"The First Weekend Without Basketball's" Saturday News and Views

by:Ally Tucker04/07/12
  I don't know about all of you KSR readers, but I already miss college basketball. For the first Saturday in months, there were no college basketball games for us to watch on television. Though many have been able to ease the pain of the void by filling it with afternoons and evenings of golf and baseball, there is no denying that an initial letdown occurs following the national championship game. We go from the most intense month of the year in college basketball, March Madness, to virtually no basketball at all. Many of us have our eyes firmly planted on the coaching carousel and recruiting tidbits for the moment. Today was a rather slow day even on that front, as we experience a bit of the "calm before the storm" with some major 2012 recruiting decisions on the horizon. Speaking of...   - Tonight provides a stage for many of the players Kentucky fans are watching intently to showcase their talents one last time before making their final decision. Shabazz Muhammad, Nerlens Noel and Anthony Bennett are all taking part in the Nike Hoops Summit, which tipped off around 10 p.m. ET on Fox Sports Networks. The three potential future Wildcats will be joined tonight by Kentucky commitment Archie Goodwin. Expect a full recap on the performances of each of these players tomorrow morning/early afternoon.   - In case you weren't already sold on the talent of Shabazz Muhammad, one NBA scout in attendance at the Hoop Summit spoke glowingly about Muhammad to Yahoo. "He's the only one who can play in the NBA tomorrow."   - In UK sporting news, the #1 ranked men's baseball team dropped their first home game this afternoon against #10 ranked Ole Miss by a final score of 9-3. After a come from behind victory on Friday night, the Bat Cats were unable to solidify the series with the 2nd win today. Fortunately for the Cats, they will have the chance to take 2 out of 3 from the Rebels in a 1 p.m. contest at Cliff Hagan Stadium. If you haven't made it out to one of the baseball game yet, take a break from Keeneland tomorrow and support the #1 ranked team in the country. The atmosphere is rumored to be incredible and the team is riding an impressive 29-3 record. There has never been a better time to jump on the Kentucky baseball bandwagon than right now (if you aren't already on it).   - The UK Softball team also has a chance to take a series tomorrow from South Carolina in a 1 p.m. home game. The softball team evened up the series behind the stellar pitching of senior Rachel Riley. Riley not only tossed her first shutout of the season in a 7-0 victory, but she also drove in a home run to help her cause. The softball team has struggled this season, following a tremendous outing last year. With the win in the rubber match tomorrow, they could take their 2nd SEC series of the season and build momentum heading into a stretch of tough conference games.   -The No.24 ranked UK gymnastics team finished the NCAA Champaign Regional in fifth place with a score of 194.750. The finish, unfortunately, was not enough to move the team on to the NCAA championships. The team is only slated to lose 2 seniors though, and following a record breaking season with some of the highest individual and team scores, look for the team to have a strong campaign again next season.   - In case you missed it this morning, Alex Oriakhi has made it public knowledge that he will in fact be giving Calipari and Kentucky an official visit later this month. The UCONN transfer, who will be eligible to play next season, will be in Lexington on Friday, April 20th. Per an unnamed source of a source,  he is rumored to make an appearance at Keeneland.   - In the news that excited me most on the day, Kyle Wiltjer tweeted that "people need to stay tuned, we have our best work coming your way haha." I can only assume that he is referring to a new WBA video. If that is the case, we are all in for another treat.   - Rich Brooks kept the sports world on edge by letting us know that he golfed with Mike and Shelia Swartz. The course was wet, but the temperature was about 55. He shot 82 with an eagle on par 5 on the 16th hole. Retirement looks good on you, Coach. (p.s. If you don't follow former UK football coach Rich Brooks on Twitter, you are missing out. When he's not tweeting about tomatoes and golf, well...he's not tweeting. But it's entertaining in a strange way).   - Congratulations to former Kentucky Wildcat Rajon Rondo. Rondo of the NBA's Boston Celtics has now recorded 10+ assists in the last 16 games, passing John Stockton (15 straight in 1995) for the longest streak in the last 20 years.    - And finally, the UK Football team completed their first full spring scrimmage this afternoon. According to those on hand for the scrimmage, QB Maxwell Smith showed well for himself. Smith threw for 228 yds, including a 51-yard bomb to the hands of wideout E.J. Fields. Running back Raymond Sanders was also impressive, drawing some praise from his head coach. Mark you calendars as the official Spring Game is slated for April 21st at 6 p.m.   

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