KSR Today: Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Some say that summer doesn’t officially start until the Memorial Day Weekend holiday arrives at the end of May. Well, we’re here now despite some of the chilly temperatures throughout the Bluegrass State. Welcome to a three-month stretch that will be filled with vacations, multiple three-day weekends, and a countdown until football season.

You already know that I have already entered countdown mode.

Only 91 days until college football season. pic.twitter.com/1IPjyKLl8I

— Adam Luckett (@AdamLuckettKSR) May 24, 2025

While the Big Blue Nation is getting the grills warmed up and preparing for cookouts or time at the lake with friends or family, it is arguably the slowest Kentucky sports weekend of the year. Nick Mingione’s club is awaiting the selection show after bowing out early in the SEC Tournament. Recruiting for basketball and football has hit a quiet spot before things takeoff in June.

So if you have plans or stuff to do around the house — now is the time to get that done. In the meantime, I’ll be here all day at Kentucky Sports Radio Dot Com to keep you up to speed on all of the important things occurring on the internet.

Can you believe the Knicks are choking against the Pacers? Who saw that coming?

Indiana Pacers are two wins away from NBA Finals

Despite having 10 Eastern Conference Finals berths in franchise history, the Indiana Pacers are looking for just their second NBA Finals berth. That could be occurring in 2025 as a No. 4 seed after finishing the regular season with a 50-32 record.

Indiana stole two games in Madison Square Garden to take 2-0 series lead.

2-0. pic.twitter.com/xFt9eUdLJi

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) May 24, 2025

Pascal Siakam scored 39 points and led Indiana to a 114-109 victory on Friday night despite the Knicks getting a huge game from Jalen Brunson (36 points, 11 assists, 5 three-point field goals). New York is now a remarkable 3-5 at Madison Square Garden in this postseason and faces a must-win situation in a Game 3 on the road. The series shifts to Indianapolis on Sunday night.

The Western Conference Finals will shift to Minneapolis tonight when the Minnesota Timberwolves host the Oklahoma City Thunder. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET with the Thunder holding a 2-0 series lead.

There is a lot of basketball left to be played but it seems like we are heading to an Oklahoma City-Indiana championship series.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Karl-Anthony Towns were named All-NBA — again

The big year for former Cats in the NBA continued on Friday. The league rolled out its All-NBA teams on Friday and both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (first-team) and Karl-Anthony Towns (third-team) earned selections.

We knew this was coming for SGA after the Oklahoma City Thunder star won MVP honors earlier this week. The NBA’s scoring leader has his team just two wins away from the franchise’s first NBA Finals appearance since 2012. Towns made his third All-NBA team after a terrific season with the Knicks following an offseason blockbuster trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

SGA and Towns could meet in the NBA Finals but the Knicks will need a big series comeback.

Kentucky baseball remains No. 3 seed in bracket projections

Kentucky sits 29-24 (13-17) heading into Selection Monday after four consecutive losses to end the season.. The Cats are still a consensus No. 3 seed in the latest Field of 64 projections.

D1Baseball, Baseball America and College Baseball Central all have UK in the field as a No. 3 seed. The Cats are not among the “Last Four In” in any projection. If selected, it would mark the third consecutive season that Kentucky would be a part of the field.

Kentucky is the No. 3 seed in the Conway Regional according to D1Baseball. We will officially find out UK’s destination on Memorial Day.

Down in Hoover, the semifinals in this single-elimination SEC Tournament will take place on Saturday before a champion is crowned on Sunday. No. 1 seed Texas and No. 2 seed Arkansas were knocked out of the tournament on Friday. A double-header is up next.

• No. 8 Tennessee vs. No. 4 Vanderbilt (1 p.m. ET | SEC Network)
• No. 7 Ole Miss vs. No. 3 LSU (4:30 p.m. ET | SEC Network)

Big Blue Nation helps UK Athletics send tornado relief supplies

With severe weather devastating parts of Kentucky, UK football player Jager Burton and basketball player Trent Noah spearheaded a tornado relief drive outside of Kroger Field on Thursday and Friday. Donations were accepted on both days, ranging from rakes and shovels to cleaning supplies to paper goods flashlights and lanterns, all to help victims in Laurel and Pulaski Counties.

The drive started with an empty Kentucky football equipment trailer — typically used to bring an entire team’s worth of helmets, pads and uniforms across the country for games. By the time things wrapped up in the Blue Lot, the massive trailer was loaded with supplies and on its way to London and Somerset.

UK called. The BBN delivered.

We’ve got more from Mark Pope’s interview with Matt Jones

Kentucky head coach Mark Pope sat down with KSR’s Matt Jones earlier this week to discuss his first season back at his alma mater and what will come next after a busy roster-building season that included high school recruiting, talent retention, and addressing needs in the transfer portal.

We are still unpacking everything that Pope covered in that interview. Miss something? We’ve got you covered.

• Mark Pope wants players who embrace Kentucky
• Mark Pope wants more three-point shot attempts
• Mark Pope wants more marquee games

That’s all I’ve got. Let’s have a Saturday.