Kentucky Telethon For Texas Hurricane Relief "Teaming Up For Texas"

Humbled by the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, John and Ellen Calipari, Joe and Kelly Craft, and the Kentucky men’s basketball team – in conjunction with WKYT – will host a telethon Sunday from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. on WKYT and its affiliates across the state. One hundred percent of the proceeds will go to the American Red Cross to benefit the victims of the catastrophic storm.

The “Teaming Up For Texas” telethon will air throughout the state (current affiliates are below), as members of the UK men’s basketball team will take phone calls and donations. Special guests are expected to participate in the show. 

Details on how to donate and the telethon phone numbers will be released closer to the telethon.

“I have not been able to stop thinking about everyone who has been affected by Hurricane Harvey,” John Calipari said. “Every time I turn on the TV, I’m stunned at the images of devastation in Texas. It hits home for me because of the players we’ve had come from that area, including Andrew and Aaron Harrison, De’Aaron Fox and now Jarred Vanderbilt. Thankfully their families are safe, but there are a whole lot of people down there who aren’t as fortunate.

“The Big Blue Nation has already been terrific in helping us raise $150,000 for the victims of Hurricane Harvey by showing up to last week’s UK Alumni Charity Game and the response to the University of Houston’s call earlier this week for clothing has been terrific, but we can do even more. I hope our fans will join me, Ellen, Joe and Kelly Craft, and our team in helping raise money this weekend. No donation is too small.”

Teaming Up For Texas will be streamed live at WKYT.com, UKathletics.com, CoachCal.com, and on the official@UKCoachCalipari and @KentuckyMBB Facebook pages. 

UK has held two previous telethons under Calipari to assist with natural disasters. In 2010, Kentucky and Calipari used a telethon to raise more than $1 million for victims of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. UK followed that up with another telethon in 2012 that generated $1 million for victims of Superstorm Sandy. Calipari also helped raise funds for West Liberty, Kentucky, after tornadoes ravaged the town in 2012.

For more information from the Red Cross, please visit redcross.org or contact Lynne Washbish at Lynne.Washbish@redcross.org.

Current Kentucky Stations Set to Air Telethon:

City	Station	National Affiliate
Lexington, Ky.	WKYT	CBS
Louisville, Ky.	WBKI	CW
Hazard, Ky.	WYMT	CBS
Ashland, Ky./Huntington, W.Va./Charleston, W.Va.	WSAZ	Tri-State CW
Bowling Green, Ky.	WBKO	FOX
Paducah, Ky.	WPSD	*Channel 6.3 (antenna TV)
Lexington, KY. (radio)	WLAP (radio)	*630 AM (radio)

Big Blue Madness Ticket and Campout Info

Tickets for the 2017 edition of Big Blue Madness in Rupp Arena will be available Friday, Sept. 29, at 10 p.m. at the Memorial Coliseum ticket windows on Avenue of Champions and online at Ticketmaster.com. Big Blue Madness, the first open practice opportunity for UK’s 2017-18 men’s and women’s basketball teams, is Oct. 13 at 7 p.m.

Tickets are free again this year for the annual spectacle in Rupp Arena, which will feature introductions of both the men’s and women’s basketball teams, practice drills, videos, and more. Like the last two years, the ticket distribution will take place Friday night both at the Memorial Coliseum ticket windows on Avenue of Champions and online at Ticketmaster.com. All patrons require a ticket to Big Blue Madness, regardless of age.

A limited number of control cards will be issued to those camped out Friday, Sept. 29, at 2 p.m. All fans must be present to obtain their control cards and only one control card per person will be accepted at distribution. All people with control cards must be in line by 10 p.m. 

At the request of campus public safety officials, fans wishing to line up ahead of time at Memorial Coliseum for ticket distribution are asked to do so no earlier than 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The athletics department will provide portable restroom facilities, but the use of permanent, wooden-type structures, portable generators, and propane tanks or other open flames used in cooking is prohibited due to safety concerns. Alcoholic beverages and tobacco products are not permitted. Additionally, selling sports tickets in excess of face value is illegal in Kentucky.

With the surrounding campus undergoing construction, space will be limited for fans wishing to line up ahead of time, and fans are encouraged to use Ticketmaster.com to obtain tickets. Once available space for fans has reached capacity, remaining fans will be asked to acquire tickets online at Ticketmaster.com. As in past years, UK Athletics will inform fans when available space has reached capacity and they are unlikely to receive control cards for the in-person ticket distribution.    

Campers are expected to be respectful to fellow campers, students, faculty, staff, security officials and pedestrians during the campout; and to abide by all university policies. The university will be operating normally with classes in session.

Parking and transportation information, along with further ticketing details, will be released at a later time.

UK 2017 Alumni Charity Game Info

 Some of Big Blue Nation’s favorites will don “Kentucky” across their chest once again for the annual UK Alumni Charity Game.

On Aug. 25 in Rupp Arena, fans will have an opportunity to enjoy some of the top talent to come through the UK men’s basketball program when Kentucky hosts the 2017 UK Alumni Charity Game. This year’s event will feature two games, with a Legends Game starting at 7 p.m. and the UK Alumni Charity Game tipping off at 8 p.m.

The Legends Game will feature legends from the past, while the annual UK Alumni Charity Game will pit current UK pros against one another. Per NBA rules, the University of Kentucky cannot confirm any current NBA players participating in the exhibition game. The Legends Game currently includes Kentucky greats and former NBA players Derek Anderson, Keith Bogans, Rex Chapman, Joe Crawford, Tony Delk, Kevin Grevey, Kyle Macy and Kenny Walker, among others.

Tickets for the 2017 UK Alumni Charity Game will go on sale to the public on Friday at 10 a.m. All seats are reserved and priced at the following rates:

·         Courtside: $500

·         Premium lower level: $100

·         Lower level sideline: $50

·         Lower level: $25

·         Premium upper level: $10

·         Upper level: $5

Tickets can be purchased at the Rupp Arena box office, online at Ticketmaster.com, at any Ticketmaster Outlet or by phone at 1-800-745-3000. There is an eight-ticket limit per person. All orders will have additional fees attached plus a $1 facility fee. All proceeds from the game will go to charity.  

You must be 16 or older to purchase tickets and children under the age of 2 get in for free with a paying adult (the child will not have a seat and must sit on the lap of the paying adult). 

Doors to Rupp Arena will open at 6 p.m. ET.

Kentucky Leads Nation In Basketball Crowd Attendance... Once Again!

College basketball’s proudest, most passionate fan base flexed its muscles in 2016-17, leading the country in average home attendance once again.

UK led all schools in the NCAA with an average of 23,461 fans per home game, according to national attendance figures released by the NCAA on Tuesday. It’s the 19th time in the last 22 seasons Kentucky has led the country in average home attendance. Since Rupp Arena opened for the 1976-77 season, UK has ranked either first or second in average home attendance every season.

The Wildcats have averaged more than 23,00 fans at Rupp Arena in seven of John Calipari’s eight seasons at Kentucky.

Playing 17 home games in 2016-17, 398,850 fans attended games in Rupp Arena. UK was one of only three schools with at least 300,000 fans at its home games.

A total of 706,331 fans watched the Wildcats play at home, on the road and at neutral sites in 2016-17, more than any other school. Kentucky set the NCAA record in 2013-14 with 922,653 total fans.

The Southeastern Conference had the third-highest attendance among the 32 NCAA Division I conferences. A total of 31,859,477 fans watched student-athletes in Divisions I, II and III in college basketball this past season.