Kentucky Preview

Well, it's Mississippi day at the SEC tournament again. The Rebels play the Wildcats, and the Bulldogs play ... the Bulldogs.

Ole Miss won the regular season game against Kentucky, due primarily to holding Jodie Meeks to 2-13 shooting until the game was out of reach. We were unable to keep Patrick Patterson in check, and he made us pay going 8-12 from the field and 8-9 from the charity stripe. The Rebels will have to contain Patterson in order to win today, but I think that's possible.

Malcolm White has emerged as a legitimate player since that game. Against Kentucky, Malcolm was also 8-12. While no one would argue that Malcolm is the player that First-team All-SEC selection Patrick Patterson is, he has been a good presence of late, playing great defense and putting the ball in the hole (though inconsistently). Malcolm scored 20 points against a Mississippi State team that boasts the best interior defender in the country. I think that Malcolm will provide the post presence needed to match up against Patterson in the zone. Of course, they don't really play the same position since Patterson is more of a 4. So a power forward will have to step up as a defender against Patterson. That's why I'm hoping Kennedy puts Murphy on Patterson.

While Patterson has three inches on Holloway, we don't have a player on our team that plays the game harder than Murphy. He will fight for every ball and come down with a load of rebounds regardless of who he's paired against. I can't comprehend why he isn't starting games right now. He leads our team in double doubles and is a force coming off the bench. He's our second best interior defender, and he's a good offensive threat as well (leading our team in field goal percentage by ten percent). I want Murphy Holloway on the court for 30 minutes a game. Not 22.

In the end, I think that Kentucky is a pretty good matchup for us. They have no depth whatsoever and only have two players who are serious scoring threats. If we can contain either of those, we've got a good shot of winning. If Zach Graham can hold Meeks to 2-13 shooting again, it's in the bag. That's a big if though.

Anyone else think this guy got juked out of his shoes?

Prediction:

Ole Miss 75 - Kentucky 78

Final: Ole Miss 85 Kentucky 80

I'll be the first to say it: I was dead wrong about this game. I thought it would take a 60 point performance by Huertas and Terrico White combined to win this game.

Surprisingly, Malcolm and Terrico White along with Huertas scored over 60 in the victory.

When Ole Miss hits the floor with Terrico White, David Huertas and Chris Warren next year, we're going to take down a lot of teams. 

Malcolm White "grabbed up his nuts and played like a man" as the legendary sound bite Bam Doyne used to say.

Everyone thought the Rebels were doomed when they came out of the tunnel to face the Big Blue, but this group wanted to prove what is in store for the future of Ole Miss basketball. These players are gaining valuable experience for next season. Even if they only marginally improve, the leadership and skills of Chris Warren and Eniel Polynice plus the team I saw on the floor tonight has me thinking about at least the Sweet Sixteen next year. Obviously, Warren and EP need to come back 100% from their injuries. 

There's plenty of big IF's, but let's enjoy this win for now.

I don't think this game means "WE GOIN' TO DA 'SHIP." We'll probably struggle to win four more games and break even for the season. We're not in a Disney movie, so let's get back in touch with reality shortly after a raucous celebration.

Ole Miss vs Kentucky: Could we just play HORSE?

Ole Miss is struggling on the court, and they're at the breaking point where postseason play is not a possibility unless the Rebels win the remainder of their games.

Obviously, a win over Kentucky would bring this team's confidence to a new level and could get things rolling. The Wildcats are running game on the rest of the SEC sporting an undefeated conference record. 

Lest we forget Big Blue basketball in 2007-2008 as they fell to teams like San Diego, Gardner Webb and UAB. These aren't your Dad's Kentucky basketball players. They lost to VMI for God's sake.

Winning at Tennessee by 18 was one of the most impressive games I have seen an SEC team play all season(yes, including our 12 point win against Nicholls State).

Wildcat lineup:

G Jodie Meeks- averages over 26 ppg and could go for 40 against any of our guards

G DeAndre Liggins- Freshman who has had streaks of turnovers

F Patrick Patterson- not the UM recruit, but second leading scorer

F Perry Stevenson- already tied his block total(46) from last season

F Ramon Harris- he's from Alaska, that's all the interesting information I could find; I searched for a picture of Tyler Hansbrough just to get a linked picture of the kid

Terrico White and David Huertas need to score a combined 60 points for Ole Miss to have a chance in the game. We'll most likely get out rebounded or "outphysicalled" by a veteran UK team. I'm prepared for a long night of ESPN commentators bringing up Andy Kennedy's horrible year off the court, our list of injuries which is at an inquisition like length, and how good Kentucky's fans travel on the road.

Our guys will give a great effort, because it's Kentucky, they're on national television and they'll have a decent crowd behind them. If it is close at half-time and they can keep Kentucky out of a transition game, the Rebels could keep it close.

Final prediction: Kentucky 83 Ole Miss 68

Btw, 25 days until baseball season. All praise Michael Guerrero.

SEC Traditions: The Best and Worst- Kentucky

We continue our harrowing journey through the mystical land of Southeastern Conference tradition with a look at the land of bourbon and horses: Kentucky. The tailgating atmosphere around Commonwealth Stadium gets more congested about two hours before game time, and many tents play the game "corn hole." For those not familiar with this game, it's not a reference to the movie "Deliverance," but rather a plywood angled board with a hole near the top of it that patrons and drunken fans throw bean bags into from a distance of 10 or more feet. Corn hole sets at Kentucky are brilliantly decorated with Big Blue shit and sticky with Woodford Reserve or Maker's Mark. While this tradition is fantastic, there is another that comes to mind with the Kentucky Wildcats.

Jared "Finger Lickin'" Lorenzen, Age 7, AKA Pillsbury Throwboy

KENTUCKY

Best Tradition: Basketball. Yep, even though it's nearly kickoff time for the 2008 season, most Wildcat fans are already focused on Billy Gillespie and a collection of McDonald's All Americans that will intimidate some teams into defeat. They've got seven national championships in basketball, and basically win the SEC every year even when they aren't up to snuff nationally. It's the ability to say to a Georgia or South Carolina fan after defeat in football season, "Hey, see you in basketball season!" and watch the victor cringe as they remember past blow-outs and alley-oops from guys like Dan Issel, Louie Dampier and Tayshaun Prince. Kentucky basketball raises the SEC's RPI every season by approximately 149 teams with the exception of a few years(see: last season).

Worst Tradition: The Bluegrass Miracle. While not a tradition, it sums up the football history of Kentucky. This is one of the worst coverage disasters in SEC history. Kentucky returned the favor somewhat this past season by defeating the Fightin' Tigers in three overtimes, but this loss still has to sting.

We Are....Ole Miss

The Ghost of Jay Cutler, Ivory Tower, and I made the trip to Hoover for the first two games, and all I can say is wow. Anyone who reads this blog knows that I am very critical of Mike Bianco, but I will lay off for now...

Georgia Game:

This Ole Miss team showed a lot of heart, and I am very proud of Lance Lynn and Scott Bittle for their efforts. Lance Struck out twelve and only allowed four hits, and "The Bittler" did an outstanding job as well.

Sorry folks, I needed some Cozart.

Kentucky Game:

I hate Kentucky baseball. Kentucky, huh? More like Ken-sucky.... When they played their first game against Alabama, they would not quit their howling... It was annoying! What made is worse was the fact that the Alabama fans would yell and howl back. Anyway, our team showed tremendous amounts of heart. Matt Smith's homerun was probably the biggest shot I have ever seen in my life (I wasn't really around in the days of Pettway/Head)! Anyway, it was a shot. Michael Guerrero had hit the ball hard for two days straight, and I knew it was only a matter of time before he sent (another)one out. Scott Green embarrassed Overbeck, but he served up a fastball to Guerrero. I was in disbelief of what had happened! I ended up jumping on top of the dugout with kids, infants, random fans, and Guerrero's dad. It was incredible! However, there are a couple of things that I should not overlook. Logan Power's single was huge! He ran the pitcher out of the game, and him being on base was crucial to the walk-off. Another thing I found interesting was that Sawyer Carroll held his arm high in victory when Colin Cowgill hit the sac-fly to send him home. They thought they had the lead for good... Take that Ken-sucky!

John Cohen, Kentucky's skipper, had interesting quotes after the game. "We have had great success against Ole Miss the last few times we've played. We threw two bad pitches in the last couple of innings. I felt they had to win this game to get into a regional. I am pleased with the way our kids competed, but Ole Miss took two great swings when it really mattered. I think overall we played a better game but that is how it works sometimes." Keep in mind that he is a Bulldog at heart. Guess what? John Cohen is a tool bag. What if we had not committed those two errors? We could make excuses too, but we won. Go back to Kensucky you howling tool bags.

Since we are poor college students, we headed home after the game. I listened to today's games on the radio, and I am thrilled we got it done today.

The stars so far:

If you reference this blog post I wrote, I predicted that we would get hot if we had Guerrero and Henry back strong. Guess what? I was right....

Guerrero has been unbelievable! Also, Jordan Henry is back! He is a machine! Kudos to Mike Bianco for sticking with him through the thick and thin. Brett Basham has done an incredible job behind the plate.

Ole Miss becomes the first eight seed to advance to the championship game.

LSU:

They are hotter than a two dollar pistol right now, so this will be the Rebels toughest outing of the year. Nathan Baker will get the nod, and he did well in his last midweek start in Oxford. I think that he will give us four or five innings and probably give up four runs. We will then go to the pitch-by-committee plan with Satterwhite, McKean, and maybe Bittle. This is gonna be amazingly hard, but we can do it. When you're hot, you're hot.

By the way, I have some pics I will be putting up this week. I would put them up now, but the internets is acting up and being slow.

Dang't Mike Bianco

It just keeps getting uglier for the Rebels, and I am sick of it, Mike Bianco. The big problem is that we suck. I said it. We suck. We cannot get clutch hits, and we cannot field the ball. Heck, we cannot even pitch anymore.

It is do or die time for the Rebels at 5:30 central time this evening. Drew Pomeranz will take the hill for the Rebels, and I hope he decides to not tip his pitches today.

If you cannot tell, I am angry. I was an optimist in earlier years, but now I am an "angrymist". You don't go around preaching this is the most talented and deepest team you have ever had, and then not even make the SEC Tournament. Come on, Mike.

In other news:

Somehow, some way, Mississippi State beat Arkansas during the first game of "Pack the Park for Polk" weekend. Thank you, Mississippi State. Now, we desperately need you to win two more. Also, South Carolina lost to Tennessee. The Rebels, Hogs, and Gamecocks now fill out the 7, 8, & 9 spots respectively.

Another important note: cheer you buts off for Georgia. Rain postponed last night's match-up with Alabama, and now they will play a double-header today. Go Georgia! If they sweep Alabama and we win one game, we are in!

However, if we cannot take two from Kentucky, we need not complain about not making it to Hoover or a Regional because we surely would not deserve to. And that's the bottom line.

Attention Please: Now committing the error for Ole Miss: Sean Stuyverson

They say that you learn something new every day. Well, that is absolutely right. I learned that can Sean Stuyverson not only incorrectly field ground balls and not throw anywhere accurately, he cannot bunt either. With the Rebels down by one, there are runners on first and second with no outs. Sean Stuyverson is up to bat. So, the obvious, logical thing to do in this situation is put both runners in scoring position. Bianco calls the bunt.... And the only problem is that Stuyverson actually has an inability to bunt. He misses the first. The second. And strikes out on the third with the miss. Not only that, Guerrero gets caught away from the bag at second and gets thrown out by the catcher. Now, one man on first with two outs, and the Rebels do not score. Thanks, Sean Stuyverson.

After this fiasco, The Ghost of Jay Cutler called me and said, "Why is Stuyverson still in the line-up?" I replied, "Why is he even still on the team?"

Thankfully, Mike put Ferguson in the next time. Ironically, Ferguson bats with no outs and two men on. You know what happens? He bunts for a base hit!!!!! Then, the bases are loaded, and Basham gets the sac-fly. WOW!!!

Satterwhite did not have that bad of a day with only giving up 2 runs through five innings, and I am glad that Mike had a short leash with him. Putting Bittle in was incredible, and he finished with 7 strikeouts in 4 innings pitched. After we got ahead, I knew that we would win with Scott on the mound. I think he is too great to only pitch 3 or 4 innings a week.

Since Ivory Tower has already laid the SEC Tourney picture out for you, here is my formula for winning in Lexington:

Friday: Lynn

Saturday: The Bittler

Sunday: Pomeranz

This way, you have power and consistency on Friday. Junk and NASTY on Saturday, and power from the left side on Sunday. This would keep the potent Kentucky attack at bay. The next part of the formula is kicking Stuyverson off the team.

Here is my batting order:

J. Henry RF

F. Smith LF

L. Power CF

C. Overbeck 3B

L. Williams DH (why hasn't he played more, mike?)

M. Smith 1B (strikes out too much in the line-up to be placed higher)

Z. Miller 2B

T. Ferguson SS

B-Twice C

As always, these games show me just how much Mike over-coaches. Why, Mike? I'm sure it is worth taking a kid out who has a home run so you can put Cullan Kight in against that new right handed pitcher out of the bullpen. Geez.

Again, I could spend hours ranting about Mike Bianco, but if he wins two against Kentucky, it could shut me up for a little while.

Tennis Update

This weekend, while without apparent sources of sporting excitement in God's Country, finds itself the host of the SEC Tennis Tournament (i.e. one that we can feasibly win). This blogger would certainly be there, were it not being held in the farthest farther major city in Arkansas from Oxford.
The team is almost, if not completely, back at full strength. Bram was actually listed to play this morning but was pulled out in favor of senior Jakob Klaeson just before singles. Perhaps he didn't feel well enough to play; perhaps Chadwick knew that we wouldn't need him to beat Kentucky. Well, we didn't need him, as the Rebs took doubles and then swept the bottom three games for a 4-0 win to take us to the semis against Tennessee.
Of note in the match--Kalle double-goose-egged his opponent on court 5. Jonas took his match with ease also (0,3). Jakob fought hard to clinch the match (7-5,6-2) for the Rebels. Everyone likes to talk about how well he plays in the postseason; I would love to see that manifest itself while Bram is out of the lineup.
On the top two courts, Erling and Matthias dropped their first sets before the match was suspended. They absolutely have to play better against Tennessee and (probably) Georgia if we're to have a chance to win it all. Yeah, winning courts 3-6 will get us through every time, but I'd like to not have to count on that.
There will be more to come as the tournament progresses. For those of you keeping score at home, live updates are available here.