Wow, what an exciting week for the Kentucky Wildcats. The week for the Cats started with there first number one ranking since the 2002-2003 season, for most teams that would be the highlight of there week but not for coach John Calipari’s team.
On Tuesday, the cats received a call from President Obama congratulating them on outstanding work with the “Hoops for Haiti” telethon with raised over 1.5 million dollars for the people in need in Haiti after the earthquake tragedies that happened recently. Now as you can tell this is high point of most of these kids lives they walk into a game against an unranked South Carolina team thinking that they was going to walk all of over them. Well they were wrong the game cocks showed up to play and they didn’t care that the cats was number one. All that was on the game cocks mind is they wanted to continue there two win streak over the Cats from last season.
So the cats were upset not two full days after being named number one. So you think man that really is an eventful week, well that week isn’t over yet. Saturday the cats took the court at home after that lose with a vengeance that they was going to prove that they deserved to be on top of the polls with a decent game but not a great game against a very hot Vanderbilt team that was on a 10-0 streak coming into Rupp Arena. If all that was not enough they had to play this game with in my opinion one of the best players in the game today in the audience, LeBron James! It is very well known that LeBron and Coach Cal are close friends but who knew that he was also close with freshmen phenom John Wall. James also graced the crowd doing the legendary "Y" that is performed by a fan from the crowd that always happens during the first time out of the second half.
With the all-star on hand you knew they was going to put on a show the Cats put up an 85-72 victory, in which was one of the highest foul count game I have ever watched with 58 fouls. It felt like someone was at the line every other play and this killed the flow of the game. It did not seem to bother the Cats’ freshman DeMarcus Cousins who had his 12th double-double of the season. He lead the team with 21 points and 10 rebounds, he could not be stopped in the paint. This was also a game were junior Patrick Patterson had some what of a bounce back game were he had 12 points and 4 rebounds were He went 3-4 from the 3-point line. I don’t understand him playing so far back on the court but he was very effective from that position on Saturday. Wall also helped the team with 13 points and 9 assist. This was a good game and a game the cats played there hearts out to prove they deserve to be on top.
With that being said they did lose this week so they will more then likely fall out of the top spot and with Kansas have a close victory over Kansas State. I feel that Kansas will regain the top spot. They held the number one spot for nine weeks this season, until getting upset by Tennessee. There is plenty of basketball to be played until march madness comes around and I am excited to see how the rest of the season plays out and what other kind of exciting things are in store for the cats.
Video of LeBron James giving the "Y"
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
There's No Crying in Baseball, But There is Cheating
When you think of baseball you think of America’s favorite past time. You think about the good moments in the games history you think of Babe Ruth hitting home runs, Ted Williams and his incredible hitting percentage, you think of all the great pitchers that played the game Cy Young, Lefty Grove, Smokey Joe Wood and plenty more after them. You think about the great Hall of Fame players that made the game what it is today. But there is also a darker side to the game that has been darkened my scandals through out the history with players cheating.
This darker side of the game coming back in to the limelight of the media recently with Mark McGwire the second place all time single season home run leader with 70 home runs admitted that he was a user of steroids during his career at Oakland and St. Louis and during the 1998 season. Now I know to most people this is no news but he is also up for a spot in the Hall of Fame for the second time being on the ballot he is way below the number that he needs to enter the Hall. There are people asking should he be allowed in even though he cheated the game and my answer is yes. You ask why I say yes, for one if not for that great home run race between in 1998 between McGwire and Sammy Sosa the following of the game would not be the same that it is today. Interest in baseball was not at the high point that it is today before this because of the strike near the end of the 1994 season people had lost interest in the game of baseball, so for that I thank those guys for that race. But even if had not used performance enhancing drugs they do not increase the likely hood of you hitting a ball, now I’m not saying it won’t help you hit it farther yes I know that the power adders allows you to spring the bat easier and hit the ball farther. With that being said just imagine what his on-base percentage would have been because he was a solid hitter. He hit 49 home runs as a rookie. I just feel with his ability to hit the ball the way he did and the way he saved the game we all love so much he should be allowed in to the hall.
But people are going to say the Hall of Fame should be pure and no cheaters should be allowed in to the Hall. Well I agree the Hall should be pure but it isn’t it is already full of players who has cheated the game like Gaylord Perry who won 314 games and became a member of the Hall. How did he get there he got there by throwing spitball pitches and changing the surface of the ball by scuffing or mudding it that was his claim to fame. Now some of you are going to say that was allowed well Perry played in the 60’s and 70’s the spitball was outlawed in the game of baseball in 1920. This made the spitball and illegal pitch to be thrown and should be counted as a ball. You say that is just one example how about Whitey Ford he did the same thing even after the spitball was outlawed. Should these players who cheated be allowed in the Hall? You have Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby one of the greatest players to man the second bag that wrote and article that was titled “You’ve Got to Cheat to Win” were he talks about players doing illegal acts such as spiking players and other foul things to win the game. Should he be allowed in the Hall? What about all the players that we looked up to that was involved in scandals over the years of the game, no not all have entered the great Hall but some hold high honors in the game. You have players who admit to so many forms of cheating were it be doctoring balls, throwing spitballs, corking bats, or even worse doing drugs and not just steroids you have players admitting to using LSD and cocaine but we will look to these people because we want to be entertained. I am not saying it is ok to cheat on the game that we love so much, but what I am saying is the game is full of cheaters. This is not a new thing that has just popped up, there has been people cheating probably since or during the first game of baseball and plenty that are members of our highest honor in the game so why should they be allowed to be members when Mark McGwire who did the same thing is left out. Cheating is cheating and that is all I have to say.
This darker side of the game coming back in to the limelight of the media recently with Mark McGwire the second place all time single season home run leader with 70 home runs admitted that he was a user of steroids during his career at Oakland and St. Louis and during the 1998 season. Now I know to most people this is no news but he is also up for a spot in the Hall of Fame for the second time being on the ballot he is way below the number that he needs to enter the Hall. There are people asking should he be allowed in even though he cheated the game and my answer is yes. You ask why I say yes, for one if not for that great home run race between in 1998 between McGwire and Sammy Sosa the following of the game would not be the same that it is today. Interest in baseball was not at the high point that it is today before this because of the strike near the end of the 1994 season people had lost interest in the game of baseball, so for that I thank those guys for that race. But even if had not used performance enhancing drugs they do not increase the likely hood of you hitting a ball, now I’m not saying it won’t help you hit it farther yes I know that the power adders allows you to spring the bat easier and hit the ball farther. With that being said just imagine what his on-base percentage would have been because he was a solid hitter. He hit 49 home runs as a rookie. I just feel with his ability to hit the ball the way he did and the way he saved the game we all love so much he should be allowed in to the hall.
But people are going to say the Hall of Fame should be pure and no cheaters should be allowed in to the Hall. Well I agree the Hall should be pure but it isn’t it is already full of players who has cheated the game like Gaylord Perry who won 314 games and became a member of the Hall. How did he get there he got there by throwing spitball pitches and changing the surface of the ball by scuffing or mudding it that was his claim to fame. Now some of you are going to say that was allowed well Perry played in the 60’s and 70’s the spitball was outlawed in the game of baseball in 1920. This made the spitball and illegal pitch to be thrown and should be counted as a ball. You say that is just one example how about Whitey Ford he did the same thing even after the spitball was outlawed. Should these players who cheated be allowed in the Hall? You have Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby one of the greatest players to man the second bag that wrote and article that was titled “You’ve Got to Cheat to Win” were he talks about players doing illegal acts such as spiking players and other foul things to win the game. Should he be allowed in the Hall? What about all the players that we looked up to that was involved in scandals over the years of the game, no not all have entered the great Hall but some hold high honors in the game. You have players who admit to so many forms of cheating were it be doctoring balls, throwing spitballs, corking bats, or even worse doing drugs and not just steroids you have players admitting to using LSD and cocaine but we will look to these people because we want to be entertained. I am not saying it is ok to cheat on the game that we love so much, but what I am saying is the game is full of cheaters. This is not a new thing that has just popped up, there has been people cheating probably since or during the first game of baseball and plenty that are members of our highest honor in the game so why should they be allowed to be members when Mark McGwire who did the same thing is left out. Cheating is cheating and that is all I have to say.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Bulldog Baseball 2010 preview
With 2010 finally here it is almost time for college baseball to come back around, 2010 also brings the end of a decade that has brought great things to the program we have saw two great coaches come to the program we started the decade with the college current Athletics Director Darin Wilson he was with the program from 99-03 I know that 99 is not part of the decade but his tenure as head coach he held a record of 161-106-1 with a .601 winning percentage but in 2003 he took over as AD and that brought on the era of current head coach Bart Osborne who has had an excellent time here so far. Osborne holds a record of 258-101 and has the highest winning percentage of any coach to be in charge of the bulldog team with a .719. He has had a 40+ win season the past 5 of his 6 years with the team. But with all this being said we had a great past 10 year but it is time for the new season to begin and the bulldogs go in to the season ranked 16 in the NAIA preseason poll. The Bulldogs are set to play 51 games in 2010 with 31 of these battles at home and 20 road games. The team is playing 8 teams that received votes in the poll as well. This will be a very tough schedule for the bulldogs that lost several key players after last season. I don’t think lose of those players will effect the bulldogs that much as they go in the play. The team has strong senior leadership with 10 seniors in several different positions on the field. The Bulldogs Open there season at Home on Feb. 6th against local rivals University of the Cumberlands Patriots, this game will take place at 1 pm. It looks to be a tough exciting season for the bulldogs that we can hope will finish with an AAC championship this season so that they can return to the national tournament like they have done in the past.
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