December 14th: On this date...

... in 1924, your University of Kentucky Wildcats played their first ever basketball game in storied Alumni Gym, beating Cincinnati, 28-23. The Gym was completed for the 1924-25 season after the Board of Trustees complained the Barker’s Hall Buell Armory was unsafe for the amount of fans trying to see the game. Near riots occurred as fans were turned away game after game because of safety concerns. Known as the “White Elephant”, the 2,800 seat, $100,000 structure is considered the birthplace of Kentucky’s storied basketball tradition. In 1928, torrential downpours flooded downtown Lexington and Alumni Gymnasium, which included all of the basketball offices in its basement. Any and all records for Kentucky basketball were thus lost. (After a bit of research, I concluded that Kentucky basketball went 126-0 and won 22 National Championships.) In 1930, Adolph Rupp came in and started the official reign of dominance. In 19 seasons, Rupp’s record at Alumni Gym was 201-8.......seriously. The University’s overall record in 26 total seasons was 247-24, a .911 winning percentage.

Big Blue Booyah on Tom Leach