I'm not saying I agree or disagree with it, but there's a lot of fire to all the smoke on Gillispie. Barnhart's got a lot of heat on him right now too. Regarding your question, Macro, I personally don't believe that a replacement is already decided and signed, sealed and delivered, but there are some who believe he is, that was the word going around the SEC Tournament. I do know that if Gillispie's gone, they won't be making another gamble, so it won't be Pelphrey or Horn or Ford or anyone like that that's been named (though I've heard Ford's stock has gone up in UK circles recently... he might get an interview but I'm not sure he'd be the guy)... if they have to throw a ton of cash Alabama football-style, they will. Barnhart can't afford to make a risky hire. He's got too much heat for not doing due diligence of Gillispie last time.
If this comes to fruition, of course.
Last edited by Javy Pornstache; 03-15-2009 at 04:38 PM.
If Gillispie leaves, it will be on his own free will. I don't think Barnhardt could put his job security on the line to hire another coach.
Here is an article from the Herald Leader that has some quotes of what the players think of Gillispie:
TAMPA, Fla. — When a reporter noted that turnovers and rebounding once again plagued Kentucky in its loss to Louisiana State on Friday, guard Michael Porter had a telling response.
"You're telling me," he said.
Yes, Kentucky had trouble holding on to the ball and retrieving missed shots all season. That was beyond obvious long before the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
To his credit, Porter did not dodge personal responsibility as starting point guard.
"I've definitely been a big part of that problem," he volunteered in UK's post-game locker room.
That raised a pertinent question: Shouldn't the coach have ironed out these problems? Or did Billy Gillispie lack the tools to fix what ailed the Cats?
With Gillispie's job security the topic of intense speculation, the players defended the coach.
"Fans think that they can coach," big man Patrick Patterson said. "Come on down and try.
"Coach knows what he's talking about. He knows the most about basketball. He knows what he's doing."
Porter put the responsibility on the players, most of whom Gillispie inherited when Kentucky hired him in 2007 and charged him with replenishing the roster.
"He was put in a hard situation," Porter said. "I think coach has done a great job, as good a job as he possibly could have done.
"I think it's on us. It hasn't been his fault. He told us everything we need to do to win. It's been about us executing and playing as hard as we can."
The necessary effort was not always there, Porter said. And the Cats had to win with maximum effort because the available talent was not sufficient. In popular parlance, to win "ugly" via grit and determination.
As Gillispie said after the loss to LSU here, "one team looked like they had six of the top seven guys that were seniors or four-year guys, and one team looked like they didn't have any seniors that played."
The former was LSU, the latter Kentucky. Effort was supposed to close that gap.
"We know, if we played as hard as we did the last couple days, we'd be in a different situation," Porter said. "And I think that pretty much started around the Ole Miss game."
Porter meant the game at Mississippi on Jan. 27. The Cats went to Oxford at 5-0 in the SEC, the league's only unbeaten team. They had beaten No. 24 Tennessee (UK's only victory over a ranked team this season) and Auburn (which only looks better with the passage of time).
Then Ole Miss whipped Kentucky to start a downward spiral that included nine losses in the next 13 games.
Not that Kentucky got steamrolled. The Cats lost to South Carolina on Devan Downey's buzzer-beater, to LSU on Tasmin Mitchell's jumper inside the final 10 seconds.
"We lost some games we definitely shouldn't have lost," Porter said. "That always make it hard."
When asked about the team leadership, Patterson said the Cats lacked that "one true leader" who can make a difference in close games or clutch situations.
"We relied on someone else to step up rather than one person saying, 'I'll be the leader. Get behind me,' " Patterson said. "... We had Ramel (Bradley) do that last year. We could depend on Ramel whenever we needed a basket. When something went wrong, Ramel stepped up."
Something went wrong last season when Patterson injured an ankle and missed the final four games.
Gillispie practically turned over the team to Bradley and fellow senior Joe Crawford. The pair were experienced enough and good enough to make plays and score baskets when most needed.
Bradley and Crawford consistently took the ball and made something good happen.
That seems like a distant memory a year later.
"It has been a little bit of a roller coaster," Porter said of Kentucky's season. "We thought we were rolling good at one point. Then there was a down as low as we can go."
Well folks, it looks like it will be UNLV.... Tuesday night-be there or be square.
http://www.ukathletics.com/sports/m-...031509aab.html
Last edited by Blimpie; 03-15-2009 at 09:20 PM.
Tickets are already going fast... get them before they are gone:
2009 NIT Ticket Information
Parking Information | Memorial Coliseum Info | Schedule | NIT Central
Kentucky has been selected to host the 1st Round of the 2009 N.I.T. at Memorial Coliseum on the University of Kentucky campus. The #4 seed Wildcats will play UNLV on Tuesday, March 17 at 9:30pm EDT. Doors will open at 7:30 pm. With Rupp Arena hosting the KHSAA Boys Sweet 16 Tournament, the Wildcats will play at Memorial Coliseum for the first time since 1976.
Purchase NIT Tickets Now!
All public tickets for the first round at Memorial Coliseum are $33 each. Everyone must have ticket, regardless of age. Tickets will be sold first-come, first-serve.
Beginning late Sunday evening, March 16, tickets are available by ordering online at Ticketmaster.com
calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000
Beginning Monday morning, March 17, tickets are also available by
calling the UK Ticket Office at (800) 928-2287 or (859) 257-1818, 8am-6pm
ordering in person at the UK Ticket Office in the Joe Craft Center, 8am-6pm
visiting statewide Ticketmaster outlets (i.e. Kroger, etc.)
UK Student Tickets
Student tickets ($5 each) are available for full-time UK students and BCTC students who have paid their athletics fee for the spring semester. Student tickets will be sold first-come, first-serve at the Joe Craft Center Ticket Office beginning Monday, March 17 at 8:00 am, and there is a limit of 1 ticket per valid student ID. Students must present their student ID and ticket to be admitted to the game.
Memorial Coliseum Set Up
The west side of Memorial Coliseum features chairback seating (Sections A-J and AA-JJ). With the exception of rows 3-6, the east side of Memorial Coliseum features bleacher seating (Sections R-Z and RR-ZZ). Seating capacity for Memorial Coliseum is approximately 7,500.
Will Call Information
All tickets not purchased in person will be held at Will Call. On game-night, Will Call will open at 6:00 pm at the front ticket windows of Memorial Coliseum on Euclid/Avenue of Champions. To pick up your tickets in advance of game-night, please visit the Joe Craft Center Ticket Office behind Memorial Coliseum. You must have a photo ID to pick up your tickets , and they will only be released to the proper name on the ticket account.
UK Ticket Office Hours
Monday, March 17: 8:00 am - 6:00 pm **Will Call tickets available for pick-up beginning at noon
Tuesday, March 18: 8:00 am - end of game **Will Call tickets move to front of Coliseum at 5:30 pm
Note: All NIT ticket SALES (including sales on game-night) will be at the Joe Craft Center ticket office, off Lexington Avenue across from Wildcat Lodge. There will be no ticket sales at the front windows of Memorial Coliseum.
NIT Potential Dates
2nd Round - March 19, 20, 21, 23*
*could be played at Rupp Arena
Quarterfinals - March 24*, 25*
*could be played at Rupp Arena
Semifinals - March 31 - Madison Square Garden
Championship - April 2 - Madison Square Garden
Questions?
For complete NIT ticket information, please contact the UK Ticket Office at (800) 928-2287 or (859) 257-1818.
Last edited by Blimpie; 03-15-2009 at 09:26 PM.
I am curious on the Travis Ford issue since people are so nitpicky when it comes to Gillispie's handling of the press. I wonder how the same people would feel about Ford's expletive tirades at Okie State, noticeably calling one player an idiot with a certain word before that.I do know that if Gillispie's gone, they won't be making another gamble, so it won't be Pelphrey or Horn or Ford or anyone like that that's been named (though I've heard Ford's stock has gone up in UK circles recently... he might get an interview but I'm not sure he'd be the guy)...
If he won they'd love him for it just like they'll be loving Gillispie this time next season when UK is ranked in the top ten.
Screw it lets just persuade Huggins to come to UK
Why would anyone want to come work for a University that got rid of their coach after only 2 seasons?
I don't think folks--not you in particular, Mac--fully appreciate how disastrous it would be for our program if Billy were to leave or get fired after only 2 years on the job both in attracting top-notch coaching candidates and UK's reputation with recruits nationwide.
Last edited by WMR; 03-16-2009 at 01:26 AM.
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