Kentucky Mens Basketball Conference Schedule Released

The Southeastern Conference announced its 18-game men’s basketball schedule for the 2014-15 season Friday evening.

All 18 of Kentucky’s conference games will appear on national television (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, CBS or SEC Network). Television information and start times for the remainder of the non-conference schedule will be released at a later date.

UK’s conference schedule opens at home in the friendly confines of Rupp Arena where UK is 83-4 and 39-3 in league play under sixth-year head coach John Calipari. The Wildcats kick off the conference home schedule against Ole Miss on Jan. 6. The game will tip at 7 p.m. ET and air on the SEC Network.

The Blue and White will hit the road for the first time in league play at Texas A&M on Jan. 12 (CBS) before returning to Lexington on Jan. 13 to host Missouri (ESPN). The Wildcats take to the road again traveling to Tuscaloosa to take on Alabama on Jan. 17 (ESPN/ESPN2) and then return to Rupp Arena on Jan. 20 to host Vanderbilt (SEC Network). Kentucky closes out January with two straight road games at South Carolina (Jan. 24, ESPN/ESPN2) and Missouri (Jan. 29, ESPN) before returning home to host Alabama on Jan. 31 (SEC Network).

Kentucky opens February at home against Georgia on Feb. 3 (ESPNU) followed by two straight on the road at Florida (Feb. 7, ESPN) and LSU (Feb. 10, ESPN). The Wildcats will alternate between home and road for the remainder of the month beginning with a home date on Feb. 14 against South Carolina (ESPN/ ESPN2) before traveling to Tennessee on Feb. 17 (ESPN). Kentucky returns home on Feb. 21 to host Auburn (ESPN/ ESPN2) before heading out again on Feb. 25 to Starkville, Miss. to take on Mississippi State (SEC Network). UK closes out February at home hosting Arkansas on Feb. 28 (CBS).

March opens with a March 3 date at Georgia (ESPN), but Kentucky celebrates Senior Day on March 7, closing out the regular season schedule against Florida on CBS.

The SEC Tournament will be held at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., with the semifinals and championship game being broadcast nationally on ESPN. The SEC Network will televise tournament games the first three days.

SEC Network Information for Armstrong Customers

Tomorrow, the SEC Network is set to launch and some people still aren't sure if their cable provider is going to carry the network or have been told that they will not carry it.  Armstrong customers are among the lucky ones as Armstrong and ESPN reached an agreement two weeks ago.

Here's the information I received today from Armstrong Cable. It's everything their subscribers need to know for the launch tomorrow...

"The SEC Network will be available as part of our Variety Pack ($10.95/mo) or HD Advantage Pack ($6.00/mo).  The channel should be added on the 14th to both of those service levels.

If a customer of ours does not presently subscribe to those service levels, they can be added quickly by calling us."

There you have it. If you have one of or both of the above mentioned cable packages, the SEC Network will be added tomorrow as part of that package. Just in time too as the remaining three game of Kentucky's Big Blue Bahama Tour will be carried on the SEC Network EXCLUSIVELY.

UK Alumni Basketball Game definitely CANCELED

I can now confirm that the Alumni Game has FOR-SURE been canceled due to various conflicts with some of the players schedules. A lot of the players that have played in the past have become unavailable to play this year.

Those who have purchased tickets already for the Alumni Game will receive a FULL REFUND so not to worry. The Alumni Game WILL resume in 2015.

Calipari had a quote upon the news of the cancellation of the even...

"With what we've been able to do with bringing our busy back for the fans and raising money for charity, the UK Alumni Charity Game has turned into one of my favorite events at UK. Unfortunately, due to a number of circumstances out of our control, we are going to have to cancel this year's game. We consider the alumni game to be a first-class experience, but without the presence of several of our key alums who had previous commitments, including to USA Basketball, we didn't feel we could meet the standard that we have set for fans. We still had enough commitments to field our team, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to secure enough members for the non-UK team. While I'm disappointed for our fans and for the great organizations we were able to help with the game, I'm happy we will still be able to make an impact on our community with the proceeds from my fantasy experience."

John Wall had a commitment in China and Anthony Davis and Demarcus Cousins are involved with Team USA.

Just a heads up on ticket refunds. Those tickets that have been purchased in person need to be returned to the point of purchase, tickets purchased online or over the phone will be credited back to the card used for the original purchase.

The Rupp Arena box office is open Monday-Friday form 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST.

Kentucky Alumni Game To Be Canceled? Possibly...

Some disappointing news seems to be leaking this evening as Ryan Lemond, co-host on Kentucky Sports Radio radio show with Matt Jones Tweets out that this years UK Alumni Game will be canceled.

I'm not sure as to why, but Ryan wouldn't tweet it unless there was some truth. I'll do some digging to find out more.

But, for now, it looks like there will be NO Alumni Game this season and that makes me sad...

Box-Score From Kentucky's Win Today Over Puerto Rico

Notes From Kentucky's IMPRESSIVE/DOMINATING Win Over Puerto Rico

Kentucky Basketball Postgame Notes
Kentucky 93, Puerto Rico National Team Reserves 57 August 12, 2014
Sir Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium
Team Records, Notes

•   Kentucky improves to 3-0 and 2-0 against the Puerto Rico National Team Reserves on its 2014 exhibition tour in the Bahamas.
  
•   Including a trip to Canada for an exhibition series in 2010, the Wildcats are now 6-0 in exhibition contests in the John Calipari era.
  
•   Assistant coach John Robic served as Kentucky’s head coach in today’s contest.
  
•   The Wildcats return to action on Friday, Aug. 15 at 1 p.m. ET. UK will play the Dominican National
  Team coached by former UK assistant Orlando Antigua. Former Wildcat Eloy Vargas is also expected to suit up for the DRNT.
  
•   UK dished out 21 assists and has combined for 58 assists in the three contests.
  
•   For the third straight contest, at least 10 Kentucky players scored at least one basket. All but one who appeared in the game netted at least two points.
  
•   Kentucky dominated the boards and hauled in 41 for the game. Six different players had three or more snags.
  
•   Entering the contest, UK had combined to shoot 50 percent from the floor. In today’s victory, the Cats utilized a 62 percent shooting clip and charted 15 field goals by way of a dunk. Marcus Lee led the way with a team-high six dunks. Each one of his made field goals came in the form of a jam.
  
•   The Wildcats sunk a Bahamas-tour-high six 3-pointers in today’s game at a 50 percent rate. Sophomore Aaron Harrison hit three triples, while Tod Lanter, Tyler Ulis and Derek Willis also hit from long range.
  
  First Half Facts
  
  •   Kentucky used the starting lineup of Devin Booker, Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison, Dakari Johnson and Alex Poythress for the third consecutive outing.
    
  • 
      Kentucky’s first subs off the bench remained the same with the squad of Dominique Hawkins, Marcus Lee, Karl-Anthony Towns, Tyler Ulis and Derek Willis.
    
  • 
      Puerto Rico jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage and kept the game close midway through the opening stanza.
    
  • 
      Poythress ignited a 7-0 UK run behind three offensive rebounds in back-to-back possessions.
    
  • 
      UK held an 18-12 lead at the 10:21 mark and went on a 16-2 overall run following a Willis 3-pointer and then a feed from Hawkins to Willis for an alley-oops dunk to give the Blue and White a 34-14 edge.
    
  • 
      Kentucky led by as many as 22 following consecutive Aaron Harrison 3-pointers from the left wing.
    
  • 
      UK combined for seven first half dunks, with more than half coming in transition.
    
  • 
      Poythress led the way with nine opening half points and six rebounds.
    
  • 
      Andrew Harrison had seven first half points and four assists.
    
  • 
      Karl-Anthony Towns added eight points in first half.
    

Second Half Facts

•   UK began the second half with Hawkins, Lee, Towns, Ulis and Willis in the lineup for the third straight game.
  
• 
    That unit opened the half on a 5-0 run; and has now put together at least a two-possession stretch of points in three straight games to open the second half.
  
•   Lee capped the run with a steal and run out one-handed jam to push UK’s lead to 28.
  
• 
    Kentucky pushed the advantage to 39 following Aaron Harrison’s third made triple of the game at 86-49.
  
• 
    UK earned its largest lead following a Lanter made 3-pointer and an EJ Floreal made layup at 91- 51.
  
• 
    Lee and Johnson both led all second half scorers with eight points apiece. Johnson also hauled in a squad-best four rebounds after the break.
  
  Individual Notes
  

 Aaron Harrison poured in 12 points paced by a 3-for-4 day behind the arc. o Hauled in three rebounds and added a pair of steals in the win.
o Averaging 10.7 points per game and shooting at a 57 percent clip.

 Andrew Harrison logged nine points and a team-high six assists. o Has four or more assists in all three games.
o Was a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe.

 Dominique Hawkins dished out four assists and added two points and two steals. o Notched six assists in three games.
o Has at least one steal in every game in the Bahamas.

 Marcus Lee totaled 14 points and seven rebounds.
o Made six field goals all by way of a dunk.
o Grabbed two offensive boards and five on the defensive end.
o Shot 86 percent from the floor and is shooting .722 during the Bahamas tour.

 Alex Poythress notched a double-double with team highs in points (15) and rebounds (10). o Scored six points off of dunks.
o Totaled 15 offensive rebounds in three games.
o Has gotten to the free throw line a team-best 16 times.
o Shooting 68 percent from the field.
o Is leading the team in points (13.7) and rebounds (8.0) in the tournament. 

 Karl-Anthony Towns posted 10 points and six rebounds in today’s win.
o Is averaging 13 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in the tournament.

 Tyler Ulis scored a tournament personal-best seven points and added four assists.
o Has passed out three or more assists in every contest in the Bahamas.
o Connected on a 3-pointer for the second straight game.
o Also contributed a pair of steals and has four total swipes in three games.

 Derek Willis totaled nine points and five rebounds in the win. o Six points came from dunks.
o Has connected for a 3-pointer in back-to-back games. o Posted at least five rebounds in two straight contests. 

Kentucky vs. Texas Basketball Game Time Set

As a part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, the game time for the Kentucky-Texas contest slated for Friday, Dec. 5 at Rupp Arena, has been set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The Kentucky-Texas contest will mark one of 10 total games in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge for the 2014-15 season.

UK and Texas have met only once before. Kentucky captured an 86-61 win in the 1993 Maui Classic.

2014 SEC/Big 12 Challenge Presented by Sonic

Wednesday, December 3^rd

·         Auburn @ Texas Tech – SEC Network / ESPN3 (9pm ET)

Thursday, December 4^th

·         LSU @ West Virginia – ESPN2 (7pm ET)

·         Baylor @ Vanderbilt – ESPNU (7pm ET)

·         Arkansas @ Iowa State – ESPN2 (9pm ET)

·         TCU @ Ole Miss – ESPNU (9pm ET)

Friday, December 5^th

·         Texas @ Kentucky – ESPN (7pm ET)

·         Florida @ Kansas – ESPN (9pm ET)

·         Missouri @ Oklahoma – ESPNU (9:30pm ET)

Saturday, December 6^th

·         Oklahoma State @ South Carolina – ESPNU (12pm ET)

·         Kansas State @ Tennessee – ESPN2 (3:15pm ET)