Dec. 29, 2002
Tennessee State Tigers (2-6)
vs.
No. 14/14 Kentucky Wildcats (6-3)
The Tennessee State Game
Rupp Arena (23,000)
Lexington, Ky.
Dec. 30, 2002
8:08 p.m. ET
RADIO
UK Radio Network (80+ stations): Tom Leach, Mike Pratt, Dave Baker.
Listen Live
TELEVISION
WKYT: Rob Bromley, Martin Newton and Dick Gabriel.
SERIES
vs. Tennessee State
Nickname: Tigers
Web site: tsutigers.com
Series Record: UK leads 2-0
In Lexinton: UK leads 1-0
Last Meeting: Dec. 29, 1998 – UK 97, TSU 47
COACHING COMPARISONS
Tubby Smith (High Point ’73)
Overall: 262-108 (.708) (12th)
at UK: 138-46 (.750) (6th)
vs. Tennessee State: 1-0
Nolan Richardson III (Langston ’99)
Overall: 21-36 (.368) (3rd)
at TSU: same
vs. Kentucky: 0-0
DID YOU KNOW
Did you know that the last time the Wildcats lost to a team from Tennessee other than the University of Tennessee or Vanderbilt was March 4, 1982, a 50-44 upset by Middle Tennessee State in the NCAA Tournament?
TEAM COMPARISONS
cats tigersRecord 6-3 2-6Scoring Offense 75.7 76.1Scoring Defense 70.3 85.5Scoring Margin +5.4 -9.4FG % 47.8 44.2FG % Defense 43.9 49.03FG % 35.6 38.73FG % Defense 37.5 34.2Free Throw % 69.1 69.3Rebound Average 35.1 34.1Opponent Reb. Avg. 33.2 40.0Rebound Margin +1.9 -5.9TO Average 13.7 18.8Opponent TO 14.8 16.9TO Margin +1.1 -1.9Blocks Average 5.0 4.0Steals Average 7.6 9.3
PROBABLE STARTERS
KentuckyNo. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Ppg Rpg Hometown '03 Note44 Chuck Hayes F 6-6 247 So. 7.9 5.8 Modesto, Calif. UK's leading rebounder14 Erik Daniels F 6-8 214 Jr. 7.8 5.6 Cincinnati, Ohio Has started last two games50 Marquis Estill C 6-9 236 Sr. 11.9 5.0 Richmond, Ky. Fouled out against U of L10 Keith Bogans G 6-5 213 Sr. 18.4 2.9 Alexandria, Va. Suffering shooting slump 4 Gerald Fitch G 6-3 188 Jr. 12.6 3.4 Macon, Ga. Season-high four TOs vs. U of L
Tennessee State 54 Arvid Caldwell F 6-7 185 Sr. 5.1 6.6 Nashville, Tenn. Shooting 57.7% FG 44 Cedric Bryson C 6-10 270 Jr. 2.5 3.3 Memphis, Tenn. Averages 1.3 blocks per game 5 Josh Cooperwood G 6-3 175 Sr. 13.4 *2.6 Nashville, Tenn. Top FT shooter (81.0%) 20 Thaddeus Jones G 6-6 180 Jr. 0.6 1.0 Okolona, Miss. Earned 1st start vs. OSU 31 Garrett Richardson G 6-3 180 Jr. 10.9 5.3 El Paso, Texas Team leaders in assists & steals *Assists
Wildcats Return Home to Face Tennessee State
Kentucky returns to Rupp Arena for just the third time this season as it plays host to Tennessee State. TSU coach Nolan Richardson III, son of former Arkansas’ head man Nolan Richardson, was suspended indefinitely by university officials on Friday for an unspecified violation of school policy. Richardson did not travel with the team to Ohio State on Saturday, a game it lost 94-73. Tigers’ assistant coach Hosea Lewis is serving as interim head coach.
The Wildcats are looking to get back on track after losing to in-state rival Louisville, 81-63, on Saturday. UK shot just 37.1% from the field for the game, while shooting 16.7% from beyond the arc. The Cardinals held UK to just 30 second-half points, while five Cards scored in double figures.
Tennessee State owns wins over Trevecca and Morris Brown but stands four games below .500 here at the end of December. The Tigers are shooting a sizzling 38.7% from three-point range this season and average 9.3 steals per game, the most by any UK opponent this season. Roshaun Bowens, who has started six of the Tigers’ eight games, is fourth in the OVC in scoring this week.
The game with the Tigers is the second of four in an eight-day period for UK. The Cats remain home on Thursday to face Alcorn State in a double-header with the women’s team, which faces Marshall at 5 p.m. at Rupp Arena before the men’s 7:30 p.m. tip-off. UK will then head to Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday to play host to Ohio in its annual neutral-site game at U.S. Bank Arena.
The Wildcats are one-third of the way through their 29-game regular-season schedule. Just three non-conference games remain before UK begins Southeastern Conference play next week at Tennessee. UK is 273-99 all-time against teams from the Volunteer State. The game is sold out.Series Information
This is the third meeting between the Wildcats and Tigers, with UK owning a 2-0 advantage in the series. The first meeting took place on March 18, 1994, an 83-70 Cats’ win in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in St. Petersburg, Fla. The teams last met four years ago as Kentucky drubbed TSU, 97-47, in Rupp Arena on Dec. 29, 1998.
Coach Tubby Smith is 1-0 against the Tigers.
UK vs. Ohio Valley Conference
Kentucky holds a perfect 22-0 all-time record against OVC opponents, including 7-0 marks against both instate rivals Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State. The Cats were 1-0 vs. the OVC last year with a 94-75 win over MSU. Tennessee State is the only OVC opponent on the 2003 schedule.
Schedule Strength
Kentucky’s strength of schedule continues to climb. The Wildcats, who were ranked 14th in both voter polls last week, were ranked No. 5 by Collegerpi.com and eighth by Jeff Sagarin last Friday.
The strength of schedule is just as impressive. The Cats, who have played four ranked opponents in their first eight games, rank fourth and seventh in schedule toughness, respectively.
December Embers
Following a rugged December schedule that included three road games and games against three ranked opponents, the Wildcats can complete the month with a 5-2 record should they beat Tennessee State.
All-time, UK holds a 430-103 mark (.807) in the month of December. Last season, the Cats went 5-1 in the year’s final month with their only loss coming at the hands of then-No. 1 Duke in the Jimmy V Classic.
ASSISTance
Cliff Hawkins, who returned to the court just nine days ago after missing the fall semester with academic troubles, has made a solid return to the court as a reserve point guard.
In the two games versus Indiana and Louisville, the junior has totaled 10 assists with just one turnover. “The Hawk” averaged 4.3 assists per game in 2002 starting 29 of 32 games at the point.
Rupp Arena
Kentucky is in its 27th season at Rupp Arena, where the Wildcats own a 341-40 (89.5%) record.
The Cats have won the national attendance title the past seven seasons. Overall, the Wildcats have won 15 national attendance titles in the building.
Once again this season, the arena debuts new upgrades, including all blue seats in the lower level, a new concourse, a standing-room only “eRUPP-tion Zone” for the student body and a media press box, all totaling $5.1 million. The new purple concourse is two levels, replacing the old one-level boxed concession stand. It features greater concession stand access and more restrooms. The “eRUPPtion Zone” moved 400 season ticket holders to other seats in lower arena and moves the band and nearly 700 students into the end zone nearest UK’s bench. It also gives students access to floor-level seating, er, standing. Shockingly, a UK junior from Lincolnton, N.C., Andy Acker, named the area in a contest among the student body. His entry was picked from nearly 200 submissions.
National Exposure
Kentucky has already appeared on national television in eight of the nine games this season. The Cats will appear on national TV 16 times during the 2002-03 regular season, including 10 ESPN appearances and six games on CBS.
Cats in Stats
In the most recent NCAA stats (Dec. 17), Marquis Estill ranked fifth in the nation and is second in the SEC in field goal percentage, hitting 67.1%. As a team, UK ranked 13th nationally in field goal percentage (51.0%).
In the SEC stats late last week, Keith Bogans ranked third in scoring, sixth in 3FG percentage and first in threes made per game.
Gerald Fitch ranked 10th in 3FG percentage. Estill also ranked fourth in blocks, just ahead of teammate Jules Camara in fifth.
As a team, UK was fourth in the league in scoring, third in FG percentage, third in three-point percentage, fifth in FT percentage, fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio and third in blocks.
Estill Holds Record Mark
Senior Marquis Estill shot six-of-eight from the field in the season opener against Arizona State and now has the minimum 200 made field goals in his UK career to take the all-time lead in FG percentage. So far this year, he’s 47-of-70 from the field (67.1%). For his career he’s shooting 62.5%.
Estill ranks ahead of the school’s previous record holder, Charles Hurt (1980-83), who shot 59.3 percent. Estill can own the school record should he maintain the pace throughout the season. The 6-9 center can earn a fourth year of eligibility should he graduate by the fall semester of 2003.
Career FG Percentage (Min. 200 made)
62.5 Marquis Estill (243-389) 2001-03
59.3 Charles Hurt (303-511) 1980-83
59.1 M. Turpin (626-1059) 1981-84
58.1 Rick Robey (533-917) 1975-78
57.1 Kenny Walker (765-1339) 1983-86
Vs. Ranked Opponents
The Wildcats own a 3-1 record this season against ranked opponents with wins over No. 20 Gonzaga in the Maui Invitational, No. 12 North Carolina in Chapel Hill and No. 6 Indiana last weekend. The Cats’ only loss to a ranked opponent was a 71-67 drop to No. 21 Michigan State on Dec. 14.
In January, UK will battle another top-10 team in Notre Dame and this week’s No. 1 team, Alabama. The SEC is loaded, with three other ranked opponents in this week’s polls — Florida, Mississippi State and LSU.
Cats in the Polls
The Wildcats were ranked 17th in both preseason polls. The Wildcats rose to No. 12 in both polls before suffering the loss to Michigan State, falling to 16th in the ESPN/USA Today poll and 18th in the AP poll. After the upset-win over IU, UK jumped to 14th in both polls last week.
Next Opponent
The Cats will play the third of four games in an eight-day period when they face Alcorn State in Rupp Arena on Thursday. The game is a doubleheader with the women, who take on Marshall at 5 p.m.
Last Time Out
The Cats couldn’t find their offensive rhythm in the second half against Louisville as UK was outscored by the Cardinals, 51-30, in the game’s final period in an 81-63 loss.
Former Cat Marvin Stone led all scorers with 16 points, while five Cards scored in double figures to UK’s two. Kentucky shot a measly 16.7% from three. The loss snapped a three-game series win streak for the Wildcats.
Milestones
Keith Bogans led UK with 14 points against Louisville to advance to 13th on UK’s all-time scoring list. In the past four games, Bogans has surpassed a pack of UK legends — Johnny Cox, Pat Riley, Cliff Hagan, Melvin Turpin and Ralph Beard. He has 1,525 points and needs 10 more to catch Mike Casey.
Bogans’ three made 3FGs against MSU moved him into third place on the UK list for career three-pointers, pushing him past Travis Ford and Derrick Miller. He has 196 career threes and needs eight more trifectas to catch former teammate Tayshaun Prince in second place.
Jules Camara ranks seventh on the Wildcats’ all-time blocked-shots list, trailing No. 6 Nazr Mohammed by three blocks.
Three Mania
Kentucky ranks third nationally in consecutive games with a made three-pointer. The Wildcats have hit a three-pointer in 482 consecutive games, which trails UNLV and Vanderbilt.
The Wildcats’ last game without a three-pointer came 14 seasons ago against Seton Hall on Nov. 26, 1988, a “three-point” loss in the Great Alaska Shootout.
Double-Doubles
Kentucky got its first double-double performance of the season when Jules Camara totaled 12 points and 10 rebounds in relief against Virginia. It marked Camara’s fifth career double-double.
Chuck Hayes nearly pulled off the feat against Gonzaga, but fell just short, finishing with 11 points and nine boards against the Bulldogs.
SEASON NOTES
100th Season
The Cats are playing their 100th season of basketball this year. The Cats have a number of events planned throughout the season, including fan balloting for the program’s greatest players, games and moments. The celebration includes replays of the top 10 games on radio, a 25-year reunion of the 1978 NCAA Champs, and four special-edition bobble-head dolls that fans can collect. The celebration concludes with an all-letterman reunion on Feb. 23 at the MSU game.
Kentucky celebrates unparalleled tradition, including seven NCAA titles, the most wins in college basketball, the best winning percentage in college hoops, the most consensus All-Americans, the most AP top-10 finishes, the most SEC Championships and tournament crowns and 15 national attendance titles.
Its first bobble-head promotion was held at the home opener when 500 lucky students received a Kyle Macy bobble-head. The second bobble-head was Adolph Rupp, which debuted against Michigan State. A third made its way out of the bag before the Indiana game — Tubby Smith. The last of the series will be unveiled for the Tennessee State game on Dec. 30.
The Hawk Returns
Point guard Cliff Hawkins returned to the court against IU on Dec. 21 after missing the Cats’ first seven games. The junior was ineligible for the fall semester after academic troubles.
Hawkins showed he hadn’t missed a beat when he entered the game mid-way through the first half. The Dumfries, Va., native totaled four points, five rebounds and five assists in 26 minutes.
The highlight of his return came late in the game when he timed an ally-oop pass to Jules Camara for a dunk.
Fitch Named SEC and TSN’s POW
Gerald Fitch recorded back-to-back career highs – 18 points against High Point, 25 against No. 12 North Carolina – in early December to lead the Wildcats to consecutive wins, earning SEC Player of the Week honors for the first time in his career. He also was recognized nationally as The Sporting News’ Player of the Week.
Fitch shot 68.2% from the field for the week and 75.0% from three-point range against the two teams. Against High Point, he totaled a career-high six assists as well. Against UNC, he scored 16 of his 25 in the decisive second half as UK rallied from a 43-40 halftime deficit. Fitch, normally a two-guard, was playing at point guard in the absence of 2002 starter Cliff Hawkins. He averaged 21.5 ppg and 4.0 apg for the week.
Triple Trouble
Three Wildcats topped the 20-point mark in UK’s win over UNC on Dec. 7, making it the first time in 13 seasons that three players scored 20 points in the same game. Gerald Fitch led the team with a career-high 25 points, while Keith Bogans and Marquis Estill each added 20. All of Estill’s points came in the decisive second half.
The last group to accomplish the feat included current UK assistant coach Reggie Hanson. With Tubby Smith on the sidelines as an assistant coach, Hanson combined his 20 points with 21 by Deron Feldhaus and a 40-point burst from Derrick Miller for a 100-73 win over Vanderbilt on Feb. 7, 1990.
Long-Range Love
UK was 10-of-16 from treyville against UNC, connecting on 62.5% of its shots, which would be a school record had the Cats made the minimum 20 threes needed.
It was the highest three-point percentage since UK hit 63.6% of its shots against Wake Forest during its 1996 march to the national title. UK was 7-of-11 from outside in that game.
Daniels’ Solid Return
Junior Erik Daniels, who was suspended for the first four games of the season for violating NCAA rules governing summer league play, had a stellar return against North Carolina on Dec. 7. Daniels shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, including 1-of-1 from three-point land, for 9 points, while grabbing five rebounds and two assists in 19 minutes.
His productive start was reminiscent of his freshman season when the Cincinnati native missed the opener after having his knee scoped in the preseason. He returned against UCLA and over the course of the next three games was a perfect 9-for-9 from the field.
Home Openers
With the win over High Point, Kentucky is now 85-15 all-time in home openers. Nine of those losses occurred before Adolph Rupp began coaching in 1930. The Cats are 66-6 since 1930, losing the home opener in 1955 to Temple, 1962 to Va. Tech, 1972 to Iowa, 1988 to Northwestern State, 2000 to Penn State and last season to Western Kentucky.
UK now stands at 24-3 in home openers at Rupp Arena.
Maui Invitational Results
Kentucky finished in third place at the 19th annual Maui Invitational. Kentucky beat Arizona State in the first round before getting upset by Virginia in the semifinals. The Wildcats then beat No. 20 Gonzaga in the consolation game. It was the third appearance for UK in the Maui Invitational. The Cats are now 7-2 all-time in the tournament, earning a championship in 1993 and a third-place finish in 1997 in their two previous appearances.
Keith Bogans averaged 16.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game to earn All-Tournament team honors. UK rival Indiana beat Virginia to claim the 2002 title.
Well more than 500 Kentucky fans made the trip to the Maui Invitational to cheer on the Wildcats. UK chartered an L1011, and along with an official traveling party of 55 team and school personnel, an additional 300 fans were aboard the plane. Also, another 150 fans purchased the trip through Commonwealth Travel in Lexington and flew commercially. Others made the trip via additional travel agencies or on their own to help give the Wildcats the largest cheering section among the eight participating teams.
SEC Domination
UK will play its 70th season of SEC action in 2003. A charter member, the Cats have been the most dominant team in the league through the years, recording a 780-212 mark (78.6%). No other team has won more than 647 regular-season SEC games (Alabama) and no other team has a better winning percentage. UK has averaged 11.3 wins and 3.1 losses per season during its SEC tenure.
The Wildcats have won 41 SEC titles and 23 SEC Tournament Championships, more titles than the other teams combined.
Kentucky has won eight of the last 11 SEC Tournament titles.
PRESEASON NOTES
Returning Production
UK lost just one starter off its 2002 Sweet 16 team (Tayshaun Prince), but returned just 67.1% of its scoring from a year ago. Here’s the complete breakdown:
Points 67.1%
Rebounds 76.6%
Assists 81.7%
Blocks 67.3%
Steals 77.4%
SEC Preseason Poll
The Wildcats were picked to finish third in the SEC Eastern Division in a preseason poll of media members. UK, which has not finished lower than second since the league split into divisions in 1992, was also predicted to finish fourth in the race for the SEC regular-season crown.
Keith Bogans was the only Wildcat picked as either first- or second-team preseason All-SEC poll. The first team included Erwin Dudley (Alabama), Mario Austin (Miss. State), Jarvis Hayes (Georgia), Maurice Williams (Alabama), and Brett Nelson (Florida). The second team included Bogans, Ronald Dupree (LSU), Matt Bonner (Florida), Ezra Williams (Georgia) and Derrick Zimmerman (Miss. State).
BIG BLUE MANIA
Keightley’s Seen Half of UK’s Games Incredible.
Bill Keightley is in his 42nd season as equipment manager of the UK basketball team. The beloved “Mr. Wildcat” began assisting in the equipment room during the 1961-62 season and since then, UK has played 1,273 games, owning a 972-301 record.
The Wildcats, who are celebrating their 100th season of basketball, have played 2,395 games, meaning Keightley has played a role in 53.2% of the games.
The Lawrenceburg, Ky., native, who has a jersey retired in the rafters of Rupp Arena, has worked under five different head coaches at UK — Rupp, Hall, Sutton, Pitino and Smith. The current cats have a modern nickname for the 75-year-old Keightley — “Smooth.”
Wiggins In 50th Season
Big Blue fan Bob Wiggins continued his amazing streak of following the basketball Cats. He’s starting his 50th season watching Kentucky play in person and through his own record-keeping, has attended 1,231 UK games.
Wiggins, who is retired and lives in Falmouth, Ky., saw 615 consecutive games — home and away — from 1977 until he suffered a heart attack just before the 1996 Great Alaska Shootout. It’s the second-longest streak on record at UK. The longest record is the late Steve Reardon’s 626 games.
The illness forced Wiggins to miss four games, but he has since returned to see every contest in person, a streak of 217 games.
Meanwhile, his home court streak is still intact. Wiggins has not missed a home game in 42 years, a streak spanning 591 games. During that period, which dates back to 1960-61, UK has a home record of 524-67.
UK’s NBA Players
To start the 2002-03 NBA season, the following Wildcats were active:
Derek Anderson – Portland
Tony Delk – Boston
Jamaal Magloire – New Orleans
Jamal Mashburn – New Orleans
Walter McCarty – Boston
Ron Mercer – Indiana
Nazr Mohammed – Atlanta
Scott Padgett – Utah
Mark Pope – New York
Tayshaun Prince – Detroit
Antoine Walker – Boston
In addition, former UK assistant coach Jim O’Brien is the head coach of the Boston Celtics while former UK All-American Pat Riley coaches the Miami Heat.
Other Wildcats participating in professional basketball include Heshimu Evans, Jared Prickett, Andre Riddick and Wayne Turner, who are all playing overseas, and Saul Smith, who plays for Columbus of the NBDL.
UKathletics com 100-Year Catalog and Online Store
UK Athletics has released an official catalog and online store with products celebrating the 100 years of UK hoops. The product line includes memorabilia, Tubby Smith autographed items, videos, DVDs and the full-line of Nike apparel. The catalog is a special 100-year basketball that features UK’s national champions, All-Americans, great coaches and 100-year logo. Fans may call 888-234-9350 or log on to ukauthentic.com to purchase items.
— Go Cats —
