A Good Knight in Windsor

Kentucky's opener of their Canadian exhibition tour started out shaky. The young Cats' were still trying to find their groove as they struggled to pull away from Windsor in the early going and went into the locker rooms with only an eight point lead. Freshman phenom Terrence Jones exited the game early with shoulder problems while Enes Kanter and Eloy Vargas didn't even make the trip. This allowed Senior Josh Harrelson and Sophomore Jon Hood to break into the starting lineup and both players showed a marked improvement with 9 points a piece. Hood even broke away for three fast break dunks and picked away four steals from the Lancers.

In addition, Harrelson added 11 rebounds and five blocks. He was only a point away from a double-double in the absence of Kanter and Jones down low. Leading the way for the returning players was Darius Miller with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Darius knocked down 4 out of 5 three point shots and also had a presence down low that was not seen a year ago on a team with an abundance of superior post players. DeAndre Liggins also has seemed to find a new level of confidence in his game this season as he scored 10 points and shot 5 of 6 from the field.

Returnees Harrelson, Hood, and Liggins pleasantly surprised us tonight and Darius Miller came out and performed like many had expected. The majority of the Freshman that made the trip didn't perform as well, except Brandon Knight, who was phenomenal. Knight was the prime time player tonight and his 31 points was the biggest difference in the 95-62 win for the Cats. Calipari has asked people not to compare him with John Wall, but such comparisons are inevitable and will surely come up throughout the season. Both are very, very special talents. Wall may be a half step quicker, but that doesn't necessarily mean Brandon Knight still isn't the fastest player in college basketball this season. On top of that, his jump shot is unquestionably better than Wall's and he was automatic from the free throw line tonight, going 8 for 8 from the line.

Another freshman that impressed was walk-on Jarrod Polson from Jessamine County who scored a couple of nice buckets, including a break away layup against two defenders (goaltending was called, but the ball would have gone in). Calipari has said that Polson could be the best walk-on he's ever coached and he will surely be a fan favorite in Rupp for the next four years. When this kid is a senior, look for him to be a contributor, especially if Cal's team's remain young on a consistent basis.

Basketball season is upon us in the Bluegrass, even if it will only be for 3 days. We knew we had talent coming in, but it's so much more refreshing to see it produce on the court. There were times that were hard to watch in the first 15 minutes of the game, but after that, the Cats rolled and played very comfortably together as if it were in the middle of conference play. They in fact looked better than last year's team did in early games against Miami (OH) and Sam Houston State. It's only August and the competition wasn't great, but the Cats exceeded my overall expectations, especially Knight and the returning players. It will be another fun season!

The Cats will be right back at it tomorrow night at 7 against Western Ontario University and then again at 11am Tuesday morning against Windsor once again.

Basketball in August: Cats invade Canada.

Never has August been more fun around these parts. The Cincinnati Reds are tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for 1st place in a very wild and incredibly tight NL Central race, Terrell Owens has joined fellow endzone diva Chad Ochocinco with the Bengals, and Sports Illustrated has picked Joker's first UK football team to finish 2nd place in the SEC East, tied with Georgia and just behind Florida.

If all of that wasn't enough to excite local sports fans, John Calipari has brought his Kentucky basketball squad to Canada for Big Blue basketball...in August! In the middle of all of this madness of football season approaching and the Reds fighting for their first playoff birth in 15 years, we will get to see a very early summer's glimpse of the Cats' upcoming basketball team for 3 straight days this Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. The games can be seen on FSN South and FSN Ohio in 14 states, or online anywhere in the world at http://www.ukathletics.com/. They can also be heard on the radio on any of the flagship stations of the Big Blue Network. Basketball in August. This is fun, isn't it?

Unfortunately, freshman Center Enes Kanter will not make the trip as UK is still waiting for a word back from the NCAA regarding his amateur eligibility status after his participation with "Club teams" in his home-nation of Turkey. But fans will get to see a good look at returning players Josh Harrelson and DeAndre Liggins. Harrelson and Liggins have shown a marked improvement according to Calipari and he looks for the two to step up in starting roles, along with fellow returnee Darius Miller. Besides Kanter, the other freshman who will play big roles this year that WILL be making the trip to Canada are Brandon Knight, Doron Lamb, and Terrence Jones.

I appologize for a slow summer here on the site, but I'm ready for football season to begin and I'm equally excited for these summer basketball games in Canada. The site will pick things up right where we left off last March and will grow to be even bigger with more features than ever before.

Tomorrow will be a fun day. The Reds look to sweep the Marlins tomorrow afternoon and the Bengals will be playing their home preseason opener. But, of course, I won't be watching the Bengals because at 7:00 the Cats will tip it off vs. Windsor University and we'll wrap up all the action right here at Wildcat Wrap!