Drew Carey's Wednesday News & Views

This picture is really freaking me out. A few things come to mind when I think of Drew Carey: Cleveland, Ohio; the severely underrated improv show, "Whose Line is it Anyways?"; and his total body transformation into the svelte and bespectacled host of my favorite game show, "The Price is Right." When Bob Barker hung up that ultra-slim mic a few years ago, I was skeptical about his possible replacements. As someone who's seen the "Price is Right" Live Show in Vegas twice, I can tell you that not everyone can pull off Hole-in-One (or Two). So, when Drew Carey was announced as Barker's successor, I was actually pretty satisfied. Like he said in his first show as host, no one can replace Bob Barker, but Drew Carey is a pleasing combination of funny, charming, and I enjoy that he isn't smooth enough not to get lost in a fit of the giggles. It also doesn't hurt that he's a huge sports nut. A very skinny sports nut, that is. Between 2009 and 2010, Carey lost over 80 pounds the old fashioned way--diet and exercise. And, oh yeah, no carbs. Carey, who said he started his weight loss plan because he was "sick of being fat on the camera," managed to eliminate his type-2 diabetes. Since, he joins Jonah Hill, Jennifer Hudson, and other suddenly fit celebrities at whom you can't help but do a double take. Rock on, Drew Carey. Happy birthday. On to the news and views... -- "Montrezl Watch" came to a grinding halt on Tuesday, with news that Harrell has cut UK from his list, and will decide between Louisville, Florida, Cincinnati and Alabama. Harrell's father broke the news to Scout Focus, and Louisville is thought to be the favorite, due to Harrell's relationship with Louisville assistant and former Hargrave Military head coach Kevin Keatts. -- Harrell's omission of the Cats means Kentucky's 2012 recruiting class is likely wrapping up, barring a last minute charge for Tony Trocha, who is currently in his native Colombia waiting on test scores to find out if he's eligible to reclassify to 2012. If Trocha qualifies, he will decide between Kentucky, UCLA, Oregon, and Providence. Rivals' Eric Bossi reports that the seven footer will take two or three visits from the list above, and if you're a betting (wo)man, I'd put money on Lexington being one of them. -- The other big news of the day was the baseball team's 2-0 win over Ole Miss in game one of the SEC Tournament. Pitchers A.J. Reed and Taylor Rogers combined for a shutout performance, with Reed stealing the show with 5.2 shutout innings and a career-best 4-for-4 day at the plate with a solo home run in the fourth inning. Cameron Flynn's RBI single in the sixth inning brought Luke Maille home to score the final run. The Bat Cats advanced to the winner's bracket to play the winner of the LSU vs. Arkansas/Mississippi State on Thursday. -- One more congrats to Danny Trevathan on his brand spankin' new four-year, $2.2 million deal with the Denver Broncos. -- More love for former Cats, this time for Brandon Knight for making the NBA's all-rookie first team, along with Cleveland's Kyrie Irving, Minnesota's Ricky Rubio, Denver's Kenneth Faried, Golden State's Klay Thompson, New York's Iman Shumpert and San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard. In his rookie season with Detroit, Knight averaged 12.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while shooting .415 from the floor. Not too shabby. -- What's that you say? A new NCAA rule that helps Cal and the Cats? Among the NCAA's new rules and guidelines for next season is this niblet, that allows team to hold 16 one-hour practices during the summer school session. With a slew of freshmen headed in for the summer, every minute counts, especially when you're gearing up to defend a title. -- Unsurprisingly, we also learned on Tuesday that Kentucky's six NBA draft entrants were invited to the draft combine June 7-8 in Chicago. Make us proud, boys. We'll be back bright and early with more, hopefully including the release of next season's schedule. It's Ryan Lemond's turn to man the ship while Matt continues his offseason odyssey...maybe our news and views honoree can be an inspiration in his weight loss efforts? Tune in to find out.