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COACHES vs. CANCER CLASSIC
St. John’s Red Storm (0-0) vs. #12/#12 Kentucky Wildcats (0-0)
Nov. 9, 2000 – 9 p.m. ET
Madison Square Garden (19,826) – New York City
Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic
Thursday — Nov. 9
#6/7 Kansas vs. #19/17 UCLA – 6:30 p.m. ET – espn2
#12/12 Kentucky vs. St. John’s – 9 p.m. ET – espn2
Friday — Nov. 10
Consolation – 6:30 p.m. ET – espn2
Championship – 9 p.m. ET – ESPN
RADIO
UK Radio Network — The Cats can be heard on flagship station WLAP-AM 630 in Lexington, 100,000-watt WHAS-AM 840 from Louisville and approx. 90 other stations around the Ohio Valley. Ralph Hacker, Sam Bowie and Dave Baker call the action.
TELEVISION
espn 2 — Brad Nessler, Dick Vitale & Jay Bilas
Cats Open Early Schedule in Big Apple
The Kentucky Wildcats open their 98th season of college basketball in the highly competitve Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic, facing St. John’s in the opening double-header before battling Kansas or UCLA the second night.
For the Wildcats, the tournament marks the earliest start of their college basketball season since the school began playing the sport in 1903. It’s also the first appearance in the Classic, which began as a one-night double-header in 1996.
For Coach Tubby Smith, the 2001 Wildcats comprise his fourth UK team. Led by junior Tayshaun Prince, the Cats’ leading scorer last season (13.3 ppg), Smith has but one senior on the roster that includes seven newcomers. All totaled, nine of the 13 eligible Cats are freshmen or sophomores.
Cat Seats for Sale
Tickets are available for the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at the Madison Square Garden box office and through Ticketmaster at 212-307-7171, 201-507-8900, 631-888-9000 and 914-454-3388.
Tickets remain for the UK-Athletes in Action exhibition game on Nov. 16 at Rupp Arena as well as the home opener against Penn State on Nov. 25. The upper arena seats are $15 each and can be purchased at the Rupp Arena box office or the Memorial Coliseum ticket office. Tickets can be charged by calling 800-928-CATS or 859-233-3565 or by logging on to UKathletics.com. The tickets were not claimed during UK’s student-ticket distribution.
Tickets are on sale for the Kentucky-Jacksonville State game in Cincinnati’s Firstar Center on Nov. 21. Seats are $30 and can be purchased by calling Ticketmaster in the Cincinnati metropolitan area at 513-562-4949 or stop by any Thriftway market. Lexington area residents can contact their local Ticketmaster at 859-281-6644.
Garden Cats
The Wildcats first played in Madison Square Garden on Dec. 30, 1943, beating St. John’s 44-38. Now, 57 years later, UK owns a 32-8 record in the famed arena, which includes the 1946 NIT Championship, the 47 NIT runner-up finish, the 48 NCAA title and 48 Olympic qualifying tournament, and the 76 NIT crown.
Last year, Kentucky finished second in the Preseason NIT, defeating Maryland in the Garden, 61-58, before losing to Arizona in the title game, 63-51.
Against St. John’s in the Garden, UK is 8-2.
St. John’s Series
This will be the 15th meeting between the two storied programs. While UK holds a 10-4 advantage over the Red Storm, the squads have split the last four meetings. But those four games date back to 1952. The teams have only met once since 1990, when UK handed St. John’s an 86-77 loss at the Garden in the finals of the 1992 ECAC Holiday Festival. The squads could have met again in the 1995 ECAC Holiday finals, but Iona upset the Red Storm in the first game.
Tubby Smith has never coached against St. John’s, but Mike Jarvis is 0-2 against Kentucky. His George Washington team lost to the Cats in the 1997 Maui Invitational and his second Boston U. team lost to UK in the 1986 UKIT.
Kansas Series
Kentucky is 19-3 against the nation’s No. 3 winningest team. The Cats have won three straight games against Kansas, the school where the legendary Adolph Rupp lettered. The last meeting was a 92-88 overtime victory in the second round of the 1999 NCAA Tournament. Scott Padgett drained a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining to tie the game before scoring seven points in overtime to lead the Cats to the Sweet 16. He finished with 29 points and 10 boards.
Earlier that season, UK had beaten the Jayhawks, 63-45, in the Great Eight.
At neutral sites, UK has won all five meetings.
UCLA Series
Kentucky leads the series 5-2 between the two teams that have won the most NCAA Championships.
Twice the teams have met in NCAA Tournament play. The Bruins won the first meeting, a 92-85 win in the 1975 NCAA Championship game, John Wooden’s last as UCLA coach. Kentucky eliminated the Bruins en route to the 1998 NCAA Championship, beating UCLA, 94-68, in the third round of the tournament.
The squads met again in the 1998 San Juan Shootout, with UK winning 66-62 in the consolation game.
Orlando "Tubby" Smith (High Point 73)Overall (10th year) 210-85 (71.2%)at UK (4th year) 86-23 (78.9%)SEC Tournament (5 yrs.) 10-3 (76.9%)NCAA Tournament (7 yrs.) 16-6 (72.7%)vs. St. John's 0-0vs. Kansas 2-0vs. UCLA 3-0SJU's Mike Jarvis (Northeastern 68)Overall (16th year) 306-185 (62.3%)at SJU (3rd year) 53-17 (75.7%) vs. Kentucky 0-2KU's Roy Williams (North Carolina 72)Overall (13th year) 329-82 (80.0%)at KU (13th year) samevs. Kentucky 1-3UCLA's Steve Lavin (Chapman 88)Overall (5th year) 91-38 (70.5%)at UCLA (5th year) samevs. Kentucky 0-2
History, Tradition Battle in NY
Four of the nation’s all-time winningest teams will battle for the championship of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. The combined all-time record of Kentucky, Kansas, St. John’s and UCLA is 6,556-2,637 (71.3%). In addition, 20 of the 62 NCAA Championships have been won between three of the teams participating in the Classic — UCLA (11), Kentucky (7) and Kansas (2).
All-Time Wins1. Kentucky 1,7713. Kansas 1,7125. St. John's 1,60711. UCLA 1,466All-Time Winning Percentage1. Kentucky .7644. Kansas .7005. UCLA .6996. St. John's .690NCAA Championships1. UCLA 112. Kentucky 7T5. Kansas 2Final Four Appearances2. UCLA 143. Kentucky 135. Kansas 10Final Four Wins1. UCLA 242. Kentucky 176. Kansas 8Tournament Appearances1. Kentucky 412. UCLA 355. Kansas 29T7. St. John's 26Tournament Games1. Kentucky 1213. UCLA 1055. Kansas 87Tournament Wins1. Kentucky 853. UCLA 765. Kansas 60
Disabled List
Todd Tackett is suffering from a repaired knee last spring (scope) and has not resumed practicing with the team. He may be a redshirt candidate.
Erik Daniels, who underwent athroscopic knee surgery the week before practice began last month, returned to practice last weekend. He will dress for the Classic but is listed as questionable.
Prince, Bogans Make All-SEC; Cats Picked 2nd in Eastern Division
University of Kentucky junior Tayshaun Prince was picked a first-team All-Southeastern Conference performer and teammate Keith Bogans was named to the second team in a vote by the media at the conclusion of the annual SEC Basketball Media Days on Nov. 2.
Prince, the Wildcats’ leading returning scorer and rebounder, was a second-team selection at the end of last season. Arkansas’ Joe Johnson was named the SEC’s Preseason Player of the Year. Joining Johnson and Prince on the first team were Tennessee’s Tony Harris and Vincent Yarbrough and Florida’s Udonis Haslem.
Bogans, who made the All-SEC Freshman team last season, joined D.A. Layne of Georgia, Rod Grizzard of Alabama, Chuck Eidson of South Carolina and Greg LaPointe of Vanderbilt on the preseason second team.
Tennessee was picked to win the SEC Championship. Kentucky was tabbed to finish second in the Eastern Division followed by Florida, South Carolina, Georgia and Vanderbilt. Arkansas was picked to win the Western Division followed by Alabama, Miss. State, Auburn, LSU and Ole Miss.
Experience Factor
The experience factor for the Kentucky Wildcats is low. With the loss of two seniors and two sophomores from last season’s squad, UK has only one senior this season – Saul Smith – and seven newcomers, including six true freshmen. Nine of the 13 eligible Wildcats are freshmen or sophomores.
Three of the Wildcats’ starters from last season’s 23-10 team return. Tayshaun Prince, the starting power forward last year, will be used primarily at his more natural position of small forward this season. The Cats return both starting guards – Smith and two-guard Keith Bogans. UK lost three of its top five scorers from last year – Jamaal Magloire (13.2 ppg), Desmond Allison (7.8 ppg) and Jules Camara (7.2 ppg).
Returning production includes:
Points – 59.9%
Rebounds – 44.6%
Assists – 69.5%
Blocks – 36.8%
Steals – 70.6%
Hawkins No. 1
Freshman Cliff Hawkins becomes the first Wildcat in the modern era to wear jersey No. 1 for the Wildcats. The NCAA changed its rule last season allowing jerseys No. 1 and No. 2 to be worn in games. Previously, those numbers were prohibited due to confusion among official’s signals while reporting fouls, free throws awarded, etc.
ESP — Estill, Stone and Parker
Marquis Estill, Marvin Stone and Jason Parker combined for 44 points and 31 rebounds to lead the Wildcats to a powerful 98-82 win over the EA Sports/California All-Stars last Thursday. The trio, all of whom can play power forward or center, displayed solid low post scoring, the ability to run the floor and interior passing skills.
The true freshman Parker, making his first appearance in a UK uniform, scored a team-high 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Estill, who missed last season as a partial qualifer, came off the bench to score 11 points and grab 10 rebounds. Stone, playing with two healthy thumbs for the first time since last January, also tallied a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards.
Thanks to the interior firepower, Kentucky shot 53.8% from the field against the All-Stars, continuing a trend from a week earlier where UK shot an identical 53.8% overall from the field in its annual Blue-White scrimmage.
Three Mania
While the Cats shot a record-low 29.2 percent from three-point range last season, they did manage to hit a three-pointer in every game, running their streak of consecutive games with a three to 407. It’s the nation’s fourth-longest streak, trailing UNLV, Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech, which have all hit a three-pointer in every game since the rule was adopted. The Wildcats’ last game without a three-pointer came against Seton Hall on Nov. 26, 1988, a three-point loss in the Great Alaska Shootout.
25th Anniversary
This is the 25th season that the University of Kentucky has played basketball in Rupp Arena. The largest built-for-basketball arena in the nation has seen the Wildcats achieve a 317-35 record, a sterling 90.1 winning percentage.
The Wildcats officially start the 2000-01 season in Rupp Arena on Nov. 25 when they play host to Penn State. UK has won 20 consecutive games in the city-owned arena named for Coach Adolph Rupp, including a perfect 14-0 home record last season.
Overall, UK has not had a losing season at home in 72 years, the longest streak in the nation. The winning seasons began in 1927-28 when the Cats were 6-2 at home.
The Wildcats have won 13 national attendance titles since the building opened, including the last five in a row.
Preseason Rankings
Kentucky begins the season ranked 12th in both the Associated Press and the USA Today/ESPN poll.
Among the many preseason polls, UK is picked by the “experts” to finish anywhere from 10th to 16th. Kentucky finished 19th in the AP poll last season, 22nd in the coaches poll. Keep in mind, in some of these same preseason polls, Ralph Nader was predicted to win this week’s presidential election.
Lindy's/CBS Sportsline Vitale/ESPN Mag. 1. Arizona 1. Duke 2. Duke 2. Arizona 3. Maryland 3. North Carolina 4. Michigan State 4. Kansas 5. Tennessee 5. Stanford 6. Kansas 6. Maryland 7. Stanford 7. Illinois 8. North Carolina 8. Seton Hall 9. Illinois 9. Mich. State10. Seton Hall 10. Tennessee11. Kentucky 11. Wake Forest 12. Connecticut 13. DePaul 14. Florida 15. Notre Dame 16. KentuckyFoxSports.com Basketball News 1. Duke 1. Arizona 2. Arizona 2. Duke 3. Seton Hall 3. Kansas 4. Illinois 4. Maryland 5. Tennessee 5. Illinois 6. Maryland 6. North Carolina 7. North Carolina 7. Michigan State 8. Kansas 8. Tennessee 9. Stanford 9. Stanford10. Michigan 10. Seton Hall11. Wisconsin 11. Kentucky12. KentuckyThe Sporting News HoopsTV.com 1. Duke 1. Duke 2. Arizona 2. Arizona 3. Michigan State 3. Illinois 4. Stanford 4. Maryland 5. Maryland 5. Michigan State 6. Tennessee 6. North Carolina 7. Kansas 7. Kansas 8. Illinois 8. Seton Hall 9. Seton Hall 9. Tennessee10. Kentucky 10. Kentucky
Tubby’s Time… Busy
Ten days ago, Coach Smith spent the day in Chicago as a member of an NCAA Committee to study basketball issues. Smith is one of several active coaches on the committee, that includes Mike Krzyzewski of Duke and Oregon’s Ernie Kent. The committee is studying a number of different issues, including summer recruiting and the 5/8s rule, which allows schools to sign eight student-athletes over a two-year period but no more than five in one season.
In June, Smith spoke before members of Congress on the issue of sports gambling. He teamed with South Carolina’s Lou Holtz and U.S. presidential hopeful John McCain on eliminating legal wagering on college sporting events.
This past summer, he was an assistant coach for the US Olympic Basketball Team which captured the gold medal at the summer games in Sydney, Australia. Unfortunately, coaches are not given a gold medal, but as WHAS radio personality Terry Meiners said, “Smith came home with a freezer full of kangaroo meat.”
Basketball Rules Changes
The following major changes have been made to the official rules for college basketball this season:
Timeout format – Each team will be allowed to call four 30-second timeouts and one 60-second timeout during the course of the game. The first 30-second timeout called by either team will be a full media-length timeout. Only three of the four 30-second timeouts can be carried over to the second half. The 60-second timeout can be used at any time. Any unused 30-second timeouts may be carried over to an extra period. In addition, both teams will each receive an additional 30-second timeout per extra period. The first 30-second timeout called in the extra period will be a full media timeout. As usual the media timeouts will occur after the 16-, 12-, eight- and four-minute marks of each half.
At the end of the second half or at the end of an extra period, officials shall use replay equipment or a television monitor that is located on a designated court-side table to ascertain whether a try or field goal that will determine the outcome of a game (win, lose or tie) and is attempted at or near the expiration of the game clock, was released before the sounding of the period-ending horn.
A maximum of six players are allowed on the free throw lane during an attempt – four opponents of the shooter and two of the shooter’s teammates. All others must remain beyond the free throw line extended and outside the three-point arc.
The penalty for indirect technical fouls is one free throw and will not count toward the player’s five personal fouls or as a team foul. If a double indirect technical foul occurs, no free throws are awarded. Examples of indirect technical fouls are delay of the game, changing the starting lineup, playing with more than five players, excessive timeouts, substitution infraction, noisemakers/laser pointers, debris thrown on the court, grasping a basket, dunking during a dead ball, etc.
Experimental Rules
Two experimental rules will be tested this week when the Cats participate in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. They may be used in the exhibition games as well.
A trapezoid free throw lane – as used in international play.
A designated area around the basket that’s a restricted block/charge zone – as utilized in the NBA.
Officiating Point of Emphasis for 2001
The point of emphasis for men’s college basketball officiating this season is rough physical play and illegal contact.
Keightley Begins 40th Season
Kentucky equipment manager Bill Keightley is beginning his 40th season on the UK sidelines. The beloved Mr. Wildcat has served UK since 1961-62, watching the Cats roll to a 919-280 record during that era.
Keightley, who has his jersey retired in the rafters of Rupp Arena, has worked under five different head coaches at UK — Rupp, Hall, Sutton, Pitino and Smith.
Wiggins Keeps on Coming
Big Blue fan Bob Wiggins continues his amazing streak of following the basketball Cats. 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. The illness forced him to miss four games, but has since returned to see every contest in person.
His home court streak is still intact. Wiggins has not missed a home game in 39 years, a streak spanning 563 games. During that period which dates back to 1960-61, UK has a home record of 501-62.
In all, he’s beginning his 48th season following UK. He currently has seen 144 straight games and 1,157 overall.
NATIONAL POLLSAssociated Press -- Nov. 7 1. Arizona (37) 27-7 4 2. Duke (29) 29-5 1 3. Michigan State (5) 32-7 2 4. Stanford 27-4 3 5. Maryland (1) 25-10 17 6. North Carolina 22-14 -- 7. Kansas 24-10 -- 8. Illinois 22-10 21 9. Tennessee 26-7 1110. Seton Hall 22-10 --11. Florida 29-8 1312. Kentucky 23-10 1913. Utah 23-9 --14. Connecticut 25-10 2015. Notre Dame 22-15 --15. Arkansas 19-15 --17. UCLA 21-12 --18. Cincinnati 29-4 719. Wisconsin 22-14 --20. Wake Forest 22-14 --21. DePaul 21-12 --22. Oklahoma 27-7 1223. Southern Cal 16-14 --24. Virginia 19-12 --25. Iowa State 32-5 6 USA Today/ESPN -- Nov. 3 1. Arizona (19) 27-7 8 2. Duke (12) 29-5 4 3. Stanford 27-4 5 4. North Carolina 22-14 11 5. Michigan State 32-7 1 6. Kansas 24-10 -- 7. Maryland 25-10 25 8. Tennessee 26-7 14 9. Illinois 22-10 --10. Seton Hall 22-10 --11. Florida 29-8 212. Kentucky 23-10 2213. Connecticut 25-10 --14. Cincinnati 29-4 715. Arkansas 19-15 --16. Utah 23-9 --17. Notre Dame 22-15 --18. Wake Forest 22-14 --19. UCLA 21-12 2320. DePaul 21-12 --21. Oklahoma 27-7 1922. Wisconsin 22-14 1623. Iowa State 32-5 324. USC 16-14 --25. Virginia 19-12 -- UK Week-By-WeekDate AP/USAPreseason 12/12
