it was the night that Expendables hit the big screen. It is only fitting that on a night for men, Calipari proved once again he is THE man. Anthony Davis will be a cat, Chicago Sun Times writers be damned.

Make no mistake, Davis is far from expendable. Many believe he has of surpassing Mike Gilchrest in terms of class rank and NBA potential. Congrats to the Cats on landing what is probably the best power forward in the 2011 class.

If you try to recruit against Calipari, you are probably going to end up like the legions of minions that would dare mess with Sly Stallone and company. LINK

Weekend quick clicks...

:: Quincy Miller names top 3, UK not among schools
:: Former UK commit, Ross-Miller academically ineligible at LSU
:: ESPN explores "Operation Win".
:: Katz talks Cal's Cats upcoming Canada trip...
:: UK Lady Hoops loses PG in pick up game
:: Other than just QB, there are plenty position battles taking place

MORE LATER

Forde: This could be UK's year to beat UT

Gomez here...

It's no big secret that we're not fans of Pat Forde around here. To be honest, we think about as much of Pat Forde as Brandon Phillips does the St. Louis Cardinals. However, most of our hatred for Forde is solely based on his constant jabs at the UK basketball program and our head coach, John Calipari, and not anything to do with his thoughts on college football.

Earlier this week, Forde blogged about some of the rivalries in college football that could be changing tides this year. One of those rivalries is the Kentucky-Tennessee rivalry of the always tough SEC-East. Forde goes out of his way to make sure we know how tough its been for Kentucky against Tennessee, but then makes a case as to why that might finally change this season...

"Upper hand: The Volunteers have won 25 straight in the most lopsided intraleague series in America. There have been blowouts (11 losses by 20 points or more), shutouts (four) and freakouts over agonizing near misses (eight losses by a touchdown or less, including in three of the past four).

Why it might change: For the first time since the SEC split into two divisions nearly 20 years ago, the Wildcats were picked by the media to finish ahead of the Volunteers in the East. Tennessee is in a complete state of flux, with its third coach in three years, an ongoing NCAA investigation and a distinct talent deficit on this year's roster. Kentucky is not exactly flush in its first season under new coach Joker Phillips, but it has returning depth at quarterback, running back and wide receiver -- and multipurpose threat Randall Cobb might be the most versatile player in the country.

Outlook: If it doesn't happen this year, will it ever happen for Kentucky?"

So there you have it. That's about as good as we can expect from Forde. Take it for what it's worth... which ain't much.

More later...

Joker's practice quotes...

via UK Athletics.com.

On practice …“We have some guys that are getting a little bit leg weary, but they are fine. I will say it again, we are still in the teaching phase, implementing a lot of our offense, defense and special teams. We are trying to get a lot of drill work in and tomorrow we will continue to do the same thing. We need to practice a little faster to get some more reps because we will be practicing as a full team tomorrow.”

On offensive line coach Mike Summers …“He is so demanding in making sure that the guys are working fundamentals and he does a good job of teaching those. He is so demanding in making them push and go and is just so sharp. The thing that you have to be able to see is five guys up front when it is a front-side play, but you still have to know what is happening on the backside too. Mike can see that and although he is coaching up the front side, he can see what is happening on the backside and will correct those guys. He is really, really good and a tough guy. He is tough on them, but he doesn’t swear. However, he does scream. I have never heard him swear but he is demanding on them.”

On if that makes him feel better moving Chandler Burden to the offensive side when you have a coach like Coach Summers …“Definitely, one thing that Mike does is if a guy is having problems this time of year, we don’t have any 20-hour rule, they are in his office making sure they know what he wants them to do. That is our deal. It is the coach’s responsibility to make sure that they know what they are supposed to do. He has been coaching Chandler up since he moved over there and has done a good job. Chandler is starting to understand. The other thing is that Mike is a great teacher. You have to have some different teaching strategies because sometimes you have to be simple and sometimes you have to be complex. He knows both.”

On the tight end position and the battle in camp for the starting nod … “I really like our tight end position but the thing that we have to do is be more physical. Those guys are getting coached really, really hard right now by Coach (Greg) Nord and Coach Summers. They (Nord and Summers) have been together before so they understand where each other fits and what each other is thinking. They are doing a good job of getting the guys to know what to do. I feel really good that our tight ends will be better. We just have to be more physical right now. We are doing a good job with the passing routes and those things but we have to be physical. You and I both know that we have to run the ball in this league to be successful.”

On if the first day of full pads is his favorite practice …“Definitely, that is what football is. I have seen a lot of All-Americans in shorts but when you put the pads on them you can’t find them. I want to see who can play football, which is running into people. I am looking forward to tomorrow.”

On Alex Smith and his development …“He is big and physical. He doesn’t really know a lot of things right now, like where he fits on a lot of plays but the thing he does do is when you see him on the sled he has some snap in his hips. He can be a real physical guy right now; he just doesn’t know what to do all the time. When he does know, he has some snap in his hips and how to use his hands. He is a big body and will fight through.”

On Joe Mansour’s kicking thus far …“I have seen very little, but when you are walking past him the ball sounds different. It sounds different then kickers I have been around in the past. I don’t always know where it is going, but when it comes off his foot it sounds a little bit different. It sounds like a shotgun. I haven’t been around many shotguns but that is what it sounds like (laughing). He has some swagger. That is what the kids all talk about now is swagger and he has that. You have to have that, especially at his position.”

On the quarterback situation and if they are all still even … “They are. Again, I really like how all three of them have command of the ball right now. It is a lot different than in the spring. In the first four days when you guys were out here it didn’t look good all the time. I think that right now they all have command of the ball and know where it is going. That is something that I couldn’t have said earlier this spring.”

On Gene McCaskill and where he fits into the wide receiver corps … “Gene knows what is going on I think that is important. He has been in some big games and was a starter as a true freshman. When Chris Matthews came in he was a little bit more talented than him so we moved him up. Gene has a bright future here at wide receiver. He will be third or fourth in our lineup.”

On Dave Ulinski, who has been wearing a cast on his hand and wrist… “I think that he (Dave Ulinski) is fine, he practiced today with it. Everyone is fine. We have typical soreness that you are going to have this time of year with groins and hamstrings. We had some guys that were pulled out late and we will found out exactly how they are doing but hopefully they will be back tomorrow.”

Canada Trip Details...

Brandon Knight and the Cats are ready for Canada

Gomez here...

I've been thinking, and I don't think I can ever recall watching a UK basketball team play an actual game against another college team in the month of August...ever. Sure, I've seen pick-up games, blue-white tour games, and that sorta' stuff, but never an actual exhibition game against another college team. Yes, Wildcat faithfuls, this is a rare treat, so enjoy it.

And luckily, there will be plenty of ways you can in fact enjoy the exhibition games in the northern country. As of now, all three games will be on television and radio, from Pikeville to Paducah. There was some concern early on that only the markets in Lexington and Louisville would be seeing the games on TV, but Coach Cal put those fears to rest last week by posting the specifics on his Facebook page.

As he reported, every major market in the state will cover the game, and it will also be on Fox Sports South. In other words, just tune in to the same channel you normally watch the local coverage of Kentucky basketball and you should be fine.

There are three games in total, and they are Sunday at 6 pm, Monday at 6 pm and Tuesday at 10 am, and those are central time, since that's where I reside and what time I need to tune in to catch the action. If you're not in the central zone, these times do not apply to you, so don't bomb me with hateful emails about you missing the game because of my blog post. Got it?! Good.

Anyway, there's a bit of bad news along with the good. Unfortunately, one of the Cats that we're most looking forward to seeing in action, Enes Kanter, will most likely not be making the trip since he's still not cleared by the NCAA to do so. There's a chance he could be cleared this week, but I wouldn't hold your breath. Oh well, as long as he gets cleared by November, that's all that really matters in the grand scheme of things. Also, Eloy Vargas will not be making the trip either.

However, we'll still get a good look at the rest of the Cats, including our first real looks at Knight, Lamb, Jones and Poole in Kentucky blue. It'll be interesting to see how well they play in such a raw form. Keep in mind, the boys normally don't even begin practice until mid-October, so they're very much going to be a work in progress.

We'll also get to see how much improvements have been made to our returning players. Word on the street is that Hood and Harrelson have both improved drastically and are playing with more confidence than ever before. The same can be said about Liggins and Miller, as well. Just like last year, I'm looking forward to seeing how well the new and the old mesh together, and perhaps just a small glimpse of what is to come later in the regular season.

Again, this is such a rare opportunity, so be sure to check in and check out the latest version of Cal's Cats as they take the floor in Canada. As always, we'll be talking about right here at BBNR, so stay tuned!

We talkin' bout practice, man!

OTL: The Pitino Scandal

Kentucky Football Preview

The Maui Bracket is set...

Sypher found guilty on all counts...

Karen Cunagin Sypher, 50, of Louisville, was found guilty of three counts of extortion, two counts of lying to the FBI and one count of retaliating against a witness. As the jury's verdict was read, Sypher closed her eyes and then opened them and stared at the ceiling. One of her sons sitting in the front row with other family members wept openly.

The case involved a 2003 sexual encounter between Pitino and Sypher at a table inside an Italian restaurant closed for the night. Pitino testified she came on to him and the sex was consensual. After she was charged, Sypher told police it was rape but Pitino was never charged.

Last year, Pitino received threatening phone calls and two letters demanding cash and gifts for Sypher to keep the tryst secret.

Sypher faces a maximum sentence of 26 years in prison, but under federal sentencing guidelines, the penalty will likely be lighter. She will be sentenced Oct. 27.

The jury deliberated for slightly more than five hours over two days. The trial lasted eight days.

"This was nothing more than a pure shakedown of Richard Pitino," Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Ford told jurors in closing arguments Wednesday.

Defense attorney James Earhart told jurors Sypher had been "villainized" during the trial. He argued that the government's case proved that "rules don't apply to the privileged" like Pitino. The star witness was Pitino.

Prosecution and defense attorneys questioned him in detail about the night he met Sypher, then known as Karen Wise. The married father of five told the jury they had sex in an empty restaurant after she whispered to him and then unzipped his pants.

The tryst that he described as lasting 15 seconds was "unfortunate," Pitino told the jury. Sypher watched attentively during Pitino's six hours of testimony but showed no reaction.

After a brief stumble stepping into the witness box, Pitino held his own as he sparred with the defense lawyer. He struggled to control his emotion as he described how hard it had been to tell his family about the affair and advise his son, then working on his staff, to take a job at Florida to avoid the unpleasant publicity.

Although Sypher never testified, jurors heard her version of events when prosecutors played a never-broadcast TV interview where she claimed Pitino raped her.

"It didn't last long. It seemed like hours for me," Sypher said, appearing to cry. "All he said was shut up, shut up and be quiet."

Although some witnesses described Sypher as persistent and flirty that night, no one else testified to witnessing the sex.

The jury also heard how Pitino responded when Sypher told him a few weeks later she was pregnant. She met her future husband when Pitino asked his longtime aide, Tim Sypher, for help. Tim Sypher testified he arranged for an abortion and paid for it with $3,000 Pitino had given Karen Sypher.

Pitino claimed he thought the money was for counseling and medical needs but Sypher later said she had an abortion.

The Syphers married soon after and occasionally saw Pitino at events, Tim Sypher said.

The coach told jurors that he received phone calls in February 2009 from a man who threatened to expose what happened between Pitino and Karen Sypher.

"He mentioned the word rape. I got very sick to my stomach," Pitino said.

He acknowledged to jurors, though, that he didn't go to authorities for about two months as he tried to "contain" the damaging information.

Prosecutors showed the jury a handwritten note from Sypher that asked for cars, tuition for her children and her mortgage to be paid off.

Two witnesses who testified they helped Sypher by making threats to Pitino also said they were sexually involved with her.

Cal impressed with early practices...

UK gets ten practices before their trip to Canada in a couple of weeks. So far, the Kentucky coach has been well pleased with what he's seen with his latest crop of NBA ready talent.

Coach Calipari said that he was pleasantly suprised to see how skilled Stacey Poole was and the high athleticism of new point guard, Brandon Knight. Meanwhile, the coach was equally impressed with Enes Kanter and Doran Lamb.

One player that might take longer to impress his new coach will be Terrence Jones. Calipari said that while Terrence Jones will undoubtedly be a playmaker, he is still battling an ankle injury and is not 100%. Cal says Jones is going to treatment three to four times a day because he definitely wants to be on the court when the Cats go to Canada.

We're just a couple of weeks away from these rare summer games, and it sounds like we're in for a treat when the second edition of Cal's Cats finally take the floor.

Davis has made decision...

In case you haven't heard yet, yesterday there was as announcement that 2011's #1 player Anthony Davis has already decided on a college destination. However, he won't officially announce for a couple more weeks, leaving us plenty of time to speculate.

Since the news broke almost immediately following his unofficial visit to UK, there seems to be a general consensus that he'll eventually become a Wildcat. He also recently visited DePaul and Ohio State, and also lists Syracuse as a favorite. Still, like I said, most believe he's heading to Kentucky.

Its actually pretty awesome that news like this has become less and less earth shattering over the past couple of years. Thanks to Coach Cal, we've gone from hoping and praying for this kind of news to just plain expecting it. With that said, if Davis does attend Kentucky, we shouldn't underestimate the impact that he could have on our program.

The defense rests...

Karen Sypher will not take the stand in her trial for allegedly demanding millions to keep quiet about sex with Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino.

It was never clear if 50-year-old Karen Cunagin Sypher would testify on her own behalf at the Louisville trial. But her lawyer ended any chance of calling her by resting the defense case Wednesday morning without calling any witnesses.

Prosecutors ended their case Tuesday after a week of sometimes lurid testimony. Pitino himself testified about the night in 2003 that he and Sypher had sex in a closed Italian restaurant.

Closing arguments in U.S. District Court in Louisville are set to begin later on Wednesday.

Vandy removes "interim" title

Robbie Caldwell’s big day has arrived! When Vanderbilt Head Coach Bobby Johnson decided to retire on July 14, it surprised everyone. Let's face it, football coaches retire in January... not July. Vandy was left with no other choice but to name Robbie Caldwell as their interim coach for the quickly approaching 2010 season.

Caldwell was the assistant coach next in line, which is why he got the interim gig almost immediately. This is standard protocal. However, most didn't really think Vandy would remove the "interim" title so quickly... especially before the season even begins.

What happens if Vandy has a horrible year? What if they lose 7 or 8 games, which isn't beyond the realm of possibility in the SEC. Way to paint yourself in a corner, Vanderbilt. That's why we love you.

Cal and Wall talk to Campers

Bledsoe returns to UK...

Darnell Dodson No Longer a Cat

Another tidbit brought to you via social networking, this time Coach Cal's Facebook page, is that Darnell Dodson will not play for UK this year.

"Practice is underway as we prepare for our Canada trip and I'm pleased with the energy everyone brought," Calipari wrote. "I do want to let you all know that junior Darnell Dodson will not be playing for UK this season. If Darnell, who is academically eligible, decides to return, he could practice with the team if he meets our standards."

Dodson was possibly the teams best returning shooter, but something never quite clicked with him and Kentucky. That seems to be a somewhat recurring theme with JUCO players that have made there way to Lexington. Best of luck to Dodson though, hopefully he lands on his feet somewhere. Maybe we will have a little more luck this time around with incoming JUCO player Eloy Vargas.

Calipari is doing his best to make the BBNR obsolete, but we will stay strong and fight the good fight. Expect more news from Cal throughout the week, and for us to be here to talk about it.

Cal Tweeting About New Look Cats

For those that haven't already heard, the Kentucky Wildcats are taking advantage of a new rule that allows freshman to participate in preseason overseas trips by heading across the northern border to play in Canada. Calipari's assistant John Robic talked more about the trip and its advantages here.

I am going to be honest, following Coach Cal on Twitter was fun at first, but it didn't take long for the new smell to wear off. Calipari is a salesman at heart, and that is on full display in many of his daily tweets. I don't fault him for using social media to his advantage, but it gets easy to gloss over many of Cal's self (and Kentucky) promotions. Today we got a few of the gems that keep you coming back for more.

• Looking forward to seeing how they bounce back tomorrow. about 1 hour ago via txt    
• Josh is lighter on his feet & w/ the way we are gonna play it was good to see him run the floor. We went about 1:40 in both sessions today. about 1 hour ago via txt
• It was a great lesson for the young guys, watching that. I'm seeing a vast improvement in DeAndre's shooting already this year and. Darius has really impressed with his athleticism. Jon Hood looks more comfortable on the floor and I think he's grown an inch. about 1 hour ago via txt 
• They responded great without me saying anything when they didn't do things right. They knew they needed to do it again. about 1 hour ago via txt 
• Glad 2 get started today. There was an adjustment period w/ all the normal things that freshmen don't do, but they all had a skill level......that I'm pleased with. Eloy is not here yet, but the returning players (all four of them) were so much better than a year ago. about 1 hour ago

You can read more of Cal's thoughts on the trip at CoachCal.com.

Parrish on Pitino

BBNR friend, Gary Parrish recently gave his take on the Pitino scandal. Man, it sucks to be a Louisville fan these days...

I think we'll all agree, when we look back in 10 years, that Kentucky's John Calipari did more to hurt Rick Pitino's recruiting than Karen Sypher ever dreamed. Sypher is the worst thing to happen to Pitino's personal life, but Calipari is the worst thing to happen to Pitino's career because having to work 80 miles from Coach One-and-Done is damn-near impossible. Calipari is at the bigger program, he has all the momentum, and elite prospects with a desire to get to the NBA quickly -- i.e., the overwhelming majority of elite prospects -- genuinely do want to play for him.

Calipari can secure commitments from top prospects early.

Or he can lure somebody else's recruits late.

Doesn't matter.

For proof consider that Calipari will enter his second season at UK with his second straight top-ranked recruiting class, and Pitino simply won't be able to keep up because it doesn't seem like anybody other than maybe Duke, North Carolina and Kansas will be able to keep up. Calipari isn't a big problem to Michigan State's Tom Izzo or UCLA's Ben Howland because they operate in different worlds. Pitino, on the other hand, not only operates in the same world as Calipari, he operates in the same state, point being that the bar for Pitino at Louisville will be set wherever Calipari sets it at Kentucky.

And that's a tough gig.

I'd be more optimistic if Pitino were coaching at Arizona.

Or St. John's.

Almost anywhere other than 80 miles from Calipari.