UK Basketball 2021-2022: Back on Track?

[cumberlandreds]

Don't worry about halftime scores. I have watched UK basketball for 50 years and it seems they always mess around with the poor teams in the 1st half and in the end blow them out. Also I think in the end Cal with go with Wheeler, Washington, Oscar T, Brooks and Grady as starters with Mintz, Toppin and Hopkins first off the bench. Collins will get some time when all of the bigs are foul trouble. As long as Allen is such a poor defender he will never play much. Especially this season since they do have some 3 point shooters. Cal just won't play you if you don't defend and if he has other options. He didn't last year so Allen got more time. This team will be fine. They have the talent and depth for a Final Four run. They just need to stay together, avoid injuries and get the right match ups in the NCAA's.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Don't worry about halftime scores.

It's not the halftime scores-- it's Cal's penchant for playing big non-shooters next to each other in a lineup.

Kentucky has struggled the past few seasons because they can't shoot.

Cal can't double down on big guys and expect to win. The way the game is played now won't allow that.

[cumberlandreds]

UK runs past Vandy 78-66. The first 35 minutes of the game was terrific. They totally dominated Vandy. If not for Pippen, Vandy would have had a hard time scoring anything. The last five minutes were abysmal. Vandy outscored them 16-0 as UK just quit trying it seemed. Hopefully they will learn from that and play games out to the finish no matter the score. Oscar T. had another big game 30 points and 13 rebounds. Brooks and Mintz also had good games. Wheeler is still out but Washington had been just terrific at pg. He seems to be getting better and better with each game.
Schedule really toughens up now. Tennessee comes to Rupp Saturday and then road games to Tex A&M and Auburn. The game Saturday is at 1 pm on ESPN.

[Tuff Nut]

Not that it matters, but wasn't it a 17-0 run by Candy to end the game?...Cats were up by 29, and won by 12. They sure couldn't buy a hoop the last 5 minutes

[cumberlandreds]

Not that it matters, but wasn't it a 17-0 run by Candy to end the game?...Cats were up by 29, and won by 12. They sure couldn't buy a hoop the last 5 minutes

It may have been. But it sure was an ugly 5 minutes. You could tell Cal was really agitated doing the post game interview on ESPN. Just make it more easy for him to get their attention in practice.

[UKFlounder]

Rest In Peace, Coach Joe B. Hall

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...-coach-dies-93

[Tuff Nut]

HO-LEE-........ WOW. One of the best ambassadors for UK, a beloved coach. RIP JoeB.

[dabvu2498]

I traded in my UK fandom when I went to a rival SEC school, but Joe B will always be the first coach I can remember looking up to. My dad still has an autographed picture of Joe B hanging right with the family photos. We will miss you, coach.

[Sea Ray]

Wow. A good long life. I can still remember vividly as we chanted "sit Joe B sit!" in a game Tennessee was winning in Knoxville vs the Twin Towers. Joe B called a timeout with about 5 secs left and we had a comfortable lead. We booed at first but then we realized that this just gave us more time to celebrate. It was a mid week game but we still partied into the night after that one

[Bourgeois Zee]

I met Joe Hall on several occasions.

Nice guy.

[WVRed]

Kentucky playing a game that would make Joe B proud right now.

Loudest I’ve heard Rupp in a LONG time. As of right now Kentucky is 32/41 from the field (79%)

[Sea Ray]

I guess Tennessee sucks in basketball this year. When does college baseball start???

[WVRed]

I guess Tennessee sucks in basketball this year. When does college baseball start???

They ran into a buzzsaw. I don’t think any team could have beat Kentucky this afternoon.

This team is capable of cutting down the nets. Just curious to see if they show up at even 3/4 of this the rest of the season.

[cumberlandreds]

A resounding win to say the least. Joe B would have been proud of that effort. Washington & Wheeler with big games as just about everyone had a good game. This team can score and they are fun to watch. If they play enough defense they will go a long way.

[cumberlandreds]

Joe B Hall was the coach during my formative years as a UK fan. I do remember Rupp in his last couple of seasons. Rupp missed a lot of games then and Joe B would be the acting HC in his absence. Hall always had the understanding he would take over after Rupp. I always have felt Hall succeeded a legend better than anyone in college basketball and maybe in sports. He kept the tradition going and IMO elevated it by committing to recruit blacks as well as hiring a black assistant in Leonard Hamilton. Just for that he should be highly commended. Hall was a native Kentuckian and he knew what basketball meant for most in that state. So he took being the coach almost personal. He always had tremendous pressure on him. Many still wanted Rupp as coach and would never give him a break because of his succession from Rupp. He had no more pressure than the 1978 season. Most felt if he didn't win it all that season he would be fired. He probably would have been. But he pushed that team the entire season and kept them focused and they did take home the title. There is a documentary about that season on the SEC Network called Win or Else. It is very good and gives you a sense of the pressure one everyone at that time. I will also say the gutsiest move by a coach in the history of sports was made Coach Hall in that 1978 tournament. They were down to Fla State by 7 at halftime of the first round game. They had played a very lackluster first half and Hall was livid. So he bench three starters, Given, Robey and Claytor. The first two were All Americans. His three subs did the job and got UK back to playing good. They quickly overcame the lead and Hall put his starters back in and it was all UK after that. If that hadn't have worked out there is no doubt Joe B would have been fired.

RIP Joe B Hall. Thank you for keeping the UK tradition alive not just for my generation but for many more generations to come.