December 15th: On this date...

.... in 2003, senior offensive extraordinaire Derek Abney was named a second team All-American by the Associated Press. He was named to the team as simply an all-purpose player, as you had to get him in the fold somehow. Abney led the Southeastern Conference in all-purpose yardage averaging just under 152 yards per game. Big Blue used Abney in almost every facet of the game, as he ran, caught, and returned his way to the record books. All of this came on the heels of a consensus selection as a first team everything across the board in 2002 (AP, ESPN, Football Writers, Walter Camp, CBS Sportsline, CNNSI, to name a few) after returning a record six kicks for touchdowns. Abney ended his career with five NCAA records, 11 Southeastern Conference records, and 14 University of Kentucky records for returns and all-purpose yards. He was also the first player in NCAA history to have 2,000 receiving yards, 2,000 kickoff return yards, and 1,000 punt return yards in a career. Remind you of anyone?

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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.

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WLEX's Story On The Nash Family

Leah Nash and her family's continuously updated blog.

December 13th: On this date....

..... in 2003, in a game that would be titled “Basketbowl”, your University of Kentucky Wildcats played the Michigan State Spartans at Detroit’s Ford Field. The reason the game was called “Basketbowl” was because the schools were attempting to set a World Record for basketball game attendance. And they did. The official attendance was 78,129, setting a mark unmatched by anyone else in the history of the Universe. Big Blue never trailed throughout the contest and won the game by a score of 79-74. Tubby Smith proclaimed, “We aren’t intimidated by this kind of atmosphere.”  The Wildcats were led by Gerald Fitch’s 25 points (4-6 shooting from 3-point range) and Chuck Hayes’ dominance down low (17 points - 12 rebounds - 4 assists - 2 blocks - 2 steals). The uncommon atmosphere proved no big deal for Kentucky, as they shot a fiery 60% from the field. Two February's ago, the NBA broke the attendance record during the 2010 NBA All Star game. Jerry Jones opened his billion dollar stadium to LeBron & Friends ending with an official total of 108,713. Feel free to continue your hatred of Jerry Jones.

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December 12th: On this date....

.... in 1987, your #1 ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats moved to 4-0 as they escaped with a 76-75 squeaker over unranked rival Louisville. Cedric “Swoop” Jenkins tipped in a basket as time was running out to give the Wildcats a victory in front of 23,489 fans at Rupp Arena. After racing out to a 45-32 halftime lead, Kentucky allowed Denny Crum’s Cardinals to cut it to 60-59 with just under nine minutes left to play. Louisville’s Pervis Ellison ( 20 points - 13 rebounds - 5 assists - 4 steals - 3 blocks) was a big part of the comeback as he dominated the low post for 39 minutes and 59 seconds of the rivalry game. That lone second turned out to be huge as Ellison left Jenkins under the basket alone (to cover a wide open Rex Chapman) for the winning tip. High scorers for the Good Guys were: Rex Chapman (21 points); Ed Davender (20 points); Winston Bennett (14 points), and Eric Manuel (8 points).

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Calipari 3.09 - Davis Foul Trouble, Indiana 3's Doom Cats

December 11th: On this date....

.... in 2004, your 10th ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats beat Indiana 73-58 at Freedom Hall. Patrick “Booger” Sparks led the way for Big Blue that day tallying 16 points and six assists. Senior Chuck Hayes led the low post guys with 14 points and nine rebounds. The win pushed the Cats to 6-1 on the season and was the fifth straight win in the annual series with the Hoosiers. After Kentucky got out to a 33-24 halftime lead, Indiana cut the lead to five, 42-37, with eleven minutes to play. Kelenna Azubuike (7 points - 5 rebounds - 4 assists) then sparked an 11-0 run to put the game on ice. The candy-stripers from Bloomington were dominated in the post as Kentucky outscored them 38-10 in the paint. Along with Hayes, Randolph Morris (11 points) and 7'-3 Shagari Alleyne (10 points - 5 rebounds - 4 blocks) dominated down low. Bracey Wright led IU with 31 points on 6-12 shooting from 3-point range.

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December 10th: On this date...

..... in 2002, your 12th ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats outmanned Tulane 76-60 in New Orleans to win their fourth straight game. The Cats traveled to the Bayou as a favor to former Tubby Smith assistant coach Shawn Finney. It would hopefully give the Cats an early look at the scenery for the upcoming SEC Tournament and Final Four. (Dwayne Wade had other plans though, single-handedly taking us out in the Elite Eight with a triple-double: 29 points - 11 rebounds - 11 assists) Keith Bogans led Big Blue by going 5-5 from 3-point range and finishing with 21 points - 5 assists - 6 steals. Kentucky got out early and took a 45-26 lead to halftime and cruised from there. Tulane led for only two minutes at the beginning before UK got into its rhythm. Marquis Estill added 10 points and 7 rebounds. Jules Camara had 12 points and 5 rebounds. Sophomore Chuck Hayes added four points, nine rebounds, and four assists.

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 ..... in 2009, this happened.

 

December 9th: On this date....

..... in 2002, in what has easily become a blessing in disguise, Kentucky head football coach Guy Morriss resigned from his position at the University of Kentucky. It was a move that even the most loyal Kentucky fans knew in their heart he couldn’t be blamed. The NCAA was on the verge of coming down hard for the transgressions of the previous coaching staff, and Morriss didn’t want to be around that one bit. Scholarship numbers would be destroyed for the near future and Morriss had already spoke to Baylor about their head coach opening. The Wildcats would need a super-human. A man that even the great Chuck Norris would be impressed. A man that loved the outdoors. A man that would not be afraid to flip over in a boat on a fishing trip. A man who loved to watch tomatoes grow like an average human likes to watch television. A man who knew what he was getting himself into. A man looking for a challenge. This man’s name was Richard P. Brooks. The “P.” of course standing for PaPaw. It was a decision that gets held against Mitch Barnhart to this day. Look who’s laughing now.

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December 8th: On this date....

..... in 2001, all-time Kentucky great Tayshaun Prince had his signature day as a Kentucky Wildcat. As Bill Raftery so duly noted, Prince had his “puppies set off the bus” as he came out on fire in Kentucky’s game vs. North Carolina in Rupp Arena. He started the game 5-5 from 3-point range, ending with a dagger from 105 feet away. The fifth had to simply demoralize an outmanned North Carolina bunch. Big Blue went on to win 79-59 in what was North Carolina’s first trip to Rupp Arena. Prince actually hit his sixth straight 3-pointer eight minutes into the game and ended the day 7-11 behind the arc. The line for the Compton, California native was 31 points - 11 rebounds - 4 assists - 4 steals. Seeing ya boy shaking his head after the second one gives me goosebumps to this day. It was an outstanding way to welcome the boys from Chapel Hill to Lexington. While the Heels were in their Billy Clyde-esque Era, I’m sure no Kentucky fan lost any sleep over it. Enjoy.

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December 7th: On this date....

..... in 1996, fresh off winning their sixth National Championship, your University of Kentucky Wildcats thrashed Robert Montgomery Knight and Indiana University in Freedom Hall, 99-65. The Hoosiers were ranked #8 that day, so it sent a message to everyone in college basketball that Kentucky was coming out swinging in defense of its title. Derek Anderson (30 points) and Ron Mercer (26 points) proved too athletic for the Chair-Throwing Candy-Stripers as the lead had grown to 55-31 by halftime. Even the human victory cigar Steve Masiello got in for three minutes and scored three points, all on free throws. I’m not going to lie, watching a young Rick Pitino blast Bobby Knight and Indiana each year was one of my favorite memories of the Pitino Era. The amount of frustration of Knight’s face during the games was abundant, as I’m sure we got to witness almost all of his “game-faces."

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December 6th: On this date....

..... in 2003, your ninth-ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats took a road trip to Los Angeles to play UCLA in the John Wooden Classic. The outcome was a 52-50 slugfest win for the Good Guys. Some called it a game of defensive mastery, others called it a poor shooting effort from both teams. Big Blue shot only 27 percent from the field, as a hot Bruin team made 34 percent of their field goals. Erik Daniels finished the game with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Chuck Hayes added nine points and 13 rebounds. Hayes, Cliff Hawkins, and Gerald Fitch finished the day a combined 6-32 from the floor. The embarrassing 27-17 score at halftime was awful, except for the fact we were leading. Ben Howland’s team cut the lead to three multiple times in the second half, and the final tally was the closest UCLA ever got. Kentucky never trailed on the day. Something even John Wooden could appreciate. The game was so brutal, pundits across the country referred to it as something called "Big Ten" basketball.

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December 5th: On this date....

..... in 1953, Cawood Ledford called his first game as “The Voice of the Wildcats”. Coach Adolph Rupp led Kentucky to a 86-59 rout of Temple. The game was played in Memorial Coliseum. All-time great Cliff Hagan led the Wildcats that day with memorable performance of 51 points. Frank Ramsey (10 points) was the only other player in double figures. Cawood had to be smiling from ear-to-ear after witnessing Hagan score that many in his debut. The 27-year-old Ledford wouldn’t leave the radio broadcast for the next 39 years, as impressive a run as we’ve ever seen. Radio broadcasts would start off by Cawood signing in, “Hello everybody, this is Cawood Ledford.” He is also one of, if not the first, radio personality to announce which way the game would be played on the radio dial. His last game was in 1992. I’ll leave it at that.

.....in 2009, The Freak Show himself, Jimmy Wall had his coming out party in the kickoff to CBS's Road To The Final Four.

December 4th: On this date....

..... in 2008, your University of Kentucky announced plans to celebrate the life of long time equipment manager Bill Keighley during a December 7th game vs. Mississippi Valley State. Mr. Wildcat’s jersey would be retired into Rupp’s rafters for the final time during halftime. The University wanted to mark Keightley’s legacy in a multitude of ways. Among them were: a permanent spot on the Arena floor in front of Mr. Wildcat’s seat at the head of the bench; a black “K” on the uniforms; a silk ribbon on the shoulder of the uniform that read “Mr. Wildcat”; a Mr. Wildcat Catspy Award; an annual golf tournament; and a scholarship fund set up for future UK men’s basketball managers. The most visible difference on December 7th would be the black uniforms with each player’s number, but with Keightley’s name on the back. A very classy tribute for an all-time Wildcat legend.

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Calipari 3.08 - Davis Block Seals Epic Victory Over Tar Heels

December 3rd: On this date....

..... in 2006, your University of Kentucky Wildcats accepted its first bowl bid in seven years after they were invited to the 2006 Music City Bowl in Nashville, TN. The seven year bowl drought, along with the fact Nashville is a morning drive away for most people, all but guaranteed Big Blue Nation would come out in full force for the December 29th showdown with Clemson. Big Blue finished the season on a strong note, after getting blasted by LSU 49-0 in Baton Rouge, winning four of their final five games. Those four wins gave UK a 7-5 overall record, and a 4-4 mark in the toughest division in college football. That record was good enough for a third place SEC East finish, but still not good enough to beat Tennessee or Florida. It was good enough, though, to beat any trash coming over from the ACC.

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Calipari 3.07 - Jones Dominates, Davis Almost Gets His Triple-Double In Win Over Johnnies

December 2nd: On this date...

..... in 1972, Kentucky great Joe B. Hall coached his first game as the head basketball coach for the University. The #8 Wildcats faced Michigan State at Jenison Fieldhouse in East Lansing, with the good guys winning 75-66. Jim Andrews led the way for UK, scoring 20 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. The honeymoon was over after game one, though, as Hall lost his next three games. I’m going to go out on a limb and say the rabid Kentucky fan base took these three losses with a grain of salt and moved on with their lives. What, you don’t think that’s how it went down? Joe B and kids rebounded nicely and ended the season 20-8, including a 10-game win streak from February-March. The last loss of the season was Regional Finals loss to Indiana. Hall went on to coach 13 seasons at the University and compiled 297 wins, losing only 100. Joe B celebrated his 83rd birthday this past Wednesday.

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Playoff Seeding Tiebreaker Rules For THE LEXFL 9.0

December 1st: On this date....

..... in 1950, your University of Kentucky Wildcats played their first basketball game in Memorial Coliseum, beating West Texas State. Bill Spivey led the Cats that day with 18 points, hitting seven field goals and making four free throws. The official attendance was 8,000 to see Adolph Rupp usher in what would become an overwhelmingly difficult place to play for Kentucky opponents. The Wildcats hold an all-time winning percentage of (.890) in Memorial, with a 307-38 record. The most recent win coming in the Spring of 2009 as there was a conflict between Kentucky’s NIT game vs. UNLV and the KHSAA Sweet Sixteen. It was a raucous atmosphere, as the tickets were given out in a first come-first served basis, virtually guaranteeing no one sleeping during the game, like most Rupp Arena crowds. Memorial Coliseum cost $3.9 million to build, roughly equivalent to how much John Calipari makes per win.

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