KSR's top takeaways from Kentucky MBB at Big Blue Madness
Where do you even begin with something like that? The Kentucky Wildcats put on a show in Mark Pope‘s second Big Blue Madness as the head coach in Lexington with special guests coming home and a season of big-time expectations starting on a high note.
Who were the biggest standouts and event MVPs? Did the surprises live up to the hype? Was this day one of the journey to banner No. 9?
KSR has the takeaways from Rupp Arena.
Welcome home, John Wall
Mark Pope said he was ‘down to the wire’ on ‘special’ surprises for Big Blue Madness, and wouldn’t you believe it, he pulled it off. After weeks of rumors and speculation that John Wall could be making his return to Lexington, the Wildcat legend not only made an appearance, but even brought back the iconic dance that made him a household name in the blue and white.
Pope started with Sirius by The Alan Parsons Project — best known as the intro music for Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls — and Wall finished with Ice Cream Paint Job, just like 2009 all over again.
The coolest part? He wore the same Kentucky jumpsuit from his debut 16 years ago to complete the full-circle moment.
“Thank you to the iconic (John Wall) for joining us for an electrifying return to (Big Blue Madness)!” Pope shared on social media.
“A lot of people didn’t think I’d come back once Cal left, but this is the school I played for,” Wall said on the SEC Network+ broadcast. “Yes, Cal was my coach and I love Cal to death, but this is the school that gave me an opportunity for a DI scholarship and reach my ultimate goal to play college basketball. This place, in my heart, will always have a place for me. I’m always going to be able to come back and support.
“I wanted to surprise them, when Coach Pope asked me to be here, I was like, ‘Let me see if I can make that happen.’ I wanted to make it happen.”
Pope made the impossible happen with Rick Pitino returning to Lexington as a hero in his first Madness. In his second? None other than John freaking Wall coming home.
— Jack Pilgrim
Trent Noah was MVP of the night
We know the Mountain Mamba is proud of his Harlan roots, but man, how about the sophomore pulling off a surprise of his own during player intros? Trent Noah was joined by Jordan Smith, season nine winner of The Voice, who sang a bone-chilling rendition of You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive.
“In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky,” Smith belted as he rose to the stage, Noah on the other side soaking in the roar from Big Blue Nation, followed by his official introduction over the loudspeaker. “That’s the place where I trace my bloodline. And it’s there I read on a hillside gravestone, ‘You will never leave Harlan alive.'”
Magical and uniquely Trent Noah.
Also magical and uniquely Trent Noah? His 3-point shot, one that earned him a trophy to add to his trophy case, winning the shooting contest in convincing fashion — capped off by a Koby Brea turnaround at the buzzer to put the icing on the cake.
Noah grew up a diehard Kentucky fan doing the John Wall Dance as a kid. Today, John Wall handed him the 3-Point Contest trophy at Big Blue Madness. Life comes at you fast.
— Jack Pilgrim
Collin Chandler might just be the best athlete on the team
That’s back-to-back Dunk Contest victories at Big Blue Madness for Collin Chandler, who continues to make an argument that he’s the best pure athlete on the team. Denzel Aberdeen might have something about that, but he wasn’t the one throwing down deep reverse slams or jumping from just inside the free-throw line for eye-popping slams. Nope. That would be the man from Utah.
Chandler’s first dunk was clean and impressive, but it lacked the flair needed to really put a stamp on a Dunk Contest. So he brought out John Wall to help him with his championship round dunk. Smart decision. With a run-up from the other side of the court, Chandler sprinted down the middle of the floor as Wall lofted a perfect pass that Chandler caught at the apex of his jump and smoothly threw into the net. Chandler was about a half-foot inside the free-throw line, but we don’t care — it was one of the cooler dunks you’ll ever see out of a college player.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Monday Lowe Update
Per Pope, Lowe's shoulder in 'really good shape'
- 2New
5 Stages of UK FB Grief
It's time to mourn the Stoops era
- 3New
Auburn game time
Cats vs. Tigers at night on Nov. 1
- 4Trending
Another Lowe update
MRI came back negative
- 5New
Ochocinco
Chad Johnson criticizes UK's playcalling
Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Chandler and Wall doing the John Wall Dance afterward was just the cherry on top.
— Zack Geoghegan
Kam Williams won a fan $5k of Mark Pope’s money
Right before we wrapped up BBM, one lucky fan had the opportunity to win up to $25,000 if he hit a halfcourt shot. It didn’t exactly go well for this particular member of the Big Blue Nation, who missed the first two as dozens of UK alumni stood right next to him for some added pressure.
But Mark Pope wanted to give him another chance, offering up $5,000 of his own money if he hit the third attempt. No dice. But what about a fourth attempt? Sure! The fan was smart about it for the final shot, recruiting a Kentucky player to take it for him. He correctly chose Kam Williams, who stepped up and drilled the halfcourter, sending the fan home with a nice chunk of change in his back pocket.
— Zack Geoghegan
The BBN sang Happy Birthday to Brandon Garrison’s son
During last season, we learned that Brandon Garrison is the father of an adorable young boy named Akarii. Remember when Garrison brought him to the postgame press conference after the road win over Oklahoma? Well, we got to see tiny Akarii again at BBM. Garrison brought him out during his introduction, but Akarii didn’t seem to want anything to do with the 20,000 fans cheering on his dad. We can’t blame him. Rupp was loud. There was clearly a plan for Garrison to reenact the famous Circle of Life scene from The Lion King with his son, but he realized in real time that Akarii wasn’t about it.
But Akarii would still have his moment (even if he’ll never remember it). Later in the event, Garrison took the mic and asked the crowd to all sing Akarii, who has a birthday coming up very soon, the Happy Birthday song. A very cool moment for father and son, one that Garrison likely won’t forget anytime soon.
— Zack Geoghegan
An all-time intro video makes its debut
Otega Oweh staring at Oscar Tshiebwe’s National Player of the Year poster will sit with you for longer than you care to admit, but that’s really the case for the entire new intro video for the Cats, which debuted at Big Blue Madness.
The current Wildcats walk into a room of Kentucky basketball history, putting their hands on memorabilia as they continue their own careers looking to leave their own marks. It’s a combination of past and future that will undoubtedly send chills up your spine.
You’ll be singing I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For until the Blue-White Game next weekend — and probably the rest of the season.
— Jack Pilgrim
Jasper Johnson is the best dancer on the team
Trent Noah and Otega Oweh stole the show during player introductions, but no one had better dance moves than Jasper Johnson. The freshman Kentucky native has been waiting a long time for his Big Blue Madness moment, and he made sure to enjoy every second of it. Of course, he initially came out to the “6-7” song, but when the beat switched up to something more rhythmic, he went straight to work.
— Zack Geoghegan
Don’t forget about Andrija Jelavic…
Trent Noah dominated in the 3-Point Contest and undoubtedly earned that championship trophy, but can we acknowledge just how good Croatian Sensation 2.0 was in the event, too? In his first time competing in front of BBN — a tall task for many — Andrija Jelavic came in second and put on quite the show in both rounds, putting the pressure on Noah to finish the job.
His shot was pure and he fired away with confidence, scoring 25 points in the first round to tie Noah, followed by 21 in the title matchup. He just got caught in the line of fire of the Mountain Mamba’s 30-ball, but don’t ignore just how impressive Jelavic was as a shot-maker. It’s not easy to beat the likes of Jasper Johnson, Kam Williams and Jaland Lowe to get in that spot to begin with, but the 6-11 forward made it look that way.
— Jack Pilgrim
Discuss This Article
Comments have moved.
Join the conversation and talk about this article and all things Kentucky Sports in the new KSR Message Board.
KSBoard